Starting at age 35, or even 25, is key to success

By Garry Marr, Financial Post

If we can’t convince a 35-year-old to save for retirement, why would someone 10 years younger contemplate it?

It’s not that we don’t see the need to plan. A recent Bank of Montreal survey of 35-to-44-year-olds found 90% of respondents believe there is a need to plan before the age of 35. The problem is only 40% of people in that age group had done any planning.

“You’ve got to start early and you have to start by 35,” says Tina Di Vito, head of BMO Retirement Institute, about the general response from Canadians. “You ask if they are doing it and the answer was very different.”

Forget 35, there is a very strong argument to beginning your retirement planning a decade earlier, she says. If you put away $100 a week in a RRSP at 25, it would grow to $663,724 by age 65, based on a compounding rate of return of 5%. But if you wait until you are 45, even saving $200 a week will only grow your investment to $357,131 by age 65 at the 5% rate. That same 25-year-old could stop making contributions at 45 and his or her investment would still grow to $473,787 by 65.
montrealgazette.com

Tags: Retirement Income, Savings

By Jonathan Kern
Special to The Washington Post

If your junior-high soundtrack was more Bangles or Britney than Beatles, I am going to try to scare some sense into you with three words about life in retirement, based on personal experience: The paychecks stop.

I retired last year after 30 years as a broadcast journalist. Unlike most baby boomers who have retired, I do not receive a pension. This surprises and appalls my fellow early retirees, who are either enjoying income from a spouse who’s still working or receiving checks from old employers.

If you’re, say, under 40 — and especially if you’re under 30 — you probably have worked only at firms or agencies that offered 401(k)s or their nonprofit cousin, the 403(b). That means that when you finally do retire 25 or 35 years from now, you will be responsible for providing for your own income. No pension for you!
washingtonpost.com

Tags: Retirement Income, Savings

The recent recession was tough for all of us. But for those struggling with credit card debt, the economic meltdown was especially painful. Dealing with debt and an unpredictable job market pushed many people into a financial crisis.

Geoff Williams, a freelance writer and blogger for AOL’s WalletPop, is one of those people. He’s the co-author of Living Well with Bad Credit, and in his book, he writes candidly about his financial struggles and how it eventually led to bankruptcy.

You’ve Got Debt

Williams says that the debt he accumulated in his twenties motivated him to make more money. “Unfortunately, as I made more money, I also took on more debt,” he says.
foxbusiness.com

Tags: Retirement Income, Savings