1 Taking stock of your retirement plans

The first step in retirement planning is to work out how much money you will need to cover what you expect to be spending: creating a budget.

So, as Emma Byron of Legal & General explains, you need to have a close look at your household finances and be realistic about your spending.

You’ll start by looking at how your household spending is expected to change when you retire. Are you planning to move to a smaller house or a cheaper area? Maybe your mortgage will be paid off? Or you won’t need two cars, or to pay for travel to work? Maybe you won’t need a car at all, and you will get free or cheaper travel due to your age? Will you be spending more on leisure such as hobbies and holidays? Maybe you have work expenditure such as travel, lunches, clothes or equipment, that you’ll no longer need?

Using your bank statements and looking in detail at what you spend now, plus thinking about what you will be doing when you retire is a good starting point. The next part of the course will help you do this.