Planning for retirement should begin as soon as possible, be it initially through savings accounts, progressing to lump sum investments and monthly retirement policy contributions.
Retirement planning essentially involves the accumulation of capital in the form of fixed assets and lump sum investments to cater for retirement income. Medical and hospitalization expenses are more often than not exponentially higher as you reach age 65 and over and the cost of medical aid and medical treatment can become a severe strain on your income. Catering specifically for medical expenses is an important part of your financial plan for retirement.
Your retirement funding will come from a mix of investments as you accumulate assets during your life:
Property
Personal items like Art, jewellery, stamps etc.
Cash
Stocks and bonds
Unit trusts
Retirement planning is something that should be discussed at length with a retirement planner, either at your bank or a professional financial advisor registered with the Financial services board(FSB).
Considerations
People are living longer and an important consideration is the age to which you want to plan for financially. Consider the ages at which your grand parents and great grand parents died at, what the circumstances of the deaths were and give yourself a realistic life expectancy assuming that you do not die of unnatural causes. This can make a significant difference to your retirement planning.
The very last thing you want to happen is that you spend the last 5 or 10 years iof your life with financial worries. Plan a retirement age, say 65 years old and after your honest and educated assessment of your life expectancy, plan for the number of years you are most likely to need your retirement funding.
