“The question isn’t at what age I’d like to retire, it’s at what income?”

— George Forman

Retirement, beginning of new things or the end of your days? Many people look forward to not having to work another day in their lives. However many Americans number one fear is outliving retirement. That’s right, they fear outliving their income over dying itself! We are at a point in society where saving 10 percent really doesn’t cut it anymore. 1 in 3 Americans have less than 5,000 saved for their retirement!! 5,000 dollars is supposed to last them the next 20 to 30 years of their life. That’s not even enough income for some families to live for a month. So why is it that so many people are not saving for their later days? Many people focus on the present rather than the future. Too often our general well-being is pushed aside for the more fun option. Obviously buying that new car is more fun than plugging away 15 percent of each paycheck into a Roth IRA or 401K retirement account but it is important! Allocate your funds into assets not liabilities. I started my 401k when I was 16 years old and at my current income my overall retirement portfolio will have over 10 million dollars in it from my monthly contributions. Choosing to invest when you’re young can be a multi million dollar decision. Company based retirement plans aren’t around like they were previously. It’s your responsibility to make the decision to open a retirement account. Whether 401k or Roth IRA, I can explain the difference in the next post. It will be a decision that you thank yourself for over and over again in the future. Most companies will even match your contribution to a certain level. They will literally give you FREE MONEY just for funding your retirement. Do yourself a favor and go to either a bank or your employer and say you’d like to start a retirement plan and you can thank yourself later.