Please Advise How To Manage Finances

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Deepankar: Dear Sir, My wife and I are 39 years old, our total in hand income from salary is 1.3 lakhs. I have a car loan EMI of 28100, 4 yrs left in tenure. We have personal loan EMI of total of 25k monthly and 4 yrs remaining. We have invested in 3k monthly in PPF and 6k monthly SIP in MF (both of us included). We pay rent of 26k per month.
Our kid is 2.5 yrs old and we have put him in daycare as we have to go office. Daycare expenses are 9k per month, including his 3 times meal.
Petrol expenses are 7k per month (have to take our own car as using public/shared/office transport takes additional 1 hr to and fro from office).
Broadband and mobile connection together costs us 2.2k per month and Electricity is 1.8k per month. Remaining amount is spent in groceries + Misc.
We don't have any gold/own house/land/parents' house or any savings left nor do we have any cash left. We don't have any insurance for neither of us.
Our child is growing and we need money for his education and future, we need to buy a home for ourselves. How to plan for our child's education and future and our retirement and our income and our future.

At 39, with a child and heavy EMIs, focus first on stability.

• Get term insurance (Rs 1 crore each) and family health insurance (Rs 10-15 lakh).
• Build a 3-month emergency fund by cutting discretionary spends.
• Consider refinancing loans to reduce monthly EMIs.
• Pause SIPs temporarily; restart once debts ease.
• Shift to a more affordable rental if possible. Delay home buying until finances improve.
• Track every expense and optimise where possible.
• Later, restart SIPs for your child’s education and your retirement.

Discipline and clear priorities now will secure your family's financial future. Consult a financial planner to structure goals and investment strategy effectively.

Anonymous: Hello Sir, Me and my wife are aged at 32 years. We both have an income of 2.76 lakhs. Also i am getting rent 24k per month. We are having a home loan of 67 lakhs with emi of 70k (i am paying more as tenure is 30 years).
We both are investing 50k in sip per month. We have 1 lakh in account and no emergency fund and apart from sip only company pf is our investments.
My question is should i sell my rental property and prepay the home loan? I am paying car loan worth 14 lakhs from the rental income as of now as I don't want to pressurise my salary for car loan emi. Let me know if any other suggestions for our finances. Note - we are planning for a baby too.

Dear Friend, with a combined monthly income of Rs 2.76 lakh and Rs 24,000 rental income, you're managing a Rs 70,000 home loan EMI and a Rs 14 lakh car loan. While investing Rs 50,000/month in SIPs is commendable, the lack of an emergency fund and only Rs 1 lakh in savings poses a risk -- especially with a baby on the way.

Prioritise creating a 6-9 month emergency corpus. Consider selling the rental property if its returns are modest, as it can ease loan pressure and improve liquidity.

Also, reassess SIP amounts temporarily, ensure adequate life and health insurance, and avoid straining future cash flow with multiple EMIs.

Anonymous: I am 47 years old, have saved approx 2.3 crs through mutual funds, nps, epf, etc. I save around Rs 1.25 lacs pm. I wish to work for 5-8 more years. My son is in 12th and wants to pursue engineering. I live in office provided lease accommodation and don't own any house.
Is purchasing a house in my name necessary or can I just continue to save for retirement and stay on rent? Will the corpus be enough when i retire after 5-8 years?

At 47, with a solid corpus of Rs 2.3 crore and monthly savings of Rs 1.25 lakh, you're on a strong financial path. If you continue saving for 5-8 years, assuming modest growth (10% annually), your corpus could grow to around Rs 4.5-5.5 crore -- potentially sufficient for a comfortable retirement, especially if expenses are kept in check.

Buying a house isn't strictly necessary unless emotional security or future housing stability is a priority. Renting can remain viable if you're disciplined with investments and ensure rising rents don't strain your retirement income. You may also consider buying a smaller house closer to retirement, funded partially by your corpus, without compromising long-term returns.

Also factor in your son's engineering expenses in the next few years, which could temporarily reduce your savings rate. Ensure you're adequately insured (life and health) and have an emergency fund. A financial plan aligning your retirement income needs with inflation-adjusted expenses will help fine-tune your decisions.

Anonymous: I am 34 years old, my in hand salary comes to be around 1.4lakhs. I invest 30k month in RD, 10k in another RD, 30k towards MF (Small cap, flexi and contra). Currently 8 lakhs in MF and 34 lakhs in RD, 3 lakhs in equity, one LIC policy Jeevan Anand (1 lakh annual premium). No liability. No loans. Office accommodation provided.
I have a 2 year daughter and wife is a house wife. Office covers my health, wife and daughter covered by health insurance.
I want to know do I need to change my financial planning. My goal is to leave my job around when I am 58 years old and stay peaceful.

You're off to a disciplined start with strong RD and MF contributions. However, a Rs 34 lakh RD-heavy portfolio may underperform in the long term. Consider gradually shifting a portion into diversified equity mutual funds for better growth, given your long horizon. Maintain an emergency fund (6-12 months' expenses) and review the LIC policy's returns versus term insurance + mutual fund combo.

Ensure your wife and daughter's health insurance is adequate independently of your employer's. To retire peacefully at 58, aim for a retirement corpus of Rs 4-5 crore (inflation-adjusted), and continue SIPs with step-up options as income grows. Review goals annually.

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Any use of the information/any investment and investment related decisions of the investors/recipients are at their sole discretion and risk. Any advice herein is made on a general basis and does not take into account the specific investment objectives of the specific person or group of persons. Opinions expressed herein are subject to change without notice.