This tag should be used for any questions related to retirement or post-retirement, such as planning or saving for retirement, or asking about benefits or issues after retirement.
Questions tagged [retirement]
713 questions
174
votes
6 answers
What happens to people without any retirement savings?
I'm not sure if this is a naive question. I'm struggling mightily with a family member (and everyone has a similar story) who just cannot make the right financial decisions. This person will forever live paycheck-to-paycheck and will probably…
Rocky
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167
votes
24 answers
Why do people save so much?
When I am old and retired (70 years +), I don't plan to spend a lot of money. I'll be living in my own house that is already paid off at that point, so no rent or mortgage payments. Since I don't need to get to work every day, I wouldn't need (or…
cearl
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149
votes
8 answers
Oversimplify it for me: the correct order of investing
I have been reading the top posts here, and the recommendations for what to invest in are often similar. What I'd like to know, in as simply of terms as possible, is what the consensus is on priority of these investments.
I am new to this, but here…
user73263
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67
votes
3 answers
Saving for retirement: How much is enough?
How to save
I'm in my late twenties and am trying to get started off on the right foot saving for retirement. I have learned that retirement savings should usually be placed in retirement accounts in the following order:
Roth 401(k) - Just enough…
Stainsor
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58
votes
11 answers
Should you always max out contributions to your 401k?
I am a year out of college, and therefore, i don't have any real retirement/investment plans kicked off.
I was having a discussion with my boss, and he was making a few claims I would like to get some input on.
There is no better investment than a…
user606723
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55
votes
7 answers
What is the best asset allocation for a retirement portfolio, and why?
Based on financial conversations I've had with trusted family members, I believe that asset allocation is one of the more critical things to "get right" during retirement savings.
Based on an aggressive investing portfolio and timeline, where can I…
CrimsonX
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52
votes
8 answers
Aging parents with no investments
My aging parents (75/77years) own a house on 35+ acres (14+ hectares) in rural NE USA (no mortgage). They have:
No investments (other than the obvious property)
Savings of maybe $30k in a bank account paying minimal interest
No income other than…
moscafj
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40
votes
4 answers
Is a higher salary worth not having a 401(k)?
An individual recently got offered a job that paid significantly more than what she is making now (more than $18k - which is the maximum 401(k) contribution). She currently makes $30k a year. However, this company does not have a 401(k) plan for…
Michael
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40
votes
9 answers
What are the downsides that prevent more people from working in high-income countries, and then retiring in low-income (and cost of living) ones?
Having experienced living in several different countries, the reality of different salary ranges and different costs of living has struck me.
You can work at a high salary country and make huge amounts of money compared to what you would make in a…
Zaenille
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39
votes
3 answers
Would compound interest work better if all my accounts were combined into one?
My wife and I currently have three retirement accounts from different jobs. The only one currently getting paid into is my TSP account. Would we realize better gains if we combined the other two accounts into the TSP? Say they are all earning 10%…
IEnjoyEatingVegetables
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37
votes
8 answers
How much should you save for retirement in a country that automatically takes care of retirement savings?
I live in Denmark. Most people will automatically receive three sorts of retirement incomes. There's the state pension which is universal (you will receive 12.500 dollars pre-tax annually, which can be almost doubled if you satisfy requirements such…
Massum
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37
votes
6 answers
How risky is real estate?
I have a friend who plans to retire by putting all of his money in local real estate. He makes a huge return on investment on the property he has now - something like 25%. Fundamentally, I think there is a tradeoff between risk and reward, which…
Josh Brown Kramer
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35
votes
6 answers
"One should save about 15% of their income for retirement." What assumptions are implicit in that statement?
I read a lot of websites that say, "I've run the numbers, and you should be saving around X% of your income for retirement in order to be safe, and have fruitful golden years." With X% being a number at or around 15%.
Getting to their assumptions…
Glorified Plumber
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34
votes
3 answers
How safe is the 4% rule if U.S. returns trend towards World returns?
I keep hearing about the 4% rule. I know it's based on historic returns, but aren't those returns based on U.S. stocks, at a time when the U.S. was ascending to the peak of "world superpower" status? Has there been any studies on how the 4% rule…
NL3294
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32
votes
5 answers
What is the median retirement savings in the United States today?
http://www.cnbc.com/2016/09/12/heres-how-much-the-average-american-family-has-saved-for-retirement.html
The median for all families in the U.S. is just $5,000, and the median
for families with some savings is $60,000.
I find this very hard to…
curious
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