Whether your retirement’s years away or just around the corner, there are a few things you can do to set your future-self up for the retirement you want.
1
Lots of us just assume we’ll retire at the normal retirement age, but we don’t have to. If you think about when you want to retire, that will inform a lot of your plans. And remember, if you build a pot in the Investment Builder, you can start taking that before, at the same time as or even after you’ve retired. Have a look at taking your benefits and savings page.
2
Then, think about the kind of retirement lifestyle you want. A Which? survey suggested that retirees spend, on average, around £2,110 a month per household. To work out what you need, make a list of all the essentials you’ll have to pay for. Then, think about those little luxuries you might want – it all adds up.
3
Check out what you might get when you retire. You can use your Annual Member Statement or log in to My USS, and you can you use the modellers on our calculate your benefits page too. Then, you can think about setting any goals that might help you. There’s also the State Pension too and you may have other income from elsewhere, e.g. a pension from a previous job or income from an investment property. Don’t forget that pension income is taxable.
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Next, you might want to think about boosting what you get when you retire. The Retirement Income Builder gives you a guaranteed income when you retire, and the Investment Builder gives you the chance to build a pot, by making additional contributions.
You can even choose from a range of funds and investment strategies in the Investment Builder. You might already have an Investment Builder pot, if since 1 October 2016 you have earnt above the salary threshold, have transferred in a pension from another scheme and/or made additional contributions. Find out more information on our Investment Builder page and in My USS.
Published: 23 February 2021