5 minute retirement planning MOT

 Planning for retirement is tricky. There are lots of questions that need answering:

• How much income will my current pension plan give me?
• How much should I be putting away each month?
• When can I retire?
• Should I be saving for my retirement now?
• Am I saving enough?

Fortunately I know of a useful calculator which can answer all those questions for you:

Personal Pension Calculator 

This calculator works for personal pensions and money purchase schemes. Simply key in a few numbers such as your desired level of income and current pension pot (or lack of) and the calculator will do the rest for you.

(If you have a company final salary scheme as well simply ask your scheme trustee for a projection of your retirement benefits and then add these to the retirement income figures from the calculator).Once you have played with the calculator (and done your sums) you should not be left in any doubt as to how much you might need to save for your retirement and what that retirement might look like. Or in other words, the whole exercise should allow you to make a retirement plan!

Pensions can be a minefield so seek professional advice when you actually decide to put you retirement plan into action. (read my article 10 tips on how to find a good financial adviser)