Planning for retirement is a significant step in your journey toward creating a successful financial future. Living from paycheck to paycheck without any goals or specific plans for your retirement can become a challenge in the long run because you might face an unforeseen crisis. With a strategic financial plan or goal in place, you’re bringing yourself one step closer to attaining financial freedom and enjoying a blissful retirement.
Now that we have established how important adjusting your financial plan and goals is for your retirement, we’ve put together a few steps to help you on your journey. Everyone’s retirement journey is different, but these are established tips from professional financial planners in Edmonton that are sure to help you.
Reassess your Present Financial Situation
The first step towards adjusting your financial plan and goals is to review your financial standing, income, expenses, and debts. This will help you to understand the changes you need to make to achieve your financial goals for retirement. A lot of things influence your financial situation, so it is essential to consider these things while making plans for your retirement.
Consider your long- and short-term goals and how they affect your current financial standing, then bear your findings in mind when you’re making new plans. Your current income must align with your needs, wants, and savings, or else you may have to make some changes.
In essence, reassessing your current financial situation will help you understand how your current situation affects your goals for retirement.
Review Your Retirement Goals
What are your plans for retirement? At what age do you plan to throw in the work towel, do you have any health challenges, and what are your retirement lifestyle expectations? Answering all these questions can help you to estimate how much and the intensity you need to put money aside to hit the retirement goals you have set.
It is usual for your retirement goals to change over time due to many factors, so a clear understanding and regular review of your goals is necessary for the adjustment of your financial plans. A financial advisor in Alberta can easily guide you in setting realistic retirement goals based on important factors.
Reevaluate your Income Sources
Many people in retirement are financially buoyant because they have multiple sources of income and investments. To adjust your financial plan for retirement, you need to consider your streams of income and determine if they will be enough to sustain you when you retire. Your income source can include rental income, pension plans, RRSP account withdrawals, or other reliable sources.
The essence of this revaluation is to determine if your sources of income are in alignment with your retirement goals and sufficient to take care of your estimated retirement expenses. An Edmonton financial advisor would be able to guide you better for investments and suggest multiple reliable streams of income that align with your retirement goals.
Many people diversify their income sources through investments in different asset classes; bonds, index funds, real estate, commodities, and stocks. Doing this gives you options in the future and allows you to rest in retirement. A professional financial advisor in Alberta can teach you more about how to diversify your investment portfolio to increase your income streams.
Make an Estimate of your Retirement Expenses
Determining your retirement expenses beforehand allows you to plan better for them. You need to determine the kind of retirement lifestyle you want to have and how your current financial plan fits in. Consider important factors like healthcare, hobbies, housing, travel, and any other specific costs unique to your situation.
Create a realistic estimate and account for possible inflation and miscellaneous expenses that may arise when the time comes.
Adjust Your Investment Strategy
If you’re planning for retirement, consider more long-term investments and explore ways to diversify your investment portfolio. You should adjust your savings and investment strategies based on your reviewed and adjusted goals and income projections. You may also want to increase the amount you set aside for your retirement contributions to boost your financial standing when retirement comes.
Having a solid investment strategy gives you an edge and allows you to make choices faster based on your pre-set goals. With a well-adjusted investment strategy, there’s a higher chance that you will enjoy lesser exposure to risks.
An Alberta financial advisor can help you make the necessary adjustments and align your investment strategy with your retirement timeline and risk tolerance.
Consider Delaying Your Retirement
If, after all your readjustments, you discover that your current resources are not sufficient for your retirement goals, you may need to delay your retirement or consider taking small part-time jobs to support your retirement funds. Delaying your retirement gives you time to save more and maximize your interests.
The delay can be for an extra year or a few months; it all depends on your projections and the level of shortcomings you have. Everyone has different retirement goals, so a delayed retirement or working part-time may not be necessary for everyone.
A retiree who plans to own a massive property will have different financial plans than a retiree who plans to downsize to a manageable property. The most important thing is to understand the funds you need for your retirement lifestyle expectations and work towards acquiring it.
Seek the Advice of Professionals
Going on a financial planning journey for retirement without the help of a professional can be risky. You need to know when it’s time to consult an expert financial planner in Canada with a solid knowledge of retirement planning. They can help you to easily navigate the complexities of financial plan adjustment and provide more tailored advice.
Having a professional in your corner minimizes the possibility of making mistakes that might affect you down the line.
At Deehan Private Wealth, our team of professional financial advisors in Edmonton is readily available to speak with you and provide proven financial solutions. Feel free to schedule a consultation; let’s help you on your journey towards financial freedom in retirement.