Want to retire? Think again

The costs of living are increasing these days, therefore there is a need for us to rethink retirement planning because we are living longer, family values are changing. In Malaysia, most people are dependent on the money they have accumulated in their EPF. Your EPF would only give you a third of your last drawn salary. And if you take it out in lump sum, it usually doesn't last longer than 5 years.

 

In Malaysia, the retirement age was recently raised to 60. According to CIA World Factbook, about 12.2% of the population is over 55. The average life expectancy for a Malaysian in 2012 was 72.3 for males and 77.2 for females. The average life expectancy is expected to rise to 77 for males and 82 for females by 2050. What would you need to survive? With the new retirement age of 60, the average Malaysian will still have to accumulate enough retirement funds to last 12 to 17 years for men and 17 to 22 years for women.

 

Would you use an investment for longevity protection? Empathically not. What happens if I'm 85 and highly invested in equities and the markets go down? That's what's happened to many US retirees when the financial crisis hit, the lost up to 85% of their assets, which meant they had go back to work again.