വിരമിക്കൽ കാലം സുരക്ഷിതമാക്കാൻ ആഗ്രഹിക്കുന്നുണ്ടോ? പണം കൈകാര്യം ചെയ്യുമ്പോൾ വരുത്തുന്ന ഈ തെറ്റുകൾ ഒഴിവാക്കുക

Retirement can seem simple when it is still years away: save regularly, build a large corpus and eventually live off it. But the number in your retirement account is only part of the picture. What really matters is whether that money can pay your bills for 20, 25 or even 30 years after you stop working. Here are some of the mistakes that can make that harder. Picking a random retirement number You may have heard that Rs 1 crore, Rs 5 crore or some other figure is enough for retirement. There is no single number that works for everyone. Start instead with your current expenses. Think about which of them will continue after retirement and what new expenses, particularly healthcare, could appear. SEBI's retirement planning calculator similarly considers monthly expenses, inflation, retirement age, expected lifespan and post-tax investment returns when estimating the corpus required. Forgetting what inflation can do If retirement is 15 or 20 years away, today's household budget will not tell you how much you will need then. Even ordinary inflation can substantially increase the cost of groceries, utilities, travel and other expenses over a long period. SEBI's inflation calculator specifically illustrates how today's expenses can cost considerably more in the future. So don't calculate retirement needs using today's prices. Starting too late Retirement is one goal where time can do much of the heavy lifting. Starting earlier gives your investments longer to compound and reduces the amount you may need to put away later. If you have delayed, don't use that as another reason to wait. Work out the gap now and gradually increase your investments as your income rises. Stopping retirement investments for every other goal Children's education, a bigger home or a wedding can all become expensive. But repeatedly withdrawing retirement investments or stopping contributions to fund other goals can leave you trying to catch up in your 50s. Where possible, keep retirement savings separate from money being built for children's education and other major expenses. Ignoring healthcare Your everyday expenses may fall after retirement, but healthcare costs can rise. Health insurance premiums, medicines, tests and hospitalisation can take up a growing part of the household budget. You may eventually also need physiotherapy, home nursing or a caregiver. Recent retirement guidance recommends treating healthcare as a separate part of the retirement calculation rather than assuming ordinary monthly expenses will cover everything. Becoming too conservative too soon As retirement approaches, reducing investment risk can make sense. But moving everything into cash or fixed-income investments can create another problem if your retirement lasts several decades. Money you need next year has a very different job from money you may not need for another 15 years. Your investment mix should balance the need for accessible, relatively stable money with the need for some long-term growth to help deal with inflation. SEBI also notes the role of asset allocation in balancing long-term growth and risk. Never reviewing the plan The retirement plan you make at 35 may no longer work at 45. Your salary, expenses, family responsibilities and investments will change. You may also decide to retire earlier or later than originally planned. Review your retirement calculation every few years and increase your savings if a gap is developing. Retirement planning does not require predicting exactly what life will look like decades from now. It means giving yourself enough money and flexibility to deal with whatever those years bring. The earlier you spot a shortfall, the easier it usually is to fix.