Retirement is something that we all look forward to; those golden years are much earned after working hard all your adult life. You finally have the time to live the way you want after taking care of all your responsibilities. But to be able to do that, you should have had a plan in place. Let’s prepare a checklist that can be handy to plan for retirement.

1. Take stock of your assets – Before even starting to plan your retirement, take an inventory of your assets and liabilities. List down all that you own – property, bank accounts, investments, vehicles, jewellery, valuable art, etc. In the same way, list down all your liabilities – these will include any loan/debt – credit card, housing, personal, etc. This way you will know your financial standing and can budget your expenses, apportion for investments and retirement.
2. Reduce your debt – Sometimes it becomes unavoidable to take a loan – to buy a property or a vehicle. Try to repay the loan at the earliest so that you can have additional funds to invest. Avoid taking loans like credit card loans or personal loans, the high-interest rate would eat into your savings. Ideally, you should step into your retirement debt-free as there won’t be any steady source of income.
3. Health Insurance – Health insurance becomes imperative at this stage of life and since you are into your retirement, you don’t have your company/employer insurance to cover for you. It is advisable to take health insurance beforehand to meet any medical requirements.
4. Retirement Necessities – Each one has a different perspective of retired life, some have a simple outlook of living on their retirement fund, others would want to pursue a cherished passion. Depending on what your idea of retired life is, you can determine your expenses and accordingly plan your investments.
5. Retirement Fund – Once you have ascertained your retirement needs, it will give you a clear idea of the funds required to sustain the lifestyle you envisage. It is important that you set aside funds specifically for your retirement and not have it clubbed with other goals. Set your retirement nest egg in such a way that you can systematically liquidate them to meet your needs at different stages of life. It is easy to save and invest but knowing when to take it out can be tricky.
6. Emergency Fund – Apart from your retirement fund and other investments to meet your short and long term goals, it is imperative to have an emergency corpus to meet any contingency that may arise. This will give you a financial security blanket in any kind of emergency. As per the market standards, it is advised to have at least six months’ salary set aside for an emergency.
7. Prepare your Will – A Will ensure that your assets are distributed as per your wishes and your family will be spared all the legal hassles. Assign nominees on your investments, bank accounts, etc, ensure all your documents are safely stored and your lawyer is aware of them. Appoint a trustee to your Will who will take all the necessary actions required after your demise.
8. Retirement Investments – You should continue to think of saving and investing while you are in your retirement too. You can look at different investment options, consult with your financial advisor and take a call accordingly.