401k question

[Anonymous]

I'm in my mid-30s and will likely have just my 401k + SS to live off of when I retire one day. How much is a good amount to have in there at this stage? How much do other people have in a 401k by their mid-30s? Thanks!

[Anonymous]

I'm early 30's and I have about 40K in mine but I got a late start and took a hit from the market (like everybody else). I also only contribute 6% but I hope to start saving more once my DS starts public school.

[Anonymous]

We are in our mid 30s and have $250k combined. We were told by a financial planner that we are behind. We do not work for the government and will not have pension plans to rely upon.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm in my mid-30s and will likely have just my 401k + SS to live off of when I retire one day. How much is a good amount to have in there at this stage? How much do other people have in a 401k by their mid-30s? Thanks!

There are good retirement calculators out there.

We have around $250,000 but are slightly older. I also have a job with a well-funded defined benefit pension plan (a rarity, I know).

I still feel underfunded.

My goal is to have north of $5 million in retirement.

[Anonymous]

Here's an article talking about "the number"; Fidelity put out some guidelines last week, and the article discusses them.


http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390443493304578034334095447050.html

[Anonymous]

I (mid-thirties) have around $150,000 in mine, H is in his forties and has a little more than that. I stated putting something into mine right out of college and have increased it as I have made more $.

[Anonymous]

Late forties, total of $400K between us. Ugh,not enough!

[Anonymous]

Early 40s, between 401k and IRA about $750k. Not enough.

[Anonymous]

The mutual fund complexes are hardly disinterested parties. If you follow their advice you will likely never have enough. Yes, yes, save. But have your housing paid off, make lifestyle choices that support good health - and mental health/stress are direct components of good health.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The mutual fund complexes are hardly disinterested parties. If you follow their advice you will likely never have enough. Yes, yes, save. But have your housing paid off, make lifestyle choices that support good health - and mental health/stress are direct components of good health.

This is a good point, though incomplete. Having housing paid off, especially if you do not have a defined benefit plan, is critical (in my view) to retirement strategy. The big wildcard is healthcare costs. We literally have no idea what we'll be expected to pay for health care in 20+ years.

[Anonymous]

I agree with paying off your mortgage early, if possible.

Late 20s, about 50K as of December 2011, defined pension, saving 15% but will increase next year.

[Anonymous]

Mid-30s, 450k in 401k.

[Anonymous]

Late 40s - $1.2 million between 2 of us but I think we need to start saving more aggressively. We 've had our $ sitting in a guaranteed fund so we're barely earning anything but are waiting to get back into the market.

[Anonymous]

DH and I have a out 150k combined in 401k, late 30s to early 40s. We're clearly behind. We both have non-fed pension benefits if we were to remain with our current employers. We are currently paying additional principle to equal about 4 mortgage payments per year. I just did a calculator for my pension and depending on age of retirement, we would be looking at 10-15k/mo in pension income. Seems like a good amount now but not so much in 20-25 yrs. We have RSUs coming annually for the next few years worth upwards of 200k conservatively but more likely 300-400k. Regardless, we Need to get our butt in gear.

Ugh. Sobering way to end my weekend.

[Anonymous]

About $330K in 401K. We are both 34. Need to start saving more, but there is mortgage and student loans, and emergency fund, etc.