Save For Retirement NOW
I was sitting at Barnes & Noble today (and did not order a white chocolate mocha this time!) and an older woman came and sat at the table next to me. She waited about 10 minutes before a young couple with a very young baby showed up and asked if she was “Nancy”. After overhearing their conversations, I learned that Nancy was there for an interview to be the nanny of this baby. Both parents worked very long hours and now that the mom’s maternity leave is up, she’s due to go back to work and they need someone to care for the baby. As I was listening to the interview, the couple asked the potential nanny why she decided to change careers from accounting to childcare. The woman (who was somewhere in her 60s) explained she had been an accountant all her life and was recently laid off after having just bought a condo. She was old enough to just retire but all she had was social security and it just wasn’t enough for her to live on so she had to think about getting a job. They discussed a whole bunch of things this afternoon but I’ll end the story there because I just could not get over the fact that this poor woman who had been working all her life was not able to retire and that all she had were those measly social security payments.
All I know is I do not want to end up like Nancy. I don’t want to get to that age and run out of options. I don’t want to have to take on a job because I absolutely have to. I would want to do it because I want to. I don’t want my kids or grandkids to ever have to worry about me because I can’t take care of myself in retirement.
Please please please please please! Don’t do this to yourself and don’t do this to your loved ones. You need to save for retirement NOW. I know, I haven’t been doing the best I could…for the most part we have done our part with the 401k but our Roth IRAs are looking pretty sad. We put in $500 so far this year and nothing the last 4 years. I vow to max out my Roth IRA this year. The maximum contribution we can make as a couple is $10,000 so I hope to do that by April 15 of next year.
Here’s a list of some blogs with good articles on retirement accounts. I don’t want to restate what they have explained so well so I’ve decided to let you look through their posts. Happy reading!
- MoneyNing – 401k, Traditional IRA and Roth IRA Savings Not the Same
- CashMoneyLife – 2009 Year End Tax Moves and 2010 Traditional and Roth IRA Contribution Limits
- Own the Dollar – Roth IRA vs. 401k Retirement Plan – Which is Better?
- Budgets are Sexy – 401k vs. IRA – Which is Better For Your Extra Money?
- PTMoney – Max Out Your 2009 Retirement Contributions
November 8th, 2009 at 2:46 pm
Thanks for including my article! I appreciate it.
November 9th, 2009 at 4:08 pm
Insightful post. Unfortunately, your story about the “retired” accountant forced to work in order make ends meet is an all too common story.
If anyone reading this is younger than 30, then pay particular attention. Save as much as you can now! The earlier you save, the easier it is to sock away enough for your retirement. A Roth IRA gives you total control over your investments, and with the advent of online discount brokers, there’s no excuse for not putting something away each year, even if it’s just a few hundred dollars.
Save, save, save… You’ll thank yourself later!