So what do I have? An RA which I started at 26, but sadly will not pay nearly enough. And I plan to ensure my house is paid off by the time I am in my mid 50s (by paying an extra 10% every month). So assuming my plan works, I’ll have a small monthly income from a poorly paying RA and somewhere to live. Doesn’t sound like enough, does it?

What more do I need to do?? I think I need to get smarter and invest more every month, I am not skilled in ‘playing the market’ so I’m just thinking Satrix or something like that. I can still hear my uncle telling me: “all you need to do is save 10% of your income every month”. It worked for him – he retired comfortably. So can I invest 10% every month now, to make my ‘golden years’ better? I would need to purchase Satrix type shares every month for another R1 600 (together with the RA that would equal 10%). Can I do that on my tight budget? Can I afford not to? I simply do not have the extra money in my current budget so either I cut some current expenses to save for the future, or I take on more work. Or I am poor in my retired years….

OK challenge accepted – I’m going to find the R1 600 somewhere!

Next column I am going to tackle kids and money – almost all of us have kids in our lives, our own, grandchildren, nieces, nephews – so let’s look at what we are doing to support them to develop a healthy attitude towards money.