Reply to Does everyone on DCUM max out retirement?

Forum Index » Money and Finances

Reply to "Does everyone on DCUM max out retirement?"

Subject:

Emoticons





More smilies

Text Color: Font: Close Marks

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I have been maxing out since I was 21 in 1999 making only $26,000. I have only worked for nonprofits so I do not have a crazy high income. I also had 70k in college debt at the time-unheard of them. I am 41. Maxing out is the best financial decision I have ever made. I also paid for my kids’ childcare costs. There is no excuse for not maxing out. I stopped eating meat for years (expensive). Think of it as you can’t afford not to max out. Over years it makes a huge difference.[/quote]

When people say that they are "maxing out," do they really mean that they are contributing the maximum amount allowed by the IRS, or do they mean that they are contributing the maximum to get their company match?  For example, the PP above said they were maxing out in 1999 on a $26k salary.  IRS limit at the time was $10k.  Were they really contributing 38% of pay and living on the remaining $16k gross? [/quote]

I wonder too. I’ve pointed out before that as a young person making 40 or 50k starting out, it’s unlikely to impossible to live on whatever your net would be after the true IRS max. People will say that they’re not trying hard enough. I believe you should do what you can starting young and people need to get off their high horse about this. Hopefully in retirement you’ll be living in a lower cost of living area with a paid off house so no one “needs” their pre-retirement salary or 3 million in the bank. How does literally 90% of the rest of the country live? They figure it out. [/quote]

Options

	Disable HTML in this message
	Disable BB Code in this message
	Disable smilies in this message

Review message

Search Recent Topics Hottest Topics