Everyone is told about the importance of saving for retirement, yet so many people don’t start when they are young. The good news is that it’s never too late to build your nest egg and prepare for those golden years.
You simply need a little vision and an understanding of which ventures are going to provide the best returns. If it helps, you’re not alone. A recent survey found that one in five adults over 50 have zero retirement savings.
Even if you’re 50, you probably still have another 20 years of working. That’s plenty of time, especially if, like many older people, you have no intention of fully retiring.
Envision Your Retirement
Before you choose one, (or all), of the following 5 bold ways to get financially ready for retirement, it’s a good idea to think about your vision of retirement.
While you can’t predict your health, you can decide what scares you about retirement and how you think you would like to spend your time. Knowing this will help you decide how much money you need to put aside to fully enjoy your retirement years.
Then, you can start saving and investing to get the funds you need.
1. Purchase Commercial Real Estate
A lot of people look at purchasing a second home that can be rented out. This can be a source of income in retirement, or you can sell the property to create a cash pot.
However, instead of investing in a buy-to-let, you should consider a commercial property. In general, commercial properties require less work than residential ones. They have longer leases and there are always people starting businesses looking for work space.
Best of all, because they require minimal work, it doesn’t have to be close to home. That means if you find an attractively priced commercial property for sale in Vancouver while you’re living in Washington, it’s still a plausible investment.
This approach means you can find the property that provides the best return on your investment. Again, you can sell it in the future to create your nest egg. In most cases, it’s better to keep the property and use the rental income as your pension.
Of course, while commercial properties require minimal maintenance, you do need to attract tenants. It can help to develop an understanding of social media marketing strategies.
2. Turn a Passion Into a Side Hustle
Another great idea for retirement is to turn your passion into something that earns you money. This will give you additional options in retirement. For instance, you can finish a job but not quit your side hustle, allowing you to continue to generate an income.
If you’ve converted a hobby then you’ll find the side hustle enjoyable, it won’t even feel like you’re working. That’s what makes this an attractive option and a good way of affording a decent retirement lifestyle.
Should your side hustle do well you will have the opportunity to sell it before you retire and use the money to fund your retirement.
If you choose this route it’s important to hone your skills. That may mean taking a course in welding or developing a deeper understanding of female character design for novel writing. It’s never too soon to brush up your skills and ensure your side hustle will be a success.
3. Invest
Another way to create a retirement fund is to invest in the stock market. This is a more traditional approach. The difference is you’ll need to invest in higher-risk stocks and shares.
It’s a good idea to speak to a professional before you invest. They can help advise you which are the best options for quick and lucrative returns. Of course, this approach is high risk but, when you’re trying to raise a significant amount of funds, the stock market can provide lucrative returns.
At the start, this will mean making small, short-term investments in a bid to grow your pot as quickly as possible. As you progress, you’ll be able to split the pot into some lower risk and some higher risk. Just remember that the value of stocks can go down as well as up, you must be prepared to lose some of your funds.
This is perhaps the riskiest way to create a retirement nest egg. However, when you’ve left it late the risk can be justified. The alternative is to opt for safer stocks and settle for a smaller nest egg.
Summing Up
It’s never too late to create your nest egg or even start thinking about how you will earn money during retirement. If you don’t have a large amount of savings already then the best approach is often to look at passive income sources, such as property rentals.
It can help you afford the retirement you deserve without making too many sacrifices today.
