When you think about the accuracy of retirement opening balance sheets, you sometimes get a little nostalgic. How much easier it used to be. The good old days, matured or filtered in our memories at their best. But hand on heart, grandma's pension may not have been very generous, but it was quite simple. Pension from the state plus personal provision equals pension. A small amount of schnapps went to the health insurance company (approx. 7% of the statutory pension), the rest went into the account. Grandma and Grandpa were able to knock it over the head, no taxes, no duties... We grandchildren benefited from it from time to time...
Today? Pure chaos. First of all, we have known relatively bluntly for over 30 years: the pension is secure, but certainly not high enough. But how exactly?
First of all, self-care was the order of the day. Thought, done, at least to the extent that seemed feasible to us. If you take stock today, you often realize that many people have done a lot of things right. Nevertheless, it is only enough to get a good pension “before costs”. And anyone who has ever made purchases with gross money knows that they had to take on net debt. Unfortunately, even today few people know what is coming. What awaits you personally.
The KV. Certainly one of our most important insurance policies in old age. But it's not just their contribution rates that are rising, but also the assessment bases. This means you give 15% of your hard-saved company pension back to the fund. At least if it is higher than 15 EUR.
The nursing care insurance. Man oh man, grandma didn't even have these yet. We have been paying them since 1995 and the trend is increasing. The maximum amount today is a whopping EUR 176. A month! But many still receive a subsidy from their employer. However, this ends with the start of retirement, which means full care and half KV contributions. And that also applies to all company pensions. That's more than a few peanuts. And we couldn't have expected that at the end.
At least: the tax. The tax problem came add on in 2004. And it grows with the quality of your own provision. The tax rate is almost the same as in professional life. So taxes go down too. The gross net PAY GAP in grandma's time is expanding significantly.
But there's no need to complain here. Ultimately, our financial freedom remains a worthwhile goal so that we can enjoy the rest of our lives contentedly and without worries. We would do a lot for that, right? But the price of freedom has risen quite a bit...
Duties and taxes, low interest rates and recently higher inflation. Plus the fact that we can enjoy our retirement almost twice as long as our grandparents. But financially this means: Something is brewing into the perfect storm.
What is the best way to prepare here? First of all, you should know what's coming. Without knowing the right numbers, correct trading will be difficult.
Do you already know your net balance with which you will start your company retirement? If not, please take your (financial) precautions in good time. If you know what's coming, you can prepare yourself. And above all, sleep much more peacefully...
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