Financial Planning for the over 50s

Whether you are a school leaver or a septuagenarian, financial planning is a vital part of life. However, as you grow older the factors you need to take into account evolve and change as your needs mature.

When you are younger, financial planning is all about the long term future and putting ideas together to make sure you start edging your way to getting what you want sooner rather than later.

Once you are over 50, although you may have many things you still want to see and do, you also need to start thinking about how your loved ones would pay for a funeral, if the worst happened.

We take a look at financial planning for the over 50s and run through some of the considerations which should be taken into account.

Pension arrangements

Hopefully you will have been able to contribute to a personal pension and if this is the case, now is the time to view what arrangements you have in place and consider whether they would be sufficient to fund a comfortable retirement.

There are many types of pension funds which can be arranged

Although the exact value of your pension fund may well fluctuate in line with the market, it can be helpful to get an annuity quote so you have an idea exactly how much extra income you can expect to receive once you stop working. This will help you plan for your future and decide whether you need to keep a small part-time job or whether you can afford that around the world cruise you have always promised yourself!

The other factor to consider is whether your pension fund needs to be moved to a low-risk, more secure investment.

Pensions are considered a long term investment so investing into a fund deemed as either cautious or aggressive carries little real risk as there will be time to make up any losses. The stock market by its very nature undulates but any dips will even out over time so there's usually no need to get worried by fluctuations in your fund value.

However, once you are nearing retirement, it's worth considering whether it would be more appropriate to move your fund to a less-risky investment. This is because if the worst did happen and the market crashed, you may not have sufficient time for your pension fund to bounce back before you needed to cash it in. Experts recommend moving your fund to a low-risk location the closer you get to take your retirement.

Preparing for the worst

No-one likes to think about their own death but making sure that all the necessary financial preparations are in place means that your loved ones will have much less to deal with whilst they are grieving.

Look after your money and it will look after you in retirement

If you are willing to go that one step further, you could even make the preparations for your own resting place. An increasing number of people are opting to pick their own memorial stone and cemetery – and even paying for it in advance – in order to save their family and friends from having to make difficult choices at a traumatic time.

You might prefer to leave the actual wording on your headstone but there's no reason why you can't decide on everything else. Granite or marble? Polished or pitched? The choices over your headstone can be made in advance. You can even opt for a kerbed memorial if your chosen cemetery permits these.

Conclusion

Just because you are aged over 50 doesn't mean you don't still have a long and fulfilling life ahead of you and free of the shackles of work, you can finally spend your time doing exactly what you want.

However, financial planning is just as important as ever and whether it's making sure your loved ones don't have too much to do if you were suddenly to depart this mortal coil, or bolstering your pension fund so that you can have a whale of a time during your retirement, it's vital to make the necessary arrangements.