Many of my fellow bloggers and I have become concerned about how low the rate of savings has been for Americans in general. To see a list of all of the articles in the 1% More Movement, check out the article at this link. Since November is traditionally the time when corporate employees make elections for all other benefits, including health insurance, life insurance, and other employee benefits, now is a good time to also consider increasing your 401(k) contributions. For my article, I’m focusing on the employee who hasn’t been participating in a 401(k) plan at all. Your First 1% in Your 401(k) If you haven’t been putting anything at all into your 401(k) plan at all, putting that first 1% into the 401(k) plan can be a little scary. But you need to know that this is a monumental action. Getting started with savings is the most important […]
retirement savings
A Nifty Little Trick to Increase Savings
A nifty little trick that can be part of your savings plan is simply this: once a debt is paid off, still treat that payment as a bill – but now direct that bill payment to your bank account, IRA, or employer sponsored plan. Here’s how it works: Let’s say you have a car payment of $250 per month. You’ve worked hard to get the debt reduced and eventually (maybe even early) you pay off your loan on the car. What a feeling! Instead of allocating the money to be spent elsewhere, such as buying another car or spending it on other items you probably don’t need, consider taking that $250 per month and reallocating it to yourself. The easy thing about this is that you’re already used to paying it, you’ve already budgeted for it, why not pay yourself? Also, you can consider putting the payment to yourself on […]
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Calling All Bloggers – Let’s Increase America’s Savings Rate in November!
I’m sure that I’m not alone in the financial planning world with my concern about the rate of saving toward retirement across this great land. Recent figures have shown that we Americans are doing a little bit better of late, at a 5% savings rate versus around 1% back in 2005 – but this is a dismal figure when you consider how most folks are coming up short when they want to retire. Rather than sitting by idly and wringing my hands, I thought maybe something could be done to encourage an increase in savings – if only by 1%, this can be a significant step for lots of folks. And now, in November, is the perfect time to do this, as most corporations are going through the annual benefit election cycle, so the 401(k) (or 403(b), 457, or other savings plan) is right at the forefront for many folks. […]
Sterling Raskie, MSFS, CFP®, ChFC®
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And if you’ve come here to learn about queuing waterfowl, I apologize for the confusion. You may want to discuss your question with Lester, my loyal watchduck and self-proclaimed “advisor’s advisor”.