Collaborative Post
We all want to be able to make the most of our retirement. With enough funds, you can afford to live out your latter years in luxury – whether you plan to travel the world or settle down in the home of your dreams.
A good workplace pension may allow you to do this. However, for many of us, this isn’t enough. By exploring alternative ways of funding your retirement now, you can start making sure that you have enough money to enjoy your retirement to its fullest.
Open a lifetime ISA
Lifetime ISA accounts can be great options for saving money for retirement. You can save up to £4000 per year and the state will pay you a 25% bonus on whatever you manage to save up (which could mean £1000 per year if you’re putting in £4000 annually).
The earlier you start, the more money you’ll save up. Be wary that there are large withdrawal penalties – unless you’re over 60 or withdrawing money to buy for a house, you could pay a charge of up to 20% of whatever you withdraw.
Release equity from your home
If you own a home and it’s gained value since you’ve been living there, you could consider an equity release. This allows you to access any added value that your property may have gained – which could be tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands if you’ve lived in the property for decades.
An equity release isn’t suitable if you plan to sell up in the future as you’ll have to pay back this equity. It’s better suited for homeowners that plan to live out the rest of their days in the same home.
Look into other property investment strategies
There are many rewarding property investment strategies that you may be able to tap into. This could include renting out a second property to a tenant or renting out a room in your current property to a lodger. You could even rent out a garage as storage space or a garden as an allotment space. Such money could provide a passive income during retirement.
Alternatively, you may be able to look into property flipping. By buying properties at a low price, renovating them and selling them at a much higher price, you can make a lot of money that could be saved up and put towards your retirement.
Invest in the stock market
Stocks and shares are a great way to make fast returns. Unlike putting your money in a savings account, there is a risk of losing your money, but if you diversify your portfolio enough (invest in multiple stocks) you can usually prevent any losses from being major.
Nowadays, there are easy-to-use trading platforms that can allow you to trade yourself without having to pay any commission. Alternatively, you can hire a broker to invest your money for you (the safer option).
Keep working
One way to fund your latter years may be to not retire at all (at least, not fully anyway). Some people continue to work part-time, both to make some extra money and keep themselves occupied. Alternatively, you could find small extra ways to make money by doing oddjobs or monetising hobbies. You may develop a hobby for baking or making jewellery or painting or woodwork – and you may be able to make small amounts of extra money from this. Just make sure that you’re enjoying whatever you do.