Entering your 40s can come with plenty of financial responsibilities. For many, your 40s is when your careers peak and you will be in your peak earning years. What this also means is that how you choose to spend, save and invest your money in your 40s will be critical for your future financial well-being.

 

In this article, we will look at four important financial decisions that you need to make in your 40s. Of course, this isn't to say that you shouldn't start planning for them even in your 20s or 30s. However, once you reach your 40s, these decisions become more critical.

At this age, you should already have bought various health and life insurance plans to cover for yourself and your family. These should include hospitalisation plans, term or whole life insurance policies as well as critical illness policies and investment-linked plans (ILPs).

 

It's never a bad idea to arrange for a sit-down with your financial adviser to periodically review your financial needs. This helps you quickly identify any insurance coverage gaps you may have, and the right insurance policies that you can get in order to close the insurance gap.

 

Your 40s is an important age to review your insurance protection needs for various reasons. Firstly, while being at the peak of your career is great, it also means that your family, including your kids and elderly parents, are highly dependent on the income that you bring in. You may also have made investments in areas such as real estate, which may carry heavy debt, which means you need to make plans for how these investments would continue to be funded if you are no longer around.

 

At the same time, medical protection becomes even more crucial for you. Like it or not, your health is likely to decline as you age. Ensuring you have the right hospitalisation plan, personal accident plan and critical illness plan will help limit your, and your family's, financial downside in the event of any unexpected illnesses or accidents.