The concept of working until you retire at 67 is starting to fall by the wayside as younger generations reject the notion that work is life. People are looking for ways to retire sooner so they can enjoy the fruits of their labor before their bodies are unable to participate. What it means is that money has to be found sooner than later to build up that retirement account. Here are three ways to do just that.
Buy Multi-Family Housing
Owning property is a long-term strategy, but it offers immediate payback in the form of passive income. While you may not make a lot of money from renters in the early years of ownership, you do get the benefit of a steady stream of income paying off the mortgage, property taxes, and maintenance. And, you can leverage the value of the building to buy another one in the future if you find you enjoy the benefits of this type of property ownership.
You can also save money on the property itself if you buy a building with four units or less and opt to live in one of the units. Lenders offer mortgage products with terms that favor an owner-occupier over an investor. Not only will you have your tenants covering your costs and freeing up other income for building a retirement account, but you’ll also put down less money on the building, which leaves you with more money in the bank.
Invest in Stocks
This is something that belongs in every retirement plan, but if you’re looking for early retirement, you’ll want to take an active role in your investments. Learning how to make money from trading stocks takes some effort, but it can pay off. You need a multi-pronged strategy that includes short-, mid-, and long-term investments. Short-term investments might include day or swing trading to realize multiple small profits to build upon. Mid-term investing takes advantage of positive news from companies causing their stocks to swing upwards. Finally, a long-term investment strategy involves buying and holding onto stocks that are likely to increase in value over the years, returning a profit you can live off of as well as reinvest.
Focus on Finding Multiple Income Streams
You might think that you only have one income stream in the form of your job, but you can generate more income through different activities. These include working the occasional freelance gig that offers a decent payout for your work, having a hobby and selling what you make through various outlets like Etsy or eBay, and doing small tasks on sites like Amazon’s mTurk. Always make sure that the pay is commensurate with the amount of effort you’re putting into the task so you can build a savings account more quickly.
Take a look at all the potential ways you can earn extra money, then figure out how to apply yourself to them. You may not have a lot of spare time left over, but you will build your retirement account to an amount that lets you retire early.