Imperial Wealth Services

Dreams, these days, come with a high price tag. A car for Rs 5 lakh, a house for Rs 50 lakh, several lakhs for a decent education for kids and crores for a cushy retirement. In fact, seemingly simple needs have been elevated to dreams due to the high cost associated with them. You require either a large income or a strategic plan to meet these basic life goals.  While the former may not always be easy for the average salaried person, the latter is certainly within reach, especially if you begin at the beginning. Make a financial plan the day you start working and you won't have to scramble to fund each aspiration.  However, it may not be as easy as it seems. "I just don't know how much to save and where to invest, so I don't budget and end up spending a lot," says Harshinder Kaur, who started working two years ago as a probationary officer at a bank in Ganganagar, Rajasthan. She doesn't know how to formulate a plan for herself. This is a predi...

A smart strategy would be to whittle down the list to just three or four goals initially, so that the process of getting started seems less daunting! Rahul, 31, is a middle level manager for an IT company. He earns a salary of 85,000 per month net of taxes. He and his wife Radhika were recently blessed with a daughter, Gauri. Radhika has quit her job as a middle manager in a recruitment firm and plans to stay out of the workforce for the next 2 years. Rahul has recently started a home loan EMI of Rs 25,000 per month and a car loan EMI of Rs 8,000 per month. He expects to get an annual increment of 10% every year and a year-end bonus of Rs 250,000 3 months down the line in April 2016. Post his monthly spends and EMIs, Rahul is left with a surplus of Rs. 18,000 per month. How should he go about planning for his goals at this stage? Money would certainly top the lists of “stressors” for most middle income professionals like Rahul! Adding structure to our sa...