Edition: October 2011

Cover Story

Dipak Mondal and Chandralekha Mukerji

Why saving for retirement is a must

One mistake people make is to defer retirement planning till it's very late. For most, it means just contributing towards their Employee Provident Fund or Public Provident Fund accounts. But that's not enough. Here's why.

Tips to safely invest for retirement Though real estate investments do generate an income and appreciate in the long term to beat inflation, there are a drawbacks as well. It would be difficult to sell property in a hurry for cash and transparency issues are always present.
How to select a retirement plan The market is flooded with retirement plans. Here are a few things you must look at while selecting a plan to suit your needs and financial profile.
MFs best for building retirement kitty Investing in mutual funds is one sure way of defeating the price demon. These can be used to build a huge retirement kitty.
How to choose best cover for retirement Adequacy and comprehensiveness of a health insurance product becomes important since the coverage of medical ailments should be as wide as possible with limited exclusions, along with the option of life-long renewability.
Reverse mortgage house for regular income Don't have adequate retirement corpus? You can reverse mortgage your house to get a lifetime income for yourself and your spouse.
Tips to buy property for retirement years Houses in senior citizen communities are designed to offer comfortable living and companionship to residents in their sunset years.
'Incentives needed for pension schemes'
The National Pension System remains unpopular even two years after it being open to the public. Yogesh Aggarwal, Chairman, PFRDA, talks to Sarbajeet K Sen and Chandralekha Mukerji on the road ahead.
Choose hobby as work after retiring There are no dearth of options if you want an active working life even after retirement. Make your passion a career or learn new skills to keep going.

Insurance

Chandralekha Mukerji

How to choose nominee for insurance policy

Declaration of proper nomination in a life insurance policy guarantees smooth processing of claim. Here are some important facts you should keep in mind.

Are convertible term plans viable savings options? Convertible term plans can be useful for those in their early stage of financial life and they do provide an element of flexibility. But are they viable savings tools for the long-run?

Investment

Tanvi Varma/Money Today

Should you invest in gold this Dhanteras?

Gold and silver have given solid returns during the last few months. We look at whether you should invest in these metals at current prices.

How to cut risk when investing in MFs A dynamic asset allocation approach seeks to lower the downside risk without much impact on upside returns.
Tips for NRIs to invest in Indian MFs Non-residents can invest in Indian mutual funds and equities by following a set of easy rules. Read here to know more.

Query Corner

Is gifted money taxable?

I want to give a certain sum from my retirement benefits as an interest-free loan to my wife, who is a homemaker without any source of income. Will the interest be clubbed with my income, asks Romit Bhattacharya from Bangalore.

Insight

Volatility hits mutual fund returns

Volatile equity markets in 2011 have severely affected the long-term average returns of most equity funds, with no single category posting a double-digit growth.

MF Watch: Mirae mutual fund outperforms Mirae Asset India Opportunities Fund has outperformed its category since inception in 2008.
Bata India at top with 94% returns Bata India is among the top gainers in the last six months with return of 94 per cent.
Best banks to take loan from Are you scouting for a loan to buy a house, a car or for your child's education? Given below are the best deals on offer from public and private sector lenders.

Editors Note

From the Executive Editor - October 2011

Money Today Executive Editor Sarbajeet K Sen talks about the all too important need to build a retirement corpus for leading a secure life.

Talk Back

Letters talk back

Money Today readers write back to Executive Editor Sarbajeet K Sen and give their feedback on the articles of the magazine.

Smart Spending

Best cars between Rs 8-18 lakh

We give carenthusiasts their due and rate cars on how well they suit a driver, classified into six price categories. Here's the final part of the series

REVIEW: Hot & Happening Gadgets Sam Abraham introduces new products and services to help you zero in on those that offer value for money.

Perspective

Sowmya Kamath

You can switch insurers from October 1

The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irda) has issued final guidelines on health insurance portability, which will come into force from October 1, 2011.

Now, no penalty on pre-paying loans Repaying your loans before the deadline will soon become a no-brainer decision as the Reserve Bank of India has recommended removing any pre-payment penalty on floating rate loans.
Quotable Quotes "Standardisation (of health insurance plans) will help policy holders to understand the product. It will also help increase health insurance penetration," says Irda Chairman J Hari Narayan.
Will RBI tone down its tight monetary policy? It is no surprise that the Reserve Bank of India increased the repo rate, for the twelfth time in a row, by 25 basis points from 8.0% to 8.25% with immediate effect.
Trivia and Telling Figures Interesting facts and trivia from the world of business.
US Indices Come to India The National Stock Exchange has launched derivative contracts of the world's most followed equity indices, the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average on August 29.
Realty offers better returns than gold According to data released by the National Housing Bank, house prices in metro and non-metro cities have shown a significant rise in the April-June 2011 quarter, with Bhopal posting the highest increase, with prices of homes surging by 46.4% in the June 2011 quarter. The annualised return from gold was 48%.
Regulator Watch A look at recent rulings from the banking, insurance and personal finance sectors which can affect you.