Posted on 02/20/2011 12:02:48 PM PST by andyk
The 401(k) generation is beginning to retire, and it isn't a pretty sight. The retirement savings plans that many baby boomers thought would see them through old age are falling short in many cases. The median household headed by a person aged 60 to 62 with a 401(k) account has less than one-quarter of what is needed in that account to maintain its standard of living in retirement, according to data compiled by the Federal Reserve and analyzed by the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College for The Wall Street Journal. Even counting Social Security and any pensions or other savings, most 401(k) participants appear to have insufficient savings. Data from other sources also show big gaps between savings and what people need, and the financial crisis has made things worse. This analysis uses estimates of 401(k) balances from the end of 2010 and of salaries from 2009. It assumes people need 85% of their working income after they retire in order to maintain their standard of living, a common yardstick.
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
Until they actually makes changes its all speculation as to what age you might be grandfathered in.
The point I was alluding to however was that the country is short 10-20 million jobs and a lot of older people are being forced to take SS to survive. What happens if/when the jobs don’t return to older people? The ones coming up won’t be able to take SS in their early-mid 60’s and may not be able to find work.
I am sorry for your wife’s troubles and your burden.
I had full medical as part of my retirement.
They took it away about 7 years ago, long after I was vested.
I have a meager pension left, if they dont swindle me out of that.
Then there is SS, which they will probably swindle me out of.
All one can do is save and plug along.
Just when you need the medical is when there will be none.
“When I reach retirement age (70+), my 401(k) will be mine to do with as I please.”
If your lucky. The Government may force you to roll it into the Social Security System or devalue it through inflation.
What is the inflation rate going to be in the next 10 or 20 years? No one really knows. How do you plan for an unknown like that.
“When I reach retirement age (70+), my 401(k) will be mine to do with as I please.”
If your lucky. The Government may force you to roll it into the Social Security System or devalue it through inflation.
What is the inflation rate going to be in the next 10 or 20 years? No one really knows. How do you plan for an unknown like that.
Since you're so close to agreement anyway, I agree w/both of you! Day one retire on 40%....that'll grow to 60-80% over the next couple decades. Meaning a larger slice will have to come from savings, since SS and pension will be relatively fixed. the fly in the ointment will be the Obama inflation premium...the sooner the better repealed!
Sure, they paid in more that any generation in history, but it's got to be done /s
-———devalue it through inflation.———
You misunderstand the plan.
If halfway decently invested the plan will inflate too. That inflation will be salvation for Social Security
Only if poorly or haphazardly invested will a 401k be worth less
Doesn't it tho! Bingo! And those who managed a healthy 401k will be the bankers of the future Obamas. ie, where they send the SEIU to picket and the IRS to collect taxes.
“Baby Boomers: they grew up little Marxists in the 60’s thinking the world owes them everything because mommy and daddy handed them everything.”
Since everyone else is attacking you, I figure that I should give you some support. First, for the above sentence, rather than reacting instinctively and telling you to burn in hell, I think what you’re saying is that a good chunk of the baby-boom generation are spoiled brats - they are the ones that protest EVERYTHING, and now they are the ones in the White House, controlling education, media, and just about everything else. Your generalization is not far off, at all.
“So now they’re going to tax their kids to make up the shortfall of their Socialist theories.”
If only that were the case. No, instead they are going to tax MY kids and (future) grand kids. They feel they are ENTITLED to this money, just because their generation screwed up in who they elected. They cannot get it through their heads that THE MONEY IS GONE. What should be a pot of money at the federal level is instead a HUGE DEBT and even larger future obligation. The only people that they can hope to pay for it are MY KIDS and that doesn’t bother them ONE BIT.
“Don’t worry: most will vote Obama the next election.”
Young people have and will ALWAYS vote stupid. Having an 18 year old voting age is STUPID, and is killing us. However, oldies do not get a free ride, because FAR TOO MANY of them voted for Obama - had they voted correctly, Obama would have never come close to be elected, as they would have more than made up for the kids - as they have in many, many past elections.
One comment on our war veterans that don’t like being called commies. Well, I judge a person by how they act THROUGHOUT their life, not just what they do when their young. I have an uncle who fought hard in WW2, but now he’s a flaming liberal and, like many of the boomers, is doing his best to wreck future generations in this country. Is he a commie - well, people do change and my uncle certainly did.
Ummm, with rare exception - we all get sick at one point or another - and the way to 'plan' for it is to BUY health insurance. Or 'gap' insurance...
When you turn 65 you can buy a medigap policy - if you pick the right one - it’ll protect you. Most States have nonprofit organizations that will explain the options... In Florida it’s call SHINE. Call you State government and get the phone number of a group that will explain insurance choices to you...
Tell that to the 58,000+ guys on the Vietnam War Memorial. They died fighting marxists.
1 All Markets smell bad. 2 Learn what the smells mean. 3 The current market is a 2 year old Bull Market, up 100% 3/09-2/11. 4 Hold Nose, buy low, sell high (or hold if collecting nice dividends).
Back in the mid early-mid 2000’s people were purchasing lots in the NC mountains at absurd prices with the hope of it being their retirement location. At that time their 401K’s were soaring and their primary residence was appreciating at a ridiculous rate.
The bubble burst, the resort developments went into bankruptcy and those $250,000 lots are now worth between 1/5 to 1/10 of their original purchase price, the primary residence value crashed and the 401K’s are in the toilet.
Busted dreams all around.
You know, this keeping the same standard of living is a big fantasy.How can anyone think that they could keep spending like they were working and be ok? There is no way to tell 20 years from now what the cost of living will be so thinking one can keep living like they always did to me is a complete dream.When you rtire you pay your bills,buy food, nd save the rest for emergencies anythng more and you risk needing a part time job when you are 83.
Thanks. What are the premiums like?
I'm 59 with no debt as well. House has been paid off for years, paid cash for the kids college educations and weddings by working overtime.
I had not even considered retirement until I blew my back out at work 5 months ago. I have grandkids that are accustomed to getting dirt bikes and .22's from Grandpa and Grandma. :-}
But if the surgery I had a couple of weeks ago isn't as successful as I hope they'll have to get used to skate boards and nerf guns. Such is life.
I meant the housing market.
It’s defiantly a buyers market at the moment.
It wasn’t too long ago that grands lived with their children. My great grandma lived with my grandparents until she died. I don’t see anything wrong with it, but my own parents are against it.
What hasn’t been mentioned so far is that I a baby-boomer born 1947 (currently 63 for those in Rio Linda) and spent 2 years in the 60’s in Vietnam part of the 5 million who served there had many expectations that didn’t happen.
We expected when we got jobs there would be a pension plan to supplement social security and expected to spend 35-40 years with the same company. That was how America worked back then. I didn’t have a 401k until 1995 and expected to have a retirement from my company that laid me off. After 15 years of contributing to a 401k post 1995 I am well under what I will need to retire at age 66 only two years from now and don’t have glorious expectations of retirement.
I also lost my home equity twice so I have some but I would say that if I could have paid my house off 20 years ago I wouldn’t be in this condition today.
My wife is 60 and has been chronically ill for 5 years now and I is incapable of working. The expectation is that you will maintain your health but the rule of life is someday that will go and you never know when.
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