Thought about retirement?

Congratulations on your laser-beam focus on whittling down your debt.  But have you considered saving for your retirement simultaneously?

Retirement? I’m too young!

While undoubtedly that is true, saving for your retirement is a long-term proposition. With the likelihood of government support scaling back over the years to come (especially for my Gen-X comrades on the heels of the Baby Boomers) the truth is retirement savings are going to be a need, as opposed to a want.

I have other, more immediate savings goals

While you may be saving for a house, a car or your child’s education, you can still be socking away a little bit to fund your retirement.

It doesn’t have to be much to begin with, but it is about setting yourself up in the habit of funding that particular avenue of savings.

I need to get rid of my debt first

Kudos to you for focusing on your debt, but your single focus may be to your detriment. But you’re not alone.

A recent survey of homeowners by Manulife Bank of Canada found that, while most Canadians (83 percent) feel that being debt free is an integral part of retirement success, only 54 percent felt that they would actually achieve that goal. Almost half of the respondents (45 percent) said that it was their debt load that was standing in the way of their savings.

A number of people felt that they would have to leverage the equity in their homes to fund or supplement their retirement income. What if you started saving today in an effort to eradicate that?

I have lots of time

While you may still have a couple of decades of working life ahead of you, harness the power that time presents to your savings.

Take this scenario: If you contribute a small amount today, say into something interest-bearing and let it grow over the years, the money that you earn on that contribution will push that tidy sum up. Way up.

If you wait, you will end up actually having to contribute more out of your pocket to achieve the same amount. Do you want to pay more or less out of pocket? It’s kind of a no-brainer. Of course the key is to let it sit there untouched and grow.