Retirement is a reality that one needs to be very serious about, whether you are enjoying in your 20s or living in your 60s. When it comes to the subject of retirement, the right plan of action, a lot of commitment, and up to date information can take you a long way. Following are 5 financial tips that you must keep in mind when planning for your retirement.

• Have a Retirement Plan with Clear Goals: While it may seem obvious that one must have a retirement plan, you would be surprised to know how many people fail to have an effective plan for a comfortable retirement. Not only do you need to have a plan, but you need to formulate one with a properly defined and quantified retirement corpus. Prior to settling on a corpus, carefully assess all your post-retirement expenses and liabilities that you are liable to incur.
• Create an Estimate of Your Corpus: To have a general idea of what your quantified retirement corpus will amount to, you need to create an estimate based on your income and living expenses amounted during your working years. Be sure to make provisions for exigencies and the impact of future inflations. Through these calculations, you will be able to arrive at the savings required to meet your estimated quantified retirement corpus.
• Open a Savings Account: The trick is to spend less than you earn and save the difference for good. By definition, a savings account is a deposit account which bears interest at a fair rate. It is one of the most desirable liquid investments as it facilitates saving. With banks nowadays coming up with innovative offers, it is the perfect time to open a savings account. From free add-on accounts to varying discounts on standard lockers, the offers on savings account include a range of benefits.
• Invest to Build Assets: An asset is something that generates positive cash inflow. Regardless of the age at which you plan to retire, you need to start building your assets from early onward so they may grow at a rate good enough to reach the desired corpus value needed at retirement. Building assets requires you to invest carefully, taking the market and its fluctuations into consideration. When it comes to making your investments, it is crucial to know what works and what does not.
• Types of Investments: Investment instruments vary in nature. Traditionally, long term growth has been found to be faster in equities and real estate investments. Bonds, government savings schemes, and gold are other key instruments of investment. One must work out an optimal mix of these instruments to reach the targeted retirement corpus. Mutual Funds are a good platform for investing across the above instruments as they offer diversification and expert management. You must invest in products for long term, with returns from equity stocks and equity-based mutual funds becoming tax-free after a year of holding, and monitor your portfolio regularly for adequate realignment.
• Invest in Good Retirement Plans: While you can invest across any of the instruments stated above, today there are numerous, tailor-made retirement plans available. While Mutual Funds and insurance companies offer specific retirement schemes, the National Pension System (NPS) by the Government of India is a well-designed and strong retirement product.
• Using Home Ownership for Retirement Income: An option like a reverse mortgage is another way for retirees to generate a constant source of income, and it is tax-free. With a reverse mortgage, you pledge your house with a bank to receive regular income, depending on the valuation of your house, for a fixed period. You are not required to repay the debt as the house can be sold off or vacated once the pledge period is over. The income generated from a reverse mortgage can even run till your lifetime.

Shopping for life insurance is usually an overwhelming experience for many. With a multitude of policies available in the market, picking a policy best suited to you can be tough. However, once you have learned the basics, picking the right insurance policy becomes considerably less complicated. Here are a few essential tips on buying life insurance that you should follow, especially if it is your first time doing so.

Term Plan or Whole Life Plan

When it comes to the main life risks, there are two basic possibilities – living too long or dying too young. To cover these two risks, insurance companies provide either a term plan or a whole/permanent plan. A term plan covers the risk of dying too early, while a whole/permanent plan covers living too long.

Compare Covers and Features

When you are planning on buying a life insurance policy, it is best to compare a range of products. Every company offers a wide range of features and coverages; not only do these aspects differ amongst companies, but they also differ amongst policies from the same company. Based on your coverage needs, it is a prudent decision to examine every angle of a policy and not just the monthly premium.

Remember that Insurance Isn’t Just an Investment

The main purpose of a life insurance is to protect your beneficiaries financially in the event that you die. While permanent life insurance policies do gain cash value over time, they are not the best way to invest your money. Do not purchase life insurance as a sole mean of investment or increasing your wealth.

Buy Insurance from a Reputed Company

Your insurance policy, and subsequently the company, is what will take care of your family once you are no longer with them. Therefore, it is vital to research about the company you are purchasing life insurance from. Check their credibility on the market either via the internet or through friends and coworkers.

Take Advantage of the “Free Look” Period

Once your policy has been issued, most policy sellers offer something called a “Free Look” period. During this time, you will have a few days in which you can customize your policy to suits your needs and coverage requirements better. If you feel that the policy you have selected is not quite right for you, then the “Free Look” period is when you can change your mind and reject the policy, without being financially invested. Policy representatives can usually provide more details about the Free Look period for their products.

Add Policy Riders if You Think You Need Them

When you have selected a policy, you can add policy riders to improve your coverage. Essentially, riders, or endorsements, are ways to customize your policy in such a way that your coverage needs are met within your budget.

Consult a Financial Planner

While choosing life insurance may seem a simple task, insurance advisors are often driven by their commissions. A financial planner, on the other hand, will offer better advice, especially because he/she is more experienced and does not have a self-serving motive.

For a comprehensive plan that will secure your future, opt for a life insurance plan from IndusInd Bank. You can visit the IndusInd Bank website and apply for the plan online.

Life can be quite uncertain and highly unpredictable, with no answer as to when an unfortunate accident might strike. In the unlikely situation of anything happening to us, our priority is always to ensure that our loved ones are taken care of in our absence. Which is where opting for a life insurance becomes necessary as a life insurance plantakes care of your needs and those of your family in the event of a demise.

Undoubtedly a crucial plan to invest in, you still need to have the right information to ensure that you are spending your money in the right manner. Following are some tips on how to save money while buying your insurance plan.

Select what suits you best: Today there are different kinds of insurance plans available in the market, involving varying premium rates and modes of payment. You must check them all out and go for one that works best for you. Bring your monthly budget and additional expenses into consideration while deciding so.

Compare and then buy: After deciding upon the kind of insurance you require, you must compare the plans of different companies. You can take the aid of comparison sites to find a suitable policy according to your budget.

Buy when young: Buying life insurance only after hitting middle age is a mistake that many of us make. You must buy a policy when you are young as doing so helps you get the best of plans at lower interest rates. This is because young people are considered less prone to diseases or ailments. However, once you have decided to buy, it would be best to do so before your next birthday.

Carefully read the terms and conditions: While buying a life insurance plan, go through the terms and conditions thoroughly. What might seem tedious initially can save you from a lot of trouble later. Check out the inclusions, coverage offered, and exceptions made among other things.

Buy a long-term plan: It is advisable to buy a half yearly or yearly policy instead of a monthly insurance plan. You can also choose between a term plan or a whole life plan. It comes down to evaluating the reason for which you are investing in a life insurance policy.

Opt for a life insurance from IndusInd Bank; browse through the multitude of options that will prove the most beneficial to you.