The Million Dollar Question: How much is enough?

Part 1: The million dollar question; How much is enough? It’s a common question that requires a complex answer and a variety of different assumptions. In this article we begin to dive into some of the factors you should be considering when it comes to your own retirement needs.

To start, retirement relies on a number of factors such as your:

Current Age
Desired Retirement Age
Your life expectancy
Current Income
Current Expenses
Willingness to take risk
How much you’ll spend in retirement
Anticipated large expenses
What you’d like to leave behind
and most important the lifestyle you wish to lead… and the list goes on.

The Association of Superannuation of Australia (ASFA) attempts to answer at least one of the points. Each year they provide an estimate for how much money you need annually for a ‘modest’ or ‘comfortable’ retirement, for both singles and couples. It also explores what a comfortable retirement looks like vs a modest retirement. Below is a snippet from their website, which outlines what on average a ‘comfortable’ or modest retirement looks like.

A picture from ASFA outlining a comfortable and modest lifestyle for both Singles and Couples.

*Assumes you own your own home.

Below are some of the assumptions that they build in to this mode:

Comfortable retirement lifestyle	Modest retirement lifestyle
Regular Leisure activities.	Occasional leisure activities
Eating out, take away coffee.	Limited eating out
Own a reasonable car	Own a Basic Car.
Domestic and occasional international trips	Short domestic trips
Funds for home improvements	Home maintenance
Premium private health cover	Basic health cover

The answer really is, it depends on your own individual needs and situation. To delve into this further, we have organised Complimentary Seminars in Ingham, Innisfail, and Townsville throughout March. Chris Bradshaw will be presenting in-depth insights on this very topic. Although there is no charge for attendance, space is limited. To secure your spot, please RSVP by visiting: https://linktr.ee/cosca, where you’ll find details on the venue, timings, and dates.

Alternately, we can assist you immediately with understanding what retirement truly looks like for you and to answer the question of how much is enough and the most tailored way for you to reach it. Simply fill in the form below and our Personal Wealth team will be in touch.