Tips to Improve your Financial Wellbeing in Retirement

LONDON, February 21, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --

HSBC's Future of Retirement research identified five actions that individuals can take to improve their financial well-being in retirement.

Action 1: Get real about your retirement needs

Through education and guidance from financial advisers, you will be able to better understand how much income you will need in retirement and how to better prepare for all the financial risks associated with growing older.

Action 2: Put your savings priorities  in order

Work out a realistic budget that works for you and make sure that your long-term financial planning, including the need to save for retirement, isn't overlooked against what might seem like more pressing financial needs. Ring-fencing even a small amount of monthly income towards retirement planning can help to make a major difference in the future.

Action 3: Be aware of how major life events affect saving for retirement

You never know when a life event may impact your savings, so where possible, you need to ensure that you have access to some emergency savings and investments as well as appropriate insurance to deal with periods of unemployment and long-term illness which may prevent you from working. 

Action 4: Make a plan for the future

Any type of financial planning for retirement, including informal ways such as using online planning tools or 'to-do' lists, is a good starting point. Eventually you should seek to draw up a detailed written plan for the future, which should be reviewed regularly.

Action 5: Use professional advice to improve your savings position

Reviewing your savings situation and retirement potential with a professional financial adviser now can help to ensure that all your future retirement needs are identified and that comprehensive plans are put in place.

HSBC Bank plc: HSBC serves 16.1 million customers in the UK and employs approximately 52,000 people.  In the UK, HSBC offers a complete range of personal, premier and private banking services including bank accounts and mortgages. It also provides commercial banking for small to medium businesses and corporate and institutional banking services. HSBC Bank plc is a wholly owned subsidiary of HSBC Holdings plc.    

The HSBC Group: HSBC Holdings plc, the parent company of the HSBC Group, is headquartered in London. The Group serves customers worldwide from around 7,500 offices in over 80 countries and territories in Europe, the Asia-Pacific region, North and Latin America, and the Middle East and Africa. With assets of US$2,556bn at 31 December 2011, HSBC is one of the world's largest banking and financial services organisations.