I think one of the best ways to set yourself up for a comfortable retirement is by having a passive income stream that is reliable and has the potential to grow over time.
In my opinion dividend shares are one of the best ways to achieve this and are especially useful once you reach retirement thanks to their regular pay checks.
The good news is that the ASX offers a number of reliable dividend shares that investors could consider as part of a diversified retirement portfolio.
Three that I like are listed below:
Collins Foods Ltd (ASX: CKF)
Collins Foods is a quick service restaurant operator with a large collection of KFC restaurants in Australia and Europe. Due to being under penetrated, it is the latter market which I believe will underpin its growth over the long term. In addition to this, the company's plan to the roll out the Taco Bell brand across several Australian states should also support its earnings growth over the coming years and put it in a position to continue increasing its dividend.
Rural Funds Group (ASX: RFF)
Due to having long term tenancy agreements with rental increases locked into them, I believe this agriculture-focused real estate property trust is well-positioned to continue increasing its dividend for many years to come. Especially given how in-demand Australian produce is and how the trust has a diversified portfolio of assets including almonds, macadamias, cattle, poultry, and wine production. At present Rural Funds shares offer a forward 4.7% yield.
Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC)
If you don't already have exposure to the banks then I think it would be well worth taking advantage of the recent pullback in the Westpac share price to pick up shares. The banking giant's shares are currently trading on lower than average multiples and offer a generous trailing fully franked 7.5% dividend.
