Song lovers will remember the fun number ‘Ham Jab Honge Saat Saal (60) Ke, Aur Tum Hogi Pachpan (55) Ki…’ in the mellifluous voices of Kishore & Asha from the 1971 film ‘Kal Aaj Aur Kal’. A young couple in love, romanticize getting old together. All idyllic and filmy but if one reflects at the ‘60’ milestone age there, it dawns that’s when ‘retirement’ normally starts and income stops.
Some try to live life king (or queen) size and forget about tomorrow. Yet, ‘yahan kal kya ho kisne jana..’ famous hit song, is about life’s uncertainty. So, if you want to live your life peacefully and happily after you retire, it might be time to start thinking ahead of the game. Today a host of trained professionals advise on ‘retirement planning’ for a secure, less worrisome retired stage. Another point – you might feel young at ‘60’ and want to continue working. Think again, the young are vying to replace & they deserve a job too !
As a ‘Financial Advisor’ of an Insurance Co. let me try to prioritize things to understand if we’ve steadied ship with regular ‘money’ flow part. Well being & contentment follow with right changes in life-style, diet, exercise & activities that keep the mind stimulated. When to start planning is a no-brainer, don’t leave it for too late and start in mid-50’s.
Old Debts, Financial Liabilities : ‘Neither a borrower or lender be..’ Old concept but important not to owe anything to anyone (and let’s include relatives here) in the autumn years. If you have old home loan or debt, close it out in the next few years. Part of ‘pride’ in a ‘Seniors’ syndrome is being financially independent & debt-free.
Prune Household Budget: After you’re done working, you’ll need a certain amount of money to not only survive but live comfortably with your spouse. Assuming an ‘empty nest’ and grownup children in faraway cities by time you’re mid-aged, one may put feet up with ‘Netflix’ on and no responsibilities left. But with no let up in basic/food prices, living expenses won’t reduce much except for travel, snacking, socializing. It’s felt you’ll need about 70% of what you make now.
A Retirement Plan : It’s great to have dreams in life- many remain unfulfilled in hustle bustle grind of work life. Post retirement there’s chance to achieve ‘Europe Travel’ goals one aspires for. ‘Senior Citizen’ time span can extend to 15-20 years with today’s better living and health standards. It all depends on where the ‘moolah’ is likely to come from. Pensioners breathe a bit easier with assured monthly income. Others depend on the interest/ dividends/ redemptions on their FDs/MFs/shares.
Invest Wisely with Vision : You can’t predict future so be sure to establish a plan that ensures a continual flow for the spouse/family, if you’re gone. To maintain that certain standard of living, planning will tell you that with your present income flow and level of expenses, you need to start saving up a certain amount of money. Based on affordability, Annuity/ Endowment schemes are tailored to fit desired income streams. Anxious on your money getting locked up ? Insurance Cos apart from life cover give good returns with immediate income flowing in and loans against Life Policies !
Legacy Planning : ‘It’s all about loving your family’ (as film-maker Karan Johar’s films say) and truly in Indian families we think of leaving behind legacies for our gen-next and feel emotional about our grandchildren. Invest in long-term plan for about 2o-30 years so a nice’ Corpus is built by the time Grand-child really needs it !
It’s so important to be financially independent in one’s autumn of life – if you prepare well in advance for retirement years, you can have a peaceful and happy time ahead. So plan on being financially, physically, mentally fit to enjoy your old age to the fullest.
Somnath Sinha, Financial Advisor
Max Life Insurance Co.Ltd., Borivili (W), Mumbai
Dated : 19th, Nov, 2024
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