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...life is too short
chasing the buck...by the time you catch it,you are too old to enjoy your
life....I wish everyone luck in their retirement....[/quote]
Boy I couldn't say it any better, my husband has a pension as well as a good IRA once he turns 59.5 then we will collect a little bet more monthly if we need it.
Like buying a 2010 Camaro. Life's good
I'm reading the posts about 401k's and thinking that a whole lot of people have not been watching the news. For those of you who don't know, there have been congressional hearing where the government is looking into taking control of 401k's to be administered by social security.
Highlights - You will only be allowed to contribute 5% of your income. There will be no tax deferment. Your employer will no longer match your contribution. Your yield will be limited to 3% per year no matter what the stock market does in the coming years. Your contributions will be treated just like your S.S. deductions, meaning your money will be used for general government operations.
So, to answer the question, are 401k's enough? No, not with government controlling it. These are the same people who are against having a portion of your S.S. deductions going to your own 'private' account.
edit - forgot to include. When you die, heirs get half the money.
I'm reading the posts about 401k's and thinking that a whole lot of people have not been watching the news. For those of you who don't know, there have been congressional hearing where the government is looking into taking control of 401k's to be administered by social security.
Highlights - You will only be allowed to contribute 5% of your income. There will be no tax deferment. Your employer will no longer match your contribution. Your yield will be limited to 3% per year no matter what the stock market does in the coming years. Your contributions will be treated just like your S.S. deductions, meaning your money will be used for general government operations. So, to answer the question, are 401k's enough? No, not with government controlling it. These are the same people who are against having a portion of your S.S. deductions going to your own 'private' account.
Good point.
But most are still okay with focusing on putting their money into 401[k]s
Alright, I need to vent...... Felt like bumping this thread since I've been doing some retirement calculations myself (I'm 27) and I've realized just how hosed we are as a country.
As of 2006 [pre crash] the average 401K balance of people age 50+ was 138K........138K!!! These people are hosed in the absence of a defined benefit plan. The reality is many do in fact have it, being grandfathered in, but for people like me, who are expected put 20% of their net income into retirement for decades upon decades to have the kind of balance sheet that would actually get you close to a 75% pension plan (and not even for life mind you....), and somehow put a roof (a sub 100K property mind you, that will never see 300% appreciation my parents were able to squeeze in 15 years, 'kids' my age will never see that) over the kids head, save for medical and other emergencies, fund college educations and save some for the occasional ice cream cone (Lord Jesus castigate me, i live such lavish lifestyle.....), a median US household income of 60K kinda falls short by an order of say...2 to 3 fold. We're hosed. You can be the warrior monk of savings and if you think life will afford you the ability to collectively as a country save up that much of your net income and still rise above the median cost of living line, you're living in fantasy land. 401Ks are a ticking time bomb, pensions got demonized and now everybody whose sole investment vehicle (post 1990 entrance to the work force) is a lousy 401K, which absent a company match is about worthless, I can do better with an online savings account and a tin can, is looking at making the choice of chicken or lasagna...college tuition or retirement? medical/life emergencies or retirement? LIFE or retirement?
The irony of all this is that we're going to bankrupt the country by the sheer insolvency of the 401K retirement model just in the same way we asserted pensions were going to bankrupt it. How you like them apples? Of course the mantra of responsibility is such a slippery slope. Salary not high enough to afford you retirement? that's your fault cause you're morally bankrupt, if you weren't you'd be making 250Gs...right. Oh that's right, it's that pesky $40 internet bill (which is written off as a business expense anyways) I should have done away with years ago, THAT was the make it or break it contribution to my 401K that makes the difference between living it up retirement style or being destitute....nickel and diming my way into funding a retirement....gimme a break.
We're hosed. Sorry kids, you gotta go to grandpa about college, he's the one with a pension.....Boy are they gonna love me:
"Smart, educated, humble, frugal....and dead broke insolvent the second his hands tired". Will make a nice obituary one day. At least I got Heaven made...
Hindsight I agree 100%. I am 27 as well, the most I had in retirement until the market drop was around $45k, now it is down to $38k. I really have no hope of getting enough $$ into retirement to retire on comfortably unless I live like a monk. But then were is the fun in that? I could get hit by a bus tomorrow. I have been buying into a declining market now ever since I hit the work force at 22, with W2's that ranged from $15k-$40k/yr (until this last year, but that was a fluke) and no hope of increasing in the future. If anything it will be going down, or I will be forced out of my career all together.
Home values have increased exponentially nationwide and will likely be falling in the future. Not a big deal but a major source of retirement money for the baby boomers was selling at a huge profit, then downsizing and paying cash. If I were to do that I might be lucky to buy a mobile home.
The middle class jobs that supported our growth in the last century are gone, replaced with lower earning service jobs. As a country I think we are screwed, just IMO. I'm almost to the point of wondering what the point of contributing to my retirement is, chances are "the market" won't ever really recover let alone appreciate. The only reason stocks go up is because others are willing to buy them, there is no true tangible value to them. It's a house of cards. Pensions don't exist for the majority of workers nowadays, it was the norm for people retiring currently. My father has a decent one from the Air Force.
You have good points. It does look pretty bleak economically. But most baby boomers are on the cusp of retirement and saw their promised pensions evaporate along with their 401k's - but without the prospect of 30 years ahead to recover and build. In this day, only a minority have a pension to rely on.
Not to take away from the scary prospect, but for some perspective. When I was in my 20's in the 1970's, we saw house prices sky rocket along with double digit inflation with no end in sight. The first years of Reagan brought a deep recession. Lots of kids were staying in college for advanced degrees because there was no hope being able to find a job. I thought there would be no way to ever afford a house because the prices were going up much faster than salaries were, IF you could get a job at all.
But in the ensuing 30 years, I did get a decent job, inflation was reduced, I did buy a couple of houses, I did save a lot of salary for the future, I did have a life. At 27, there is a lot that can happen in 30 years that can reverse or make things better. Out of great crises can come big changes. As often as not, the change will end up being better in the long run. It is good to be concerned because a mad as hell populace forces the powers to listen and make change.
But don't be despondent at 27. A lot can change and happen in 30 years. People in their 50's need to be very scared. This future is looming right in our faces.
I have a pension...also a 457 account,which is a civil service account,like a
401,the only differenceis you can withdraw when you retire without penalty.
I retired at 49, my only regret is I coundn't leave sooner...life is too short
chasing the buck...by the time you catch it,you are too old to enjoy your
life....I wish everyone luck in their retirement....
49,,, your my hero thats for sure,..... im 56 andd hoping to do it by 58-59
Alright, I need to vent...... Felt like bumping this thread since I've been doing some retirement calculations myself (I'm 27) and I've realized just how hosed we are as a country.
You go right ahead and vent
Quote:
... As of 2006 [pre crash] the average 401K balance of people age 50+ was 138K ........ 138K!!! These people are hosed in the absence of a defined benefit plan. The reality is many do in fact have it, being grandfathered in, but for people like me, who are expected put 20% of their net income into retirement for decades upon decades to have the kind of balance sheet that would actually get you close to a 75% pension plan (and not even for life mind you....), and somehow put a roof (a sub 100K property mind you, that will never see 300% appreciation my parents were able to squeeze in 15 years, 'kids' my age will never see that) over the kids head, save for medical and other emergencies, fund college educations and save some for the occasional ice cream cone (Lord Jesus castigate me, i live such lavish lifestyle.....), a median US household income of 60K kinda falls short by an order of say...2 to 3 fold. We're hosed. You can be the warrior monk of savings and if you think life will afford you the ability to collectively as a country save up that much of your net income and still rise above the median cost of living line, you're living in fantasy land. 401Ks are a ticking time bomb, pensions got demonized and now everybody whose sole investment vehicle (post 1990 entrance to the work force) is a lousy 401K, which absent a company match is about worthless, I can do better with an online savings account and a tin can, is looking at making the choice of chicken or lasagna...college tuition or retirement? medical/life emergencies or retirement? LIFE or retirement?
Yes, and?
Quote:
... The irony of all this is that we're going to bankrupt the country by the sheer insolvency of the 401K retirement model just in the same way we asserted pensions were going to bankrupt it. How you like them apples? Of course the mantra of responsibility is such a slippery slope. Salary not high enough to afford you retirement? that's your fault cause you're morally bankrupt, if you weren't you'd be making 250Gs...right. Oh that's right, it's that pesky $40 internet bill (which is written off as a business expense anyways) I should have done away with years ago, THAT was the make it or break it contribution to my 401K that makes the difference between living it up retirement style or being destitute....nickel and diming my way into funding a retirement....gimme a break.
We're hosed. Sorry kids, you gotta go to grandpa about college, he's the one with a pension.....Boy are they gonna love me:
"Smart, educated, humble, frugal....and dead broke insolvent the second his hands tired". Will make a nice obituary one day. At least I got Heaven made...
problem is, you need to start investing when your young, but how many young people want to do that?
great and timely article. One of the things that needs to come back in vogue is having your house paid for prior to retirement. That use to be the norm and will probably be again.
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