With the hustle and bustle of life, it can be easy to overlook retirement planning, with many casting this idea to the back of their minds.
It can be daunting to even think about what next steps you should take to plan your financial future, and the idea of looking ahead towards your golden years can be scary.
People don’t plan for retirement like they do other financial milestones. They plan to pay off a house, start a business, pay for their children’s education, support their children’s wedding and even fund their own death, but not their retirement.
ABS 2017 reports show of the 3.9 million persons in the then labour force who intended to retire, 1.6 million (40%) did not know the age at which they would retire (36% of men and 44% of women). Of those who did indicate an age:
- 20% intended to retire 70 years and older (22% of men and 18% of women);
- 50% intended to retire between 65 and 69 years (53% of men and 47% of women);
- 23% intended to retire between 60 and 64 years (19% of men and 27% of women); and
- 7% intended to retire between 45 and 59 years (6% of men and 8% of women).
So, where do future retirees head to for help?
A good start is to find well-founded financial advisors who specialise in retirement planning and can help people work backwards from their overall goals and ambitions.
With this guidance, many people can retire on a hybrid-financial model, using their super and government entitlements to enhance their quality of life or bring retirement forward.
Professional advice can assist clients to discover what their retirement looks like, particularly when so many near-retirees are unsure of what to do next.
Goals take time, visualisation and above all planning in order to make them achievable. Retirement planning shouldn’t be any different.