Many people worry they will not be able to afford to retire, but their worries are often unfounded.

People investing into a pension plan are typically insecure about whether they will have enough money to live comfortably after retirement.

Foremost on people’s minds are questions about how to generate enough money for life after work, the timing of their retirement, how much will the UK State Pension provide, the timeliness of investments, making the best allocations, and the safety of their assets.

Worrying about retirement has been a constant, but recently clients have also expressed a “lack of confidence in the country’s political leaders and in investment markets”

Yet such anxiety — present in most people regardless of income or net worth — is healthy, because it often pushes people into action.

On a scale of 1 to 10 — with 10 being the most secure — I find people seeking retirement planning advice typically feel they are in the 4 to 6 range regarding financial wellness, but they are often in “much better shape than they feel”. ??

Here are the top five financial wellness-related questions clients often asked;

1)???How do I generate income to meet my financial needs in retirement?

Generating income in retirement can be complicated. Investors need to understand their overall financial situation, including their income needs and sources of income. “There are many other factors to consider too. Investors should calculate a reasonable yet conservative long-term, after-tax rate of return on their portfolio and not count on spending that much if they want their portfolio to sustain over a long lifetime.

Too many people focus on maximum investment returns & income yields in the market place and then aim their spending at that. ?This approach can result in chasing returns and taking on more risk than is necessary.?It is far better to focus on spending needs first, planning this way presents client with many more opportunities and avoids the pit falls of chasing unrealistic returns and taking too much risk.?

2)???Can I retire?

“The answer is always: it depends. My approach is to explore, using techniques like Cashflow modelling, what a client’s financial realities would look like in different scenarios. There are a multitude of different factors that affect the answer: spending and savings amounts; properties to maintain, acquire, or sell; and other midterm goals, such as supporting children and grandchildren through University or weddings.

“I always say that you can retire, but we need to determine the quality of that retirement lifestyle to see if you are saving and investing enough now. Time has an uncanny way of magnifying the effects of our behaviour today.” ?

3)???I have a number of pension plans, should I merge them into one pension fund?

If you've accumulated numerous workplace pensions over the years from different employers, it can be difficult to keep track of how they are performing.?There is a danger that long-forgotten plans will end up festering in expensive, poorly performing funds, and the paperwork alone can be enough to put you off becoming more proactive.

So, is transferring everything into one easy-to-manage pension the way to go? There are advantages to switching your pension but there are also pitfalls.?The best course of action will depend on what kinds of pension you have and how long you have until retirement.

4)???How do I know if my retirement funds are performing well?

There are many ways to check out your portfolio's overall performance. We use a system called FE Analytics to portfolio monitor.??My clients receive real-time information on the performance of their funds.?If your portfolio is performing poorly, it may be time to make different investing decisions so that you can get to retirement on time.

5)????What will happen to my retirement funds in the event of a market crash

Many are concerned about uncontrollable world events will?hit their retirement wallets. ?Stock markets can be volatile, with many potential ‘Black Swans’ circling.?Regardless of what?happens, maintaining a diversified portfolio is essential and taking time out to complete financial reviews with a trusted professional adviser is important.??

If you’d value more guidance on pension & retirement matters specific to you, then please contact me at [email protected]