Not knowing the answer to the question, “How Long Will My Super Last?” can keep retirees and pre-retirees up at night. It will often be the reason people work longer in jobs they hate because they’re worried about stopping work too early and ruining their plans for retirement.
There are a number of questions that you can ask yourself when trying to figure out how long will my super last in retirement, but here’s a few of the most important ones:
- What sort of lifestyle do you want to live?
- How much income will you need to fund that lifestyle?
- Will you be taking regular holidays in retirement?
- Will the holidays be in Australia staying at BnB’s or will you be travelling overseas and staying at lavish hotels?
- Will you be going out for dinner once or twice a week?
- How much would you like to help your children?
- Would you like to spoil your grandchildren?
- What sort of social or extra curricula activities are you planning to do?
- How will your superannuation be invested in retirement?
As to whether it will last long enough. No one really knows how long they’re going to live, so trying to figure out whether your superannuation will last longer enough isn’t an exact science, but with some reasonable assumptions about what the future may bring you can get a guide, and as a result, some peace of mind.
It’s also worth considering what options you have if you do run out of money.
- Would you be comfortable reducing your lifestyle later in retirement? Perhaps when you’ve reached an age that you’re not as active or adventurous any more.
- Could you downsize later in retirement? Maybe you’re still living in the family home and won’t need all that space anymore, moving to something smaller might free up some cash and allow you to maintain your lifestyle.
- Are you expecting to receive an inheritance at some stage? Its not a great thing to think about, and most of us would be happy for our parents to live it up, but the reality is that leaving an inheritance is often important to your parents generation.
Where can you go to make a start, and get an idea of how your retirement might play out? You could start with this calculator on the Moneysmart website.
https://moneysmart.gov.au/retirement-income/retirement-planner
If you want some advice though and answering your question of “How Long Will My Super Last?”, we’d love you to give us a call on 03 8782 3793 or book an appointment and we’ll help you better understand your current position and what the future may bring.
