why do so few people have two million dollar 401ks/IRAs?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My God, OP. Do you have people who feed you grapes? Have you ever been in contact with an average-earning person in this country? The average income for an adult male in the United States is around $44,000/year. For women, it's about $10,000 less than that. And yet, you wonder why they can't save $2 million dollars. Geez.

I love you.

I'm female and have had $30k salary for the last 29 year. My NW is ca a million. Would be two if I had know anything about investing day one. It can be done on low salary, but it takes some knowledge and superb money management/ brains, which most people don't have or they would make a lot more. Also, can't have health problems or emergencies, ever.

Compounding is an amazing thing, but not sure if it's that amazing.

I like you - this is total BS

[Anonymous]

I started contributing to a 401k at age 23 at my first job after school and have been contributing ever since (99% of those years contributing the max) and I only have $1 million at 53. Guess I’m a loser, OP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can relate to the above poster. Mine are in various places.

take time to consolidate it. You just have to fill out a form.

Why would I roll my IRAs with unlimited choices into a 401k with limited choices that i don’t really like much?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can relate to the above poster. Mine are in various places.

take time to consolidate it. You just have to fill out a form.

Why would I roll my IRAs with unlimited choices into a 401k with limited choices that i don’t really like much?

Having an IRA significantly limits your ability to do a backdoor Roth contribution.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Approximately 35% of working Americans have a 401(k) retirement account.

Thanks, Google.

My dh and I are the only people we know with a combined 1 million at age 60.

I have friends in their late 50s without 401ks, because they needed the money for health issues or housing emergencies or lay offs.

One is now 57 and makes $19 an hour, with a college degree, after he last job loss.

Most Americans don't earn enough to save very much OP.

How do you know how much they have? No one knows how much we have.

[Anonymous]

I think many back off investing after hitting one million. They start doing other things with further money as well as pay attention to future tax implications especially if one spouse dies, Roth conversions, RMDs, and IRMAA penalties.

They become more concerned with protecting the money instead of growing it. Obviously there is a balance. But that can hard to find for many.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I started contributing to a 401k at age 23 at my first job after school and have been contributing ever since (99% of those years contributing the max) and I only have $1 million at 53. Guess I’m a loser, OP.

DP. Wow. That isn’t very good performance based on what the market has done over those 30 years. Are you less than 50% percent in equities or been in and out trying to time the market? A max contribution from 1995-2025 should be twice that even with moderate risk allocation

[Anonymous]

I’m 47. I have a bit over $3M in my Roth IRA

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if it's because many of us have had more than one job, so our retirement accounts are spread out across multiple accounts. I have a current 401k with my employer's facilitator, an IRA with Vanguard that was created by rolling over 401ks from previous employers, and a Roth IRA with Vanguard that I opened when I was younger and below the limit. Looking at them individually, none of them is particularly high, but in the aggregate, it's a nice number.

Yes, definitely this is part of it in my case -- I have more than $1 million in retirement accounts, but in multiple accounts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if it's because many of us have had more than one job, so our retirement accounts are spread out across multiple accounts. I have a current 401k with my employer's facilitator, an IRA with Vanguard that was created by rolling over 401ks from previous employers, and a Roth IRA with Vanguard that I opened when I was younger and below the limit. Looking at them individually, none of them is particularly high, but in the aggregate, it's a nice number.

Yes, definitely this is part of it in my case -- I have more than $1 million in retirement accounts, but in multiple accounts.

No. It is because 1M is a ridiculous amount of money and 2M is 10 times as ridiculous. It does not matter how people spread out their retirement savings, very few people are going to achieve a net worth of 2M never mind 2M in retirement savings.

[Anonymous]

I’ve invested the maximum every year since age 22 and am now 48, and have about $1 million. I was privileged enough to be able to save that amount every year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if it's because many of us have had more than one job, so our retirement accounts are spread out across multiple accounts. I have a current 401k with my employer's facilitator, an IRA with Vanguard that was created by rolling over 401ks from previous employers, and a Roth IRA with Vanguard that I opened when I was younger and below the limit. Looking at them individually, none of them is particularly high, but in the aggregate, it's a nice number.

Yes, definitely this is part of it in my case -- I have more than $1 million in retirement accounts, but in multiple accounts.

No. It is because 1M is a ridiculous amount of money and 2M is 10 times as ridiculous. It does not matter how people spread out their retirement savings, very few people are going to achieve a net worth of 2M never mind 2M in retirement savings.

+1. Like the OP of the "debt" thread, this OP seems to know only people making $300k plus and doesn't seem to understand there is a whole 'nother world out there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Approximately 35% of working Americans have a 401(k) retirement account.

Thanks, Google.

My dh and I are the only people we know with a combined 1 million at age 60.

I have friends in their late 50s without 401ks, because they needed the money for health issues or housing emergencies or lay offs.

One is now 57 and makes $19 an hour, with a college degree, after he last job loss.

Most Americans don't earn enough to save very much OP.

Wow, you ask other people what they have in their retirement account? You know how much everyone has and you’re in a position to say you have more than anybody else? A little nosy, aren’t we?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My God, OP. Do you have people who feed you grapes? Have you ever been in contact with an average-earning person in this country? The average income for an adult male in the United States is around $44,000/year. For women, it's about $10,000 less than that. And yet, you wonder why they can't save $2 million dollars. Geez.

Many didn’t have the privilege of attending post secondary Ed without loans. All that money that could have been invested went straight to the bank loan department.

I hope you’re grateful to any family/ life circumstances that allowed you to be relatively solid financially when you started working.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I started contributing to a 401k at age 23 at my first job after school and have been contributing ever since (99% of those years contributing the max) and I only have $1 million at 53. Guess I’m a loser, OP.

DP. Wow. That isn’t very good performance based on what the market has done over those 30 years. Are you less than 50% percent in equities or been in and out trying to time the market? A max contribution from 1995-2025 should be twice that even with moderate risk allocation

I was wondering about this too. I didn't have a 401k till I was 40 because I spent the previous 12 years working overseas. 45 now. The first year I nearly but not fully maxed due to also buying a house. I've been maxing since then. The 401 is almost five years old now and I already have over 200k in it. I do get a company match worth a few thousand each year and am sure that helps too. I do have the ability to select my investments and have been tracking the S&P based on Buffet's advice to just follow the S&P and not overthink it.

I also max IRA etc.