Building a substantial passive income can be hard work. While I dream of retiring and living off my UK shares, it isn’t an easy objective to achieve.
There are many things I need to think about to achieve my goal of living comfortably from my investments in future. I’ve picked out three of the top points I think will be crucial to my success (or otherwise).
Savings discipline
Before I start building a substantial passive income I need to have some money to invest in the first place. I think the foundation of my investment dream comes from savings discipline.
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When I calculate my potential passive income in the future, one of the biggest factors is how much I have to invest on a regular basis. For instance, if I assume a 7% annual return and invested £20 each week, I could have a portfolio worth £105,628 in 30 years’ time.
Let’s change that to £100 per week invested. With that same rate of return and timeline, I could instead be sitting on £528,139 worth of investments in 30 years. That’s a huge difference that’s driven by savings discipline and sticking to my goals for the long run.
Dividend shares
Another big factor in achieving my passive income dreams is the investments themselves. I believe in a Foolish long-term perspective and am always looking for strong UK shares that tick my boxes.
For instance, I’m a big believer in dividend shares. This is especially the case for my passive income goals as I do like the regular payout and ability to reinvest versus uncertainty of future capital growth.
Of course, there’s uncertainty with dividends. Companies do change dividend policies and that’s almost guaranteed over my long-term time horizon. However, there are some companies with tasty dividend yields on offer.
Take the likes of Legal & General (LSE: LGEN). This is a blue-chip insurer and asset manager in the FTSE 100 with a £13bn market cap and 9.3% dividend yield right now.
The company has strong brand awareness (we all know the coloured umbrella) and the potential to grow its total assets in the lucrative UK retirement policy market. I think it’s certainly one for dividend-hungry investors to consider if it can maintain that yield.
Now, it’s not all smooth sailing with investing. The Legal & General share price has been under pressure recently including a 12% fall in the last six months. A slight dip in profit after tax and broader share market volatility have been the main drivers with no disastrous news in recent months.
While Legal & General isn’t top of my buy list, it does show there are some serious dividend payers on the market that can help me achieve my dream. Ultimately, investing in a portfolio of dividend shares that can regularly deliver me a passive income stream is the goal for me.
Diversification
Diversification is the final piece of my puzzle. I don’t want to put all of my passive income hopes and dreams in the hands of one stock.
For me, a shares portfolio that can deliver a steady yield through the cycle is the key to achieving my long-term dream. A good mix of stocks that can weather a recession and are leaders in a variety of industries could help me achieve my goals.
