You already know that if you want to have security in your retirement, you need to act sooner instead of later. The ideal age to start might be 20. But your investments will still add up to much more money if you start investing at the age of 40 or even 50 instead of waiting till you are nigh unto retirement.

There are several strategies that you can use for your retirement investment plan. But unfortunately, there is no strategy that is totally free of risk.

If you want to use savings to fund your retirement, you will probably want a strategy that entails the least risk. In that case, you might consider investing in T-bills and bonds. There is no risk to their face value over time: the face value always remains payable. However, there is a risk to the time-adjusted value, the spendable value, of your T-bills and bonds. That risk is inflation, which fluctuates unpredictably and may make your savings worth less than you could have predicted. The healthy interest rate of today may be a sickly thing in the future.          

Banks and insurance companies offer many different plans that you can include in your retirement strategy. You can have the security of dealing with the larger financial institutions that are generally conservative. But the face value of your financial instruments and their interest rates are still subject to the erosions of inflation.

Because of inflation, you may want a strategy that places some of your investments in assets that will usually rise in value commensurately. The best example is real estate. You can, of course, start by owning your own home.

Tom McClure is a freelance writer for ASeniorHaven, the site for seniors over 50 and their families. For more information on retirement investments, visit http://www.aseniorhaven.com.