Investment is a necessity in every household. If you are a working woman, investing from a young age can help you find a regular and reliable income source as you grow old. But there can be a lot of confusion regarding how many eggs to put in which all baskets.
Investing in the right schemes can double your income, and at the same time, you should also be wary of the investment options that are subjected to market risk. If you would like to experiment around, here are 10 investment options available in India right now:
1. Public Provident Fund
One among the most popular investment schemes in India, PPF can be availed at post offices and banks. It is a 15-year tenure scheme with an annual interest rate of 8%.
You can deposit a minimum of Rs.500 or a maximum of Rs.1.5 lakh. You can even withdraw 50% after 5 years. This long term savings plan would be ideal for working women looking for a fail-safe investment option. It is also exempted from taxes.
2. National Pension Scheme
While the term pension can seem overwhelming, the National Pension Scheme is another government-backed, safe investment option wherein you can contribute in regular intervals to your pension account and reap the benefits of it after you have retired.
The minimum lock-in period is 10 years. It also has additional tax benefits. If you wish to withdraw your investment anytime, you can opt for the Tier II NPS scheme. However, Tier II does not have tax rebates.
Read more :Personal Financial Planning – 6 Steps to Re-Organize Your Finances
3. Health Insurance
A Maternity Health Insurance policy is another ideal investment option for working women. A health insurance policy will benefit you financially and physically.
In the event when you have to be hospitalised, the humongous hospital bills can leave in your shambles. Health insurance is a great way to mitigate this problem. Premium paid against health insurance is also exempted from taxes.
Read more: A Guide to Family Health Insurance Policies
4. Bank Fixed Deposits
You can opt for fixed deposits from both private and public banks. Fixed deposits are another popular and safe investment option available for women.
The rate of interest and the investment tenure would depend upon the bank. You can withdraw the invested principal amount and the compounded interest on it after the maturity period.
Read more : Stay organised with My Money Book
5. National Savings Certificate
This fixed income scheme can be opened in any post-offices. This low-risk secure investment scheme has a maturity period of 5 years.
The current interest rate is 6.8 % per annum. You can avail tax benefits for investments up to Rs.1.5 lakh. The minimum investment amount is only Rs.1000.
6. Post Office Time Deposit Scheme
Similar to a bank fixed deposit, post-offices also accept timely deposits. You can choose a maturity period of 1, 2,3 or 5 years.
This can also be extended by giving a request. The 5-year deposit schemes also have tax exemptions. The interest rates are 5.5%, for the 1-3 year deposit and 6.7% for the 5-year deposit scheme. The minimum amount that you can deposit is Rs.1000.
Read more: Post Office Time Deposit
7. Home Insurance Policy
If there is a materialistic thing that you hold as close to your heart as your health, it must be your home. Building a home on your own is a considerable investment, and you are obligated to protect it at all costs.
A home insurance policy will protect you financially against losses due to earthquake, floods, burglary etc.
You can easily compare home insurance quotes online and choose the one that best suits your needs. Since you have invested so much on your home and the value inside it, it only makes sense to invest in a home insurance policy as well.
8. Mutual Funds
Mutual Funds are the most lucrative investment options available in the market. Although it comes with a certain set of market risks, it is also an equally rewarding investment option.
You can start with as small an amount as Rs.500. A mutual fund works when various investors and companies pool in their money for a common investment objective. This pooled money is handled by a fund manager who invests these amounts in capital assets so that you can reap the maximum benefits.
Read more: Get to know the top-performing funds.
9. Gold
Gold has been a favourite investment option among women since generations. Gold prices have been steadily increasing in the past few decades and hence investing even in small quantities of gold will be a good option.
You can get back triple times the amount you invested in the beginning at the rate at which the gold prices are increasing today. Apart from buying solid gold, you can also opt for coins, bars, gold exchange-traded funds, Gold funds, sovereign gold bond schemes etc.
10. Kisan Vikas Patra
This is another certificate scheme offered by the Indian Post Office. The lock-in period is 10 years and 4 months, where the minimum investment amount is Rs.1000, and there is no upper limit.
At the end of the maturity period, you will receive double the amount you have invested. Although aimed mostly towards farming communities, this is a safe investment option that is not subjected to market fluctuations.
Choosing the right investment options at the right time will help keep you and your family financially secure.
Happy investing!
29 Responses
Excellent suggestions.
Great suggestions.
With the kind of uncertainty life brings, creating a financial cushion for oneself and for the family is a must, especially through allocation of hard earned money.
Useful suggestions, agree with you shilpa, all the options are valuable and I am glad that I have opted for most of it here… Thank you for sharing:) Hope all well at your end, take care.
Life always throws surprising situations on us. Having financial stability is very important. It gives some peace and confidence. The options that yo have shared are. very useful.
Investing is still a scary word for me, so to get over that I want to dip my toes into this world. Your post simplified a lot of previously complicated terms for me. Looking at Mutual Funds to start with.
Women need to invest their hardearned money so that it doesn’t sit idle. FDs, insurance and gold are the most common ones I know. Mutual funds are a good option but must be dealt with after careful study. Good post!
Investment is still a scary word for me, so to get over that I want to dip my toes into this world. Your post simplified a lot of previously complicated terms for me. Looking at Mutual Funds to start with.
It is really great to see your post Shilpa after a long time…I think so…loved your post and it is super informative too. I knew few options already like gold and mutual funds but some like kisan Vikas Patra are totally new to me. Will check out this for sure.
I am aware of all 10 investment options. I personally believe that we should divide these funds between the short term and long term investment plan categories. Thanks for this useful information.
Very Informative post and can be of great use for all the working women..already investing in few but will look into other options mentioned by you… Thanks for sharing.
You have covered it all. Well researched and detailed post for understanding the tools of investments available and benefits about it.
Shilpa, you have listed all possible investment plans one can think for. Was hesitant about few but your detailed post cleared many doubts.
Financial knowledge is crucial for everyone, and especially for women who usually leave such decisions to the male members of the family. You have covered all the plans and instruments pretty well.
I agree that every woman, working or non working should invest and understand the value of finance. I liked these options which you have shared and feel good that I have invested somewhere!!
Gold and fixed deposits are quite easy to invest in these days. But is the PPF fund a monthly payment? Can we deposit some amount into it like a fixed payment and just keep it there?
This is so Informative.. I have known few from the list . FD and PPF are quite common these days in investment.
Great post. And very informative for someone like me who has very poor knowledge on this topic. I was looking for good investment options as well. This helps. I will share this ahead.
This pandemic has taught us the value of saving money for difficult times. These are some really good investment options for working women. Thanks for sharing, Shilpa.
Thanks for listing amazing ways of investment. Agree that a health insurance especially the maternity insurance will reduce the extra burden from pocket
thank you for sharing such an informative post for all women it’s really important to know about good investment and ways to to invest your money
Useful post! I have not only loved the information but have even visited the links mentioned above. Thank you for writing this one.
Thanks for this very informative post. I always get confused and perplexed as to what kind of saving scheme I should invest in. Thanks for putting the options all very clearly.
Creating financial assets is essential and a necessity as life throws ugly surprises. Apart from Bank fixed deposits, I also invest in postal saving schemes. A well-researched and detailed post.
I am not at all good at these things Shilpa and your post is so informative for me. At least now I am equipped with all the necessary points I need for right decision making
This is really a helpful post-Shilpa, Some good investments options for women to start thinking of investments and making an informed decision
It is necessary to invest and save for future. My mom invests in bank fd, kisan vikas patra and post office schemes. This would be useful for other women as well.
you have enlisted some really good schemes. PPF right now is the best thing IMO. I have invested in NSC and kisan vikas too. I am still not sure about MF though
A very helpful post. It serves for women across age-groups and especially useful for those who love to make a difference to the society.
My mom invests in bank FD, Kisan Vikas Patra, and post office schemes. It serves women across age-groups and especially useful for those who love to make a difference to society. I always get confused and perplexed as to what kind of saving scheme I should invest in.