10 things to mindfully plan for your retirement phase

Your retirement can be a glorious phase in your career if you plan for it well. We present 10 good investment options for your consideration.

A lack of planning and awareness about the right instruments can be the difference between a stable retirement and an uncertain one. Take a look at the following investment options that will help you plan for your retirement:

1. ULIPs. A Unit Linked Insurance Plan (ULIP) is an excellent insurance instrument to get capital appreciation over investment. It is a long term investment solution that also provides life coverage. You can start investing in a ULIP in your early 30s and keep investing it instead of withdrawing it after a few years, so that you build a large fund of money.
2. PPF. The Public Provident Fund remains one of the most popular investment instruments for Indians today. It provides an interest of 8% on the funds deposited for 15 years, and the minimum deposit is Rs 500 per year. Since it has a lock-in period of seven years, one is compelled to keep depositing in it. After seven years, one may partially withdraw the funds in it for personal use.
3. Annuity plans. This is one of the best instruments to explore for a peaceful retirement. Using the option of Immediate or Deferred Annuity, one may make an investment either one-time or over a period of years respectively. Look for a product with a traditional and non-participative plan that has flexible pay-out options for both you and your loved ones in your absence.
4. Property. Property always appreciates in value, and this feature makes it an attractive investment option. It may be difficult to buy property initially, but there are ways to monetise it almost immediately after purchase, by renting it or reselling at a later date. Property offers good liquidity and many options to make a regular income.
5. Money back insurance policy. This is an insurance product that offers regular income after a certain number of premiums have been paid. The income is provided annually and becomes a valuable second source of revenue in the retirement years. Generally, money back plans offer both survival and maturity benefits.
6. ELSS. An Equity Linked Savings Scheme (ELSS) offers good returns over investment and tax benefits. It is a diversified equity mutual fund that is also known as a tax saving mutual fund.
7. Mutual funds with SIP. A SIP (Systematic Investment Plan) helps you invest in mutual funds in equating instalments, so that you do not need to park a large sum of money in the fund at the outset.
8. Recurring Deposit. This is a way to invest incremental sums of money every month for a certain tenure, so that a large fund may be created at the end of the tenure. On maturity, you get a sizeable corpus with interest payable on the investment.
9. Fixed deposit. A fixed deposit uses a one-time deposit of money for a certain tenure (in months) and gives you returns by paying you interest on the deposit.
10. Life insurance. You can choose a life insurance product that has maturity benefits. The advantages are dual: 1) You get life coverage, and 2) The maturity can be timed to coincide with your retirement, so that you may get a large fund of money for your personal use.