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how old are you, and how much do you have saved toward retirement?

How old are you and how much do you have saved for retirement?

  • Over 20 0-20k

    Votes: 20 36.4%

  • Over 20 20-50k

    Votes: 5 9.1%

  • Over 20 50k+

    Votes: 4 7.3%

  • Over 40 0-20k

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Over 40 20-50k

    Votes: 2 3.6%

  • Over 40 50k+

    Votes: 21 38.2%

  • Over 60 0-20k

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Over 60 20-50k

    Votes: 1 1.8%

  • Over 60 50k+

    Votes: 2 3.6%
  • Total voters
    55
fishinRod said:
well the wife and I were doing great...right on track and looking good.......then she got sick a little over a year ago and will never be the same.....were are paycheck to paycheck on me with her bills..........those who think your bustin it now and going to kick back later on....i wish you luck....life can throw a nasty curveball....i wasnt able to hit it.....our future is uncertain
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That's why I don't plan on retiring.
 
fishinRod said:
well the wife and I were doing great...right on track and looking good.......then she got sick a little over a year ago and will never be the same.....were are paycheck to paycheck on me with her bills..........those who think your bustin it now and going to kick back later on....i wish you luck....life can throw a nasty curveball....i wasnt able to hit it.....our future is uncertain
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I'm sorry to hear that, sir. I work at home; is that something she might be able to do as her health permits?
 
fishinRod said:
well the wife and I were doing great...right on track and looking good.......then she got sick a little over a year ago and will never be the same.....were are paycheck to paycheck on me with her bills..........those who think your bustin it now and going to kick back later on....i wish you luck....life can throw a nasty curveball....i wasnt able to hit it.....our future is uncertain
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Almost ditto here. Had a nice bundle saved up then got hit with a very rare congenital heart defect that requires medication implanted defibrillator and eventual LVAD and or heart transplant.

One difference we have though is the girlfriend (who I supported) dumped me.
 
winston53660 said:
Almost ditto here. Had a nice bundle saved up then got hit with a very rare congenital heart defect that requires medication implanted defibrillator and eventual LVAD and or heart transplant.

One difference we have though is the girlfriend (who I supported) dumped me.
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God. People can be SUCH ****s.
 
Your poll doesn’t have a choice for someone that has saved and has retired.
I get SS and expect it to continue. I also get a pension. I retired at 55, about 10 years ago. My wife retired at 60 about 2 years ago. I made part of our wealth after retiring. Our net worth is far more than any choice and it will be enough.
 
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liblady said:
do you consider social security a part of your retirement income?
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I've saved 0 - I don't count 'social security' . . . and I've saved none because I've yet to get out of college or have a career at all going, yet.

But - at this near-halfway mark . . .I still don't see myself aiming for retirement at 60whatever. Retirement per a predetermined schedule like everyone does it never has made sense to me - and likely won't be my cup of tea. I'll save for future-sufficiency rather than unemployment 'comfort'

I've spent so many years not working - I ****ing hate it.
 
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Late 30's and had 50+ in early 30's until daughter almost died and insurance screwed us the hell over and lost some in the market and then a divorce. Doing fine now but you never know what life is going to toss you. I know a lot of people that were just so smug with themselves and their jobs and then KaBoom! They lose this here or there... planning is fine and all, but now is what maters.
 
winston53660 said:
Almost ditto here. Had a nice bundle saved up then got hit with a very rare congenital heart defect that requires medication implanted defibrillator and eventual LVAD and or heart transplant.

One difference we have though is the girlfriend (who I supported) dumped me.
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Dude, that sucks and I feel ya. My crazy ex dumped me after I supported her and her business...
 
Early twenties, have $3,000 in credit card debt that I will have paid off by the end of September (which is my only debt, as I worked like a dog to get my student and car loan paid off), a few thousand in the 401k and a few thousand in investments. Not rich by any means but I think my position is significantly better than most at my age, given that I'm almost debt free which probably makes my net worth much higher than most due to school/car/home loans.
 
Your options cut off way too early. They say now that a couple living in a decent sized city need $1m saved to retire.
 
teamosil said:
Your options cut off way too early. They say now that a couple living in a decent sized city need $1m saved to retire.
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Which is just absurd - if retirement costs more than your average income ot manage then something's seriously WRONG with the whole picture.
 
Aunt Spiker said:
Which is just absurd - if retirement costs more than your average income ot manage then something's seriously WRONG with the whole picture.
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Nope. You need enough wealth to generate the income you need. You can spend a little of your wealth, but not much. I expect to live to 80, my wife to 90. Do your calculations and you’ll be surprised.

Also, let me state how I rate the reliability of our income sources: My pension has the highest risk in ‘failing’ since it’s dependent on a private company. Social Security is much more a sure thing than the pension, but it may not keep up with inflation. Our wealth is the most reliable and it generates the most income.
 
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I'm 21. I haven't saved anything for retirement (aside from SS deductions from my paychecks). I'm still a college student though.
 
Captain America said:
I am 54 and I do not count on SS being there when I retire. It would be nice if it was but I am not counting on it. I figure, after I retire, according to wonderful jewish accountant, with my pensions, mutuals, business residuals and natural gas royalties, coupled with the sale of my home, I should have around 2.25 - 3.0 million to get me through my twilight years, (assuming we don't go into depression or the people the GOP tends to protect gets at my money again, like they did a few years ago.) Truly, spread out over a period of 20 years or so, that really isn't a helluva lot of money to have on hand. But I'm a man of simple means. I plan to retire in a simple beach house near the Gulf of Mexico and as long as I can pay my utility bills and the other daily nickle and dime bills that come along day to day, and still afford fishing tackle and bait, I'll do just fine.
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Just hope that Jewish accountant doesn't have the morals of Madoff and his ilk.
 
Captain America said:
Far be it from me to downplay education, but my oldest son, who graduated SMU alongside his wife, about 7 years ago are paying nearly 800.00 a month on student loans with no end in sight. They both have a fancy degree from a prestigous university yet they are struggling putting food on the table. His friends, who opted for trade/technical colleges, or no college at all, are doing quite well for themselves. Maybe in time that will turn around for them. But right now, their college degrees aren't worth the paper they were printed on.
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We are helping one of ours, a science teacher with a masters, just got his admin certification, should be able to get an asst. principal job in a few years, then principal. That will increase his pay quite a bit....
The other child is richer than we are....successful website.
 
Tigger said:
Our problem is the people at the top. We're in the midst of our second total re-org in four years. It's like a chicken running around with its head cut off. I've been with the company for a decade now as a contractor, non-union, and now union employee. I've seen about every side of the company possible. It's not a great place to be, but it's a stable job that isn't going anywhere for at least the next two years, by which time I'm hoping to not be anywhere near this company.
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Our top level of mgt. were/are idiots, proof of that is they don't fire the jerks in lower mgt....
 
Councilman said:
I am over 60 retired and I can tell that it won't matter how much you have set aside if your, "identity is stolen."

Five years ago mine was stolen and four credit cards were taken out in my name, maxed out and my bank account emptied, by someone I knew and this person was in the banking business for 20 years and even being friends with the local Chief of Police, knowing who did it and how, was no help because of the use of computers, and knowledge of the systems. I did manage to get out of the thousands and thousands, in credit card bills but there was never an arrest or recovery of a penny.

My credit report is still screwed up years later.

So be careful with papers and all important information like your mothers maiden name, and don't for one minute think I love you means anything more than I would love to have your money.
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Credit ratings are the bane of the younger set...
On occasion I get a call and threat from someone saying I owe them money and will take action to damage my credit rating if I don't pay. I tell them that since I don't plan on borrowing any money for the rest of my life, that can do whatever they want with the credit rating.
Then they soften their tone and when we discuss the details, it turns out that they are looking for someone else with the same name.
 
Aunt Spiker said:
Which is just absurd - if retirement costs more than your average income ot manage then something's seriously WRONG with the whole picture.
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You need to make enough to be pretty confident that you can live off of it for 30-40 years. That is long enough that what it really means is that it needs to be enough money that you can live off the investment gains alone indefinitely. So, say you conservatively estimate that you will see 5% increase in your investment a year, that would be $50k/year. That's barely doable for a couple living in a major city to get by on $50k.
 
Bodhisattva said:
Late 30's and had 50+ in early 30's until daughter almost died and insurance screwed us the hell over and lost some in the market and then a divorce. Doing fine now but you never know what life is going to toss you. I know a lot of people that were just so smug with themselves and their jobs and then KaBoom! They lose this here or there... planning is fine and all, but now is what maters.
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Sorry to read about your problems. You wrote “I know a lot of people that were just so smug with themselves and their jobs and then KaBoom!” Do you think having a safety net like Social Security is a good thing for them and you?
 
BDBoop said:
I'm sorry to hear that, sir. I work at home; is that something she might be able to do as her health permits?
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if something like that were available sure....any suggestions?
 
liblady said:
i'm so sorry.....disability or anything?
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we have discussed that as a possiblity but her job was identity and indepencence so to speak, she was very proud of what she did.....she came from a not so well off family and she had a sense of accomplishment...she doesnt want to be "disabled"
 
liblady said:
do you consider social security a part of your retirement income?
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For the purpose of this question, I did not. As to whether it will be around when it's my time to collect, I'm not sure.
 
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