It is very important to start saving up for retirement early on in one's life because unexpected things can happen later on, so one must be prepared to have enough money to last until long after retirement. For those who started later, there are still ways to live comfortably and not have to save massive amounts of money in the last few years of work.
In this type of situation, one must continue to invest no matter what the amount. Also, the investment should contain a good mix of something like 50% stocks, 40% bonds and 10% cash. One should not only rely on stocks because it is very risky to only rely on stocks, so bonds should also take up a big part of one's portfolio. Even though stocks are not earning as much as they did, having a diverse portfolio of stocks and holding them for a longer time will still give one decent profits in any type of economic situation. Holding too much of only one company's stock would be risky no matter how well a company is doing because of the uncertainties of business, so diversification helps reduce these risks. Some other things that can be done is to max out one's 401(k) and to take advantage of the $5000 provision for people over the age of 50. Try to find more ways to get the most out of investments and savings by finding and switching over to ones with the most interest rates and lower fees.
It pays to start early and save as much as one can when one has the ability to earn more.
http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/08/pf/retirement/boomer_july.moneymag/index.htm?postversion=2008071510
http://money.cnn.com/2008/09/05/retirement/retirement_perfectplan_60s.moneymag/index.htm?postversion=2008090912
http://money.cnn.com/2008/08/15/pf/millionaires.moneymag/
Having a diverse stock portfolio always helps.
ReplyDeleteJameel
I think everyone knows that time is the key. However, not many of us can afford to cut down on our expenses when coming to investment. People mostly think that time will always be better. However, this recession is a wake up call for everyone.
ReplyDeleteQuang Nguyen