Retirement Woe's Pt.1

Every year people lose focus on what they are going to do when they retire. The most important thing for all of us to remember is that we control when we retire and how we live after we retire. The first thing that must be done by individuals is to start to prepare for this by opening up a retirement fund of some kind.

You can start off by taking out a company 401 K plan at your job. However, it is advisable that you take one out that has 50% matching. This basically means that your employer will put in 50% of what ever you put into the account. These accounts also incur interest and once left untouched can grow into a nice nest egg for you. You can also purchase one of these accounts from an investment firm, such as Edward Jones or even Wachovia. I will advise that you earn more on the incurred interest when you purchase from an investment firm instead of a bank.

Other types of retirement accounts that you can choose to open are IRAs,and Roth IRAs. They are basically called interest rate accounts. They are like savings accounts except that you earn a lot more interest. The difference between the two IRAs is that with the Roth IRA you can earn triple the amount of money that you put into it in a very short period of time. It is also tax free and tax deductible. This means that whatever I put into the account I would get back on my tax return.

I have also learned that the sooner people start a retirement fund the better they will get to live during their retirement age. Now there is nothing in the role book that says that because you have a retirement fund and you reach 65 years old that you even have to retire at all. A person could choose to use that money to live a little bit more comfortable, and still continue earning an income. People are starting to work until a much older age these days, because they choose too. Unfortunately, I will have to state that people also work at a much older age because they did not have a plan. They had no retirement fund and no company pension to assist them.

As time goes by it is becoming a fact that companies are not required to even offer their loyal employees a viable pension plan. Regular savings accounts are just a joke, because you earn very little interest on them. The safest thing that we all can do is get started with a retirement fund today.