Investment options for single women

With more and more women focusing on building a career, the idea of single financially independent women is no longer alien to our society. Financial independence is one thing, but being able to manage your finances efficiently is a totally different thing altogether. 

Saving is paramount to any investment plan. The general perception that people have is women are high spenders. Although that might not be the case, women seem to be better informed about how to spend money than how to invest money. That's more due to their traditional role of caregiving and home management, wherein they make most of the buying decision when it comes to grocery, personal care and household items. 

Despite this, especially in India, women are known to be better at saving than men, many households have overcome financial emergency by the gold and small savings made by housewives. Best and the only way to save is to monitor your spending and set a savings goal. Give it a number and set aside a fixed amount of your income every month, without fail. Like for any other investor, it's important for women who are planning a single life to start investing early on. 

One important aspect of investing is gaining financial literacy. Knowing where to put your money will help you tide inflation which is the biggest enemy that our savings face. Money lying idle at home or in your savings bank account tend to lose value as essential items like food and clothing turn expensive due to inflation. To fight inflation you need to put your money, that is, invest in financial instruments that give a rate of return higher than 10 per cent.

Here are some investment options that will help your money grow with you

1. Direct equity: Anyone can open a Demat account and invest in equities, it is a simple yet high yielding investment option for long-term financial goals. You only need to select stocks that are fundamentally strong and have a good growth potential.

2. Mutual funds: If you feel that following the stock market is not your cup of tea, then just subscribe to a mutual fund scheme, the fund houses will do the stock picking task for you. Mutual fund houses employ professionals to invest money in the equity market, debt funds and maximize returns.

3. Pension: Every working professional will retire sooner or later. You can open a National Pension System (NPS) or Public Provident Fund (PPF) account. In PPF, you can start investing from as low as Rs. 500 to a maximum Rs. 1,50,000 per year. These are the least risk investment products.

Another aspect to bear in mind while investing is to plan for emergencies. The best strategy is to invest income of three to six months in easily encashable form, like fixed deposits, gold or simply cash in savings accounts. And last but not the least is to keep loans and credit card expenses to bear minimal.