The money matters you need to know about
Discover the most talked about financial considerations you should address on pages 6 & 7.
When it comes to later life, the last thing you want to have to toil over is your finances. You just want to enjoy your free time without any money worries.
This why taking time before retirement to get your money in order can save a lot of headaches in the future.
Before you start creating a Will or Power of Attorney, selling your home or making other significant changes, it’s important to figure out what you actually want to do with the rest of your life. Knowing that will help you put in place your budget and arrangements – whether it’s through work and private pensions and savings, or even through property (which is catching up with workplace pensions as the area most people consider safest when it comes to saving for retirement, according to a recent survey by the Office for National Statistics).
Many retirees choose to downsize from their larger family home to something smaller and more budget-conscious. That could mean lower monthly costs (energy bills, insurances etc) or free up some of the value of your current property to use to pay for travel or other fun expenses. It’s also important to know the people in your life whom you want to pass on financial responsibility to, should you be unable to make those decisions for yourself.
A Power of Attorney allows that person (or people) to act on your behalf and enforce any directives you may have made. Then (and this is something people really don’t want to tackle) you need to think about what you’d like to leave for your loved ones after your death, which might involve making or updating your Will.
Because there is so much to consider when it comes to financial planning and organising, especially when you also consider pensions, investments, savings and wealth management, it’s important to get the help of an experienced and reputable financial adviser who can talk you through different options and their implications.
Independent financial advisers (IFAS) can give you much-needed information about everything from pensions to mortgages and investments. For a fee, they can pass on their expertise and knowledge about products and services that you, perhaps, never knew existed. It can often be complicated talking about your finances, but IFAS take their time to explain in detail – and in a language you can understand without financial jargon – what you need to know. They can also pass on advice and forecasts giving you peace of mind. People who have sought assistance from IFAS when they needed it say it was definitely a smart investment.
Money matters can be daunting but, whatever your financial situation, there is always help available and, with the right assistance, you can make sure your money is taken care of for the rest of your retirement.