Do You Think It’s Too Late To Start Saving For Retirement?

It’s actually never too late to start saving. The sooner you begin to save the better off you’ll be in the long run. Here are a few things to keep in mind when it comes to savings:

1. Know where you currently stand. How much savings do you currently have, how much savings do you want. Try to determine how much money you think you will need to retire. Keep in mind; you will no longer be working, so think about the type of lifestyle you want to have when you retire so you don't end up like the couple in the picture above. Lol!

2. Do research on different types of saving options. You may want to consider RRSP’s, GIC’s, Mutual funds, TFSA's etc. Consider speaking with a financial planner.
 
3. Set up an automatic savings program. This is where you have a set amount coming out of your bank account weekly, bi-weekly or monthly. You can choose a day in the month that is convenient for you.

      4. Check out your company’s benefits. Some companies have stock options, or RRSP matching options. Take advantage of any matching options that your company provides.

      

      5. Take advantage of compound interest. Compound interest is when you earn money on your interest. For example….

Let’s say you invested $1000 at 10% compound interest, after your first month you would make $100. (10% of $1000 = $100)
If you leave the money in the investment and don’t withdraw it you will have $1100 ($1000+$100)
After the second month, you will earn 10% on $1100 bringing your balance to $1210, (10% of $1100 = $110) so now your principal is $1210. As you can see, you can continue to earn money on your interest as long as you don’t withdraw from the investment.