Saving for retirement (without pension)

cheerfulcat

So, there we have it, I'm not taking out a pension. However I do need to save for my retirement. I'm assuming the best option is to go for some kind of high interest savings account with a better rate for restricted access? Would anyone consider government bonds (I dont really know what these are- but I heard that their value is guarenteed)? Is there any other way of ensuring a high return yet guarenteed to not decrease (64 thousand dollar question i guess!)?

Also, to retire on a salary (which will be the equivalent) of £10k pa ~ish, how much do you think I should start saving a month?

Hi,

You don't need to use a pension wrapper but at least use an ISA; tax takes a very large bite out of your returns.

There's a calculator here which allows you to play with various amounts and returns - it's American but just set the state tax to zero, the Federal tax to whatever you pay and pretend the $s are £s. Your expected rate of return from cash is 4%ish after BR tax; assume that stocks and shares will return between 8 and 11%.

The return on cash barely keeps up with inflation. Don't be fooled by the fact that the nominal amount seems to stay the same; over time the real value is eroded. Cash is in fact the very worst asset to hold over the long term.