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Senior Retirement Tips :: First Time Investing
First Time Investing: Retirement Investing for the First Time and Why You Should Start NOW
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First time investing? Thinking about your retirement, but don’t know where to start?
If you’ve ever pictured your retirement, and chances are good that you have, you probably pictured a beautiful golf course, maybe a condo on the beach and a relaxed, happy lifestyle.
Well, wake up and smell the $7 Starbucks latte. Unless you begin saving and first time investing now, chances are you will be forced to reduce your standard of living in retirement, or to work far longer than you'd like.
Why First Time Investing is so Important
The sooner you start investing for retirement, the better. According to The Economist magazine, few working Americans are taking the steps they should to turn their retirement aspirations into reality.
For example, 73% of adults between the ages of 21 and 64 expect to retire comfortably and 74% plan to do so before age 65. Yet less than half of those numbers are investing in assets that are likely to provide the money they will need.
Dwindling Social Security
Getting started on your first time investing for retirement now is critical thanks to a dwindling Social Security program.
Dwindling Social Security payments are not the only financial hurdle for baby boomers. Rising taxes are a virtual certainty if the government does not cut spending.
Rising Health Care Costs
In addition, increasing health care costs seem certain for baby-boomer retirees. Sooner or later, Congress will have to hack away at the ballooning Medicare/Medicaid budget.
Meanwhile, reduced corporate retirement benefits are also likely, as businesses continue to slash costs to remain competitive.
Calculating How Much You’ll Need to Invest
So just how much money will it take to ease you on down the road?
Take a seat: A 35-year-old man earning $50,000 who lacks a company pension or savings plan will need to amass the equivalent of at least $1 million over the next 30 years to retire comfortably at age 65 and support his lifestyle to age 90.
Most people believe they will be able to live on less than 70% of their pre-retirement income, which most financial planners estimate is the minimum required to maintain your pre-retirement living standard.
The easiest way for most investors to accumulate such retirement riches is through mutual funds, which make it easy for you to put away regular amounts of money.
Before you start calling for prospectuses, though, consider this one basic, first time investing for retirement strategy: Save, save, save.
You probably have some kind of savings plan in place already, but there's a good chance that it's not enough.
Today the national savings rate stands at a mere 4%, which is only half that of 20 years ago. Try to get it up to an impressive 10 or 15%.
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SeniorRetireTips.com :: First Time Investing