Question No. 11

"Is It Too Late For
Baby Boomers to Manage
Their Own Pension Pot?"

Our Response

Baby Boomers are people that were born shortly after World War II

During the years 1946 through to around 1964 there was an explosion of babies born.  Must have been something to do with soldiers returning home and the "feel good" factor of being at peace.

So by our reckoning, from the year 2016 that would make people aged just over 50 to about 70.  Wow!  That makes us right old farts. 

Given that age range (50-70) there could be an argument for the older end of this demographic being "too late" for the (retirement) party.

But perhaps not so ...

"Is Starting a DIY Pension
At The Age of 60+ Too Late?"

We believe you can build up a fair-sized Pension Pot in as little as 10 years.  Maybe less if that period encompasses a raging bull market.

So anyone 60+ could still do well.  Incredibly, starting to save for your pension at such a late age is not ideal but it's better than nothing.

In such cases, we would suggest monthly contributions into your Pension Pot as much as practical.  It's not unheard of to salt away £2000+ per month.

Think about that.  That would be £24,000 per year or £240,000 after the 10 years.  And that's with no annual growth.  Apply 8% or even 10% annualised growth to that and you'd have a pension bigger than most people.

O.K. £2000/month may be a bit much for most people, so do your own sums with a lesser amount. 

Use our Pension Pot Calculator to find out "what if."  You may be surprised.

"The Earlier Baby Boomers 
Start Their DIY Pension The Better"

Now back to the original question:  is it too late for Baby Boomers to manage their own Pension Pot? 

We think the answer to that is a resounding NO!

But we'll state the obvious yet again.  The earlier you start saving, the better it will be when you approach your retiring age. 

Being very simplistic - suppose a man aged 45 intends to start a DIY Pension with a view to retiring at age 65.  That's 20 years of saving he can cram in.  Quick calc:  20 x £500/month = £120,000.

And that's just contributions. 

Add in the government's tax allowance if the above figure is derived from personal sources, and this adds a further 20% (£24,000).  The total figure is now £144,000

Apply an 8% or 10% growth year on year and you would get a fund value of approximately £275,000 at 8% growth and close to £345,000 at 10% growth.

You can play around with different monthly contributions and growth rates but the end result can be astounding.

Baby Boomers are most definitely not out of the game. 

But you've gotta be in it to win it.

Conclusion

Baby Boomers in one sense have a great advantage over younger savers.  Yes, they may be getting on a bit, but their earning power (and spending power) is, generally greater.

Children may have fledged the family home, mortgages may be approaching maturity.  They will have a lot of free cash.

Best thing they can do is salt away as much of this spare cash as they can afford.

If you fall into the Baby Boomer age range and still haven't planned for your retirement, it's late, but it's not too late.

Don't think that your house alone will provide an income for you. 

Set up a DIY Pension.

Do it NOW!

Footnote

As a newbie, you may want to read the other "Frequently Asked Questions" on this website.  Doing so, will give you a good introduction to running your own DIY Pension.

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