Having enough money for when you stop working is an important goal for everyone. But how do you make sure you end up with enough? With saving, investing, super and all the other options out there, you’ll need to get up to speed with not only how to save more, but also how to supercharge and accelerate your nest egg.

Why is saving for retirement so important?

Saving money for retirement is vital if you want to maintain rather than reduce your standard of living when you stop working. The most critical question is this: when you’re no longer generating income, will you have enough to live on comfortably?

While it’s best to start as early as you can, remember, it’s never too early or too late to start putting aside more money for your retirement. Whether you’re thinking about saving more, investing, putting more into super, or pursuing another strategy, look for ways to get your money working harder, and explore how you can minimise drains on your capital like fees and charges.

1. Start saving early

The earlier you start to save, the more you’ll end up with, thanks to compound interest. Maximise your savings by deciding how much you want to save with each pay cheque and automating it. This way, the money goes out of your account and into your super or other investments before you have a chance to even think about it. If you receive a windfall, don’t spend it all but put at least part of it into your super or retirement investments.

2. Find ways to cut back on spending

At the same time, track your budget and find ways to cut back. Easy things like switching to better deals on utilities, insurance, and internet require little effort but you could end up with big savings. Set goals on spending, savings, and your retirement nest egg so you have something to work towards. Having defined goals also means you can set benchmarks and see how you’re going.

3. Diversify your retirement investments

Look beyond super to build your retirement nest egg, and diversify your investments. Diversification could help protect the security of your nest egg by lowering risk. Another thing to keep in mind is the importance of investments that at least keep pace with inflation. Options can include term deposits, capital growth investments like property or shares, and managed funds. You might choose to put some money in each of these, and they could generate passive income for you while ensuring you have enough for retirement.

It’s a good idea to work with experts. You can work with a financial planner to create a retirement plan. This should lay out where you want to go and how you’ll get there. A money manager can also give you advice on the right investment vehicles, tax strategies, and planning for the long term.

4. Boost your super

Track your income and expenses to find extra savings, so you can then make extra contributions into your super fund. Consider other ways you can maximise your super:

• Tax-optimise extra contributions – Be aware of the super contributions caps so you’re not paying more extra tax than you’re comfortable with.
• Consolidate your funds – If you have super sitting in multiple funds, consider consolidating them. Super funds charge fees for managing your money. Over the course of years, your balance can dwindle rather than grows if you maintain a small balance. Check features and fees before choosing the right fund to consolidate into.
• Find lost super – Use your MyGov account to check if you have lost or inactive super accounts. If you do, you can claim this money from the ATO.
• Compare fees – Check your current super fund to see if you’re paying more than other funds. Compare features, benefits, growth rates, and fees and consider if you might be better off moving your money to another fund. Also check how much you’re paying for insurance if you have insurance included with your super.
• SMSF – If you have an SMSF with a low balance, consider closing it and moving your money to a retail or industry fund. SMSFs tend to cost the same to maintain regardless of balance, so you might be paying too much to grow a small amount of super in an SMSF.
• Pay rise – If you get a pay rise, increase the percentage of pay you put away into super. This is an easy rule to follow since, because you’re being paid more, you’ll probably easily manage without the extra disposable income you’re diverting into super instead.

Retirement is something we all have to plan for. While it’s best to start early, it’s never too late to accelerate your retirement nest egg. Look for ways to put more money into your super and investments. Boost your superannuation by optimising for tax, reducing fees where possible, and consolidating your funds. With a clear plan for retirement, you could with each pay cheque, supercharge your retirement funds and ensure a comfortable retirement.

Retirement requires a long-term strategy. But what if you need money boost now? Check our personal loans today and apply online in just a few minutes.