4 best investment schemes for working women in their 30s

Gone are the days when women depended on others to handle their money. With women assuming the roles of both caretakers and breadwinners, they take charge of their own finances, and with no holds barred. In fact, ClearTax found out that their average woman customer invests 12.7% more than their male counterparts.

Realizing this, the financial services industry also offers easy online means that help women invest conveniently with related calculators to forecast returns. So, if you too are looking to invest and enjoy a financially healthy future, look at these low to high-risk investments schemes.

Fixed Deposits

Fixed deposits for Women are assured return low-risk investment options. You can choose an FD conveniently by deciding the tenor and interest payout option for it, basis your requirements. Banks, post offices, and companies issue FDs on a range of interest rates. Company FDs are known to offer the highest interest rates. To benefit from this and choose an FD that keeps your principal safe and secure, check the CRISIL ratings of the FDs before investing.

This way you can choose a trustworthy issuer. Reputed FD issuers like Bajaj Finance offer Fixed Deposits rated FAAA by CRISIL, which means your investment enjoys the high safety. Your investments in these FDs can earn as high as 8.75% when invested for a tenor of at least 36 months. The rate goes up to 9.1% for senior citizens. To encourage renewals, it also offers 0.25% additional interest rates when you reinvest.

Benefit from all these features by laddering your FDs. When you ladder FDs, you can enjoy liquidity from time to time so as to meet your financial goals. For a clear understanding, take a look at the following:

• FD 1 for the down payment of a home loan: Rs.3 lakh for 3 years at 8.75% gives Rs.3.9 lakh on maturity.
• FD 2 for repayment of home loan: Rs.5 lakh for 5 years at 7% gives Rs.7.0 lakh on maturity.
• FD 3 for kid’s education: Rs.7 lakh for 7 years at 8% gives Rs.12 lakh on maturity.

Additionally, FDs also double up as collateral that you can pledge to avail a quick loan during emergencies.

Public Provident Fund (PPF)

Irrespective of your age, retirement saving should be your first priority. Take a step forward towards planning for your golden years by investing in a PPF. Unlike EPF, PPF is a voluntary scheme where you can contribute on your own. Your investment in a PPF matures through a tenor of 15 years, offering you reliable returns. Currently, PPF yields 8% returns, which is higher than most small saving schemes.

Additionally, PPF enjoys an EEE tax status that allows you to claim deductions of up to Rs.1.5 lakh under Section 80C owing to your investment and does not attract any TDS deduction on the maturity gains. Once your PPF matures, you can reinvest it for another 5 years and enjoy the benefits for longer if you do not immediately need the funds. Moreover, investing in PPF is convenient as you do not need to have a lump sum to start your investment. Just contribute Rs.500 a year to keep your account active. It is up to you to decide how much you want to put in your PF account every year and you can make monthly instalments with ease.

National Pension System (NPS)

In addition to PPF, you can also invest in NPS to strengthen your retirement corpus. NPS is a government scheme launched to facilitate retirement savings. By contributing to NPS all through your working years, you can build a significant corpus for retirement. Your invested NPS funds are further diversified for investment in various asset classes like debt, equity, and others based on your risk profile.

You can decide the diversification basis your financial requirements. Accordingly, you can earn handsome returns on your portfolio at maturity. On reaching 60 or after retirement, you can withdraw up to 60% of the corpus and invest the rest in annuity plans to earn regular income. On the tax front, as per the revised rules, the entire 60% is now tax-fee.

Mutual Funds

Apart from safe options that help you diversify your risk, opt for moderate risk options that offer substantial returns like mutual funds. Though linked to the market, investing via SIPs minimises your risk and optimises your returns. Based on your risk capacity, you can invest in various types of mutual funds such as equity, debt or balanced.

Invest in debt funds to meet your short-term and medium-term goals like home loan down payment, car purchase, kid’s education, and more. These are medium-risk avenues that yield moderate returns of up to 8%. To enjoy capital appreciation, invest in equity funds with a long-term perspective. These are high risks avenues but yield better returns of up to 12% over time.

Gold ETFs

Your investments in gold ETFs can go a long way. These are better than holding physical gold in the form of bars, coins, and jewellery. So, rule out storage problems, making charges, and risks of theft for physical gold and invest in EFTs for better security. You can trade your investments in gold ETFs any time you want in the stock exchange, and you can buy and sell paper gold investment with ease. These are open-ended mutual fund schemes that invest in standard gold bullion of 99.5% purity.

To achieve best results, allocate funds in line with your risk tolerance and financial goals. Diversify your investment portfolio to benefit from safety, high returns, and low investment costs. Remember to track the performance of your folio and make necessary changes to make the most of your hard-earned money. Never hesitate to seek professional advice if necessary and build your wealth with your eyes on the goal.