Any investor or financial advisor will tell you that investing is better than saving.
So, if you want to be able to relax when you retire, you should start to think about investing today.
Here are the investments that are great for funding your retirement.
Bonds
Bonds are sold by people looking to make money. They are usually produced by big companies or governments who want to invest the money they make in infrastructure or expansion.
When you buy a bond, the entity that sold it basically promises to repay by a certain date with interest.
The interest is often paid out incrementally, giving you a flow of income. There are lots of different types of bond, but they all work in a similar way.
Once the bond is matured, the entity that sold it, whether it’s the government or a corporation, has to pay you what you’re owed.
The great thing about investing in bonds is that they’re not very risky at all. You are also helping the wider economy when you buy bonds.
For example, if you buy government bonds, you are helping the country invest in public services like hospitals, schools and roads.
Stocks & Shares
Stocks and shares refer to when you buy a small proportion of a company and then hope the price of the shares rise.
When the company does well, you as a shareholder will be paid dividends. This is how you make money from your shares, but it’s not the only way.
If you’re active on the market, you can buy and sell a lot of shares. Obviously, the thing you should be trying to do is buy when the price is low and sell when it’s high.
That’s how you make cash in the short-term.
It takes a lot of effort and practice to master though. When you start out, you probably won’t be very good at it.
Don’t be put off my early failures though. If you stick at it and keep trying, you’ll get the hang of it eventually.
Once you know what you’re doing, it’s pretty easy to make money from stocks and shares. Make sure you spread your investments though.
Don’t invest in one company, make multiples small investments.
Gold & Silver
Gold and silver is good for investing in because it always has value. Yes, the price goes up and down, but the value can’t just disappear the way the value of stocks and shares can.
This is why gold and silver became such a popular investment during the financial crash of 2008.
People didn’t trust the stock markets anymore, so they turned to gold and silver instead.
As the economy recovers, fewer people are investing in gold, so now might be a good time to get onboard if you find shares too risky.
When you’re starting out, bullion is the best thing to invest in. You don’t have to worry about keeping it safe because it will be kept in the bank, and it holds value well.
This is how most people start out when investing in gold. When you become a bit more experienced, it’s a good idea to start investing in rare gold coins like the Morgan Dollar.
You have to understand the value of coins and the difference between the many types of coins if you do this though.
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Annuity
There are lots of different types of annuity out there, but they all work in a pretty similar way.
Over a number of years (or even decades), you pay money into the annuity and then when you retire, you’ll be given an income until you die.
They work in a similar way to ordinary pensions, but the money is better. You can also pay the annuity in one lump sum.
Some people do this when they have a windfall of cash, and then they’re sorted for their retirement.
It’s a very simple, no-frills ways of making sure you’ll be able to live comfortably once you retire. You get a guaranteed income for the rest of your life.
Sure, you might not get as much out of your investment as you put in; you could get more, you could get less. But that’s not really the point of annuities.
The point is you get security and peace of mind once you finish working and enter retirement.
Real Estate
Investing in real estate is an option that’s becoming more popular for people looking to make money. If you have the startup capital to invest in a property, you could make a lot of money.
The problem for a lot of people is that they don’t have the money to invest in their first property.
This is the form of investment that proves the saying that “you have to have money to make money”.
That’s not true of all types of investment, so if you don’t have much money to invest, this won’t be for you.
However, if you do have the cash to do it, investing in real estate is a great option. You should focus on finding properties that are available at low prices but have big potential.
For example, you could attend a property auction and then renovate it. By spending money on improvements and updates to the property, you’ll raise the value of it.
You can then rent it out to a tenant or sell it on for profit.
Forex
Forex trading, also known as foreign exchange trading, is the method by which you buy and sell currency.
It might sound complicated for beginner investors, but it’s actually not that difficult to get to grips with. You speculate on the currency rates, and you can pick it up pretty quickly, so it won’t be too long before you find sucess.
The currencies are bought and sold based on the price and the exchange rate. There is money to be made in forex, but you have to be willing to learn as you invest.
This won’t be for everyone, but don’t rule it out completely. If you’re looking for a new challenge having already tried some of the other investment ideas above, this could be good for you.
It certainly is a big challenge. It involves big risks, but then you can say the same thing for every type of investment out there!
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