All of us look forward to financial stability, and we deploy different methods to achieve it. Despite, most of us make financial choices that we might regret after 10 years or less. Understandably, some of these mistakes are common.
Majority of people, regardless of their location, try to prevent such choices. Yet, there are myriad financial choices that you may regret in 10 years. Therefore, let us look at some such financial choices.
10 Financial Choices You May Regret
For any woman or man, 10 years is a considerable period in a lifespan. Any decision we take now will definitely impact our future, either positively or adversely. This axiom also applies to financial choices we make. Try to avoid these financial choices that you will regret in 10 years.
Improper Retirement Planning
Improper planning for retirement ranks as the biggest financial choice that you will regret after 10 years. You may have invested in a retirement plan and believe it would meet your financial needs in those golden years. This is a sheer myth.
A study in the US conducted by Northwestern Mutual in 2018 found, 21 percent of Americans have no savings for the future. Another 10 percent have just about US$5,000 for retirement. More than 78 percent Americans surveyed in 2004, said that they are worried about not having adequate money post-retirement while 66 percent aver they would outlive their savings.
A lot goes into retirement planning than mere pension plans. Avoid complacency while planning for those golden years.
Ignoring Mutual Funds
Ignoring investments in Mutual Funds and Self Investment Plans is another financial choice you will regret in 10 years. Investing in Mutual Funds and SIPs is not as expensive as you might believe: in fact, you can begin with as low as £50 to £100 per month or less, depending upon where you live.
Mutual Fund and SIPs help you develop a great portfolio of savings. Generally, Mutual Funds and SIPs offer higher returns than traditional savings schemes from banks. But these are long term investments meaning, you need to stay invested for fairly long period to get excellent returns.
Not Boosting Income
Often, we have sufficient spare time on hands and utilize it for ungainful activities. Generally, this wastage of time occurs because we are complacent our income is sufficient for present and future needs. However, this time we inadvertently waste can be better utilized to boost our income in several ways.
Thanks to the Internet, it is now possible to make money online through various means. Some of the best ways are blogging, becoming a YouTuber, freelancing and other side businesses.
You can make a huge income without spending much time even if you don’t have some special skills. Boosting your income through online side business is possible for anyone. But later, this scenario may change. Hence, this becomes a financial choice that you may regret after 10 years or less.
Not Saving Enough Money
By not saving enough money, I do not imply you cut expenses or downsize your lifestyle. Instead, saving a lot of money is possible nowadays through some simple tips and tweaks. One of them remains shopping for designer stuff at online sales. Online shopping helps save a lot of money. Online retailers offer good discounts to grab more shoppers.
Additionally, there are countless couponing websites that allow you to save on expensive products, fuel and other stuff. Using these coupons while shopping either online or brick-and-mortar facilities can save considerable money. What you save can go towards investing in a good savings plan. Unless you use these money saving ideas now, it may become a financial choice that you could regret after a decade.
Delaying Student Loan Repayment
A student loan is great. It allows you to complete college and university studies in a chosen field. The degree can earn you superb job and pave way for a great career. Unfortunately, student loans come at a heavy price. It encumbers you financially in later life while robbing peace of mind and eating relentlessly into your income.
Worldwide, delays in payments of student debt are seen as having severe, adverse effect on a person’s later life. It delays important financial decisions like buying a house, planning for retirement and investment in saving schemes. Worse, it can have severe impact on your household finances and land you in depression or other psychological problems. Deferring student loan repayment is a financial choice that you would definitely regret in 10 years.
Over Insurance
Over insurance means insuring your house and its contents much more than the actual value. A lot of people around the world cough up a mini fortune due to over insurance. They falsely believe that having adequate coverage for a house and their stuff will protect them against forms of damage and compensate them for every loss.
This is a false notion altogether. Over insurance does not mean you get the entire value for which your property was covered. For example, if your house and belongings are worth US$500,000, the insurer will pay out this amount more or less. Regardless whether you have insured the property for US$1 million. But to avail this US$1million coverage, you would have spent thousands of Dollars over the years. Over insurance of your property can prove a rather expensive mistake and leave enough cause for regret.
Overlooking Tax Savings
There are ample opportunities available for every citizen- from millennial to retiree- for saving taxes. Again, majority of people worldwide remain blissfully unaware of these tax saving avenues. There are several reasons for this lack of awareness. A lot of people do not enlist services of a financial advisor while others opt for Do-It-Yourself (DIY) financial planning. It is high time you should be aware about tax saving procedures, if you are among those millions who end up paying more taxes than necessary.
The fact that you are reading this article proves you have access to the Internet and are literate, that you are interested in taking right financial decisions. By the same corollary, browse official and reliable websites in your country that offer vital tips and guidance on tax saving options and schemes. Paying higher taxes than required can lead you to regret later.
Buying Useless Stuff
People everywhere buy a lot of useless stuff spending billions of Dollars either online or at brick-and-mortar stores. There are several reasons why people worldwide buy useless stuff. These range from psychiatric disorders to insecurity, the need to feel superior over others and sometimes imprudent credit card use.
Buying useless stuff, even when you can afford, is not a solution to anything. It encumbers you with unwanted credit card bills and robs you of money for investment. Furthermore, it occupies precious space at home. And when you try selling the stuff, it barely fetches anything. With technology and fashion changing rapidly nowadays, your useless stuff will add to your financial regrets after 10 years. There are ways and means to stop spending on useless stuff, if you try.
Dropping Credit Scores
Nowadays, credit score of any individual- female or male- can take a heavy beating for frivolous reasons. This depends upon credit rating systems in force in your country. Credit scores drop due to unpaid credit card bills, mortgage, loans and other reasons. Right now, you may not require credit and hence can afford to ignore or even see your credit score drop.
But imagine a scenario 10 years later, when you might need credit or mortgage for any reason. And lenders refuse to give the money because of poor creditworthiness. Unless you have a very large corpus fund that can help tide over any urgent need for money, poor credit score can have dire consequences. It is better to take steps and fix your credit score now than wait for a few years, expecting a financial windfall.
Traditional Investments
Anyone with some money is aware of traditional and popular forms of investments such as stocks, bonds and schemes from banks. Often, these do not pay give high returns. Sadly, most people are unwilling to as much consider other forms of legit investments that can fetch great returns. These include real estate, investments in art, buying second or retirement home and lots more.
There are several ways to invest in real estate without buying a house. And investing in art is gathering momentum. Buying a second or retirement home is great if you can afford and provides high returns. Unless you actively consider and invest in these excellent avenues now, chances are, your savings will be fairly low and out of sync with current rates of inflation.
In Conclusion
Our financial wellbeing depends upon the decisions we make now. It is also a myth that people with lower income are unable to save or make investments: banks and financial institutions cater to almost every income group. All it needs is your willingness to make the right financial choices. Therefore, it is imperative to avoid financial mistakes that you can regret 10 years down the line or later.
frustrated man -DepositPhotos
