I plan to retire comfortably on a portfolio of passive income shares. And I plan to do it with the help of my Stocks and Shares ISA. With protection from capital gains tax and dividend tax, I can give the compounding process an extra boost to grow my portfolio. This can then be invested in high-yield dividend shares to target a reliable income.
What’s more, with retirees safeguarded from income tax on withdrawals, too, every pound I’ll make in dividends will drop into my pocket. The benefit? I’ll be able to live comfortably on a smaller portfolio that I would otherwise if HMRC took a share of my hard-earned returns.
Please note that tax treatment depends on the individual circumstances of each client and may be subject to change in future. The content in this article is provided for information purposes only. It is not intended to be, neither does it constitute, any form of tax advice. Readers are responsible for carrying out their own due diligence and for obtaining professional advice before making any investment decisions.
But a couple of key questions remain. How large will my Stocks and Shares ISA need to be to generate a healthy passive income? And how much will I need to invest to achieve it?
Top dividend shares
Before we get to those, I need to explain the benefit of targeting income with dividend shares. As well as giving me extra cash for living expenses, my portfolio can continue to grow in value over time.
Investors today can choose from hundreds of top UK dividend shares. One of my key holdings is Target Healthcare REIT (LSE:THRL), which I plan to continue holding in retirement.
The reason? This property stock owns a large portfolio of care homes, the rents from which fund a steady stream of dividends. Under real estate investment trust (REIT) rules, it must pay at least 90% of rental earnings each year to shareholders.
So what’s the catch? Like any real estate share, it can fall in value when interest rates rise, hitting asset values. But as a long-term dividend payer, I think it’s hard to beat. And especially as Britain’s booming elderly population drives steady market growth.
Bonds for strength
There is a potential drawback to targeting retirement cash with passive income shares, though. Dividends are not guaranteed. Even companies with long and excellent payout records can cut, suspend, or cancel dividends when times get tough.
This happened to around half of FTSE 100 companies during the last major crisis when the pandemic struck six years ago. To reduce this threat to my own income, I could supplement buying dividend stocks with fixed-income securities like bonds.
Ah, but these instruments come with risks of their own, you say. It’s true that you could lose money if the bond issuer defaults. But focusing on quality government bonds — for instance, through the iShares Core UK Gilts ETF — can cut this danger to a minimum.
How much passive income?
So how much passive income could a portfolio of shares and bonds generate? With a Stocks and Shares ISA worth £500,000, I could make an income of £35,000 if holding 7%-yielding assets.
That seems a lot. But if I can achieve an average annual return of 9% with my ISA, I could hit that target with a £500 monthly investment in just under 24 years.
Should you invest £5,000 in Target Healthcare REIT Plc right now?
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Royston Wild owns shares in Target Healthcare REIT.
