July 31, 2014

What % of income to save for retirement?

The old rule  of thumb was that you need to say 10% of your income for retirement. However, a number of recent studies conclude that 15% is the appropriate amount. This percent includes an employer's contribution but half of Americans workers get no help from their employer and the self-employed are on their own. Of course you can't wait until you are 40 to start investing 15% of income for retirement. So young workers need to increase their contributions to retirement by 1% (or more) a year to reach the ideal 15%; older workers have few options other than to work longer (which isn't always possible) while reducing current and future consumption expenditures. Bottom line: start saving early and plan to work longer. This info is based on a recent study by the Center for Retirement Resarch at Boston College; check it out at: http://crr.bc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/IB_14-111.pdf

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