Is it possible to cake when your savings and investments take a beating [?
When I was a young mom and my husband was on the deployment of its military unit, there was always something "new" crop up in our house. On this occasion, I wore a clean load of laundry down the hall when I heard strange noises coming from the kitchen.
"Ball, pop!" (Laughs)
"Ball, pop!" (Laughs)
I felt the danger and had a sinking feeling in my stomach as I turned the corner and looked in the kitchen. My two year old son, Daniel, stood before the open refrigerator door happily drop the eggs one by one on the floor of the newly cleaned kitchen.
Currently, many Americans feel as though their financial nest egg has taken the same kind of beating that Daniel gave these eggs.
Home values were adjusted downward, leaving many underwater in their mortgages (where they owe more than the home is worth).
Although there are no quick fixes or easy answers, there are some steps you can take to get your nest egg scrambled in an uncertain economy
Eggs Over Easy -. The 401 (k) Plan
401 (k) is one of the easiest investment plans for the average individual or family.
Ask your company to assign an automatic withdrawal of funds from your paycheck and, if possible, pay the maximum amount authorized.
Make sure to review your benefits package so you know how to take advantage of the specific of your business plan.
For example, if the employer matches 50% of the contribution to a certain percentage of the remuneration of the employee, this means a 50% extra cash on the amount you contribute to the plan. This is equivalent to a yield of 50%!
In addition, the amount you put into a 401 (k) and the interest is tax deferred or pretaxed, depending on your plan.
If you change your job, you should be aware of "procurement rules" for your plan. You can not access your contributions until you have worked five years and vest in receiving benefits.
Other defined contribution plans, as SEP (Self Employment Pension) IRA and SIMPLE, vest immediately.
Change jobs too quickly could mean the loss of all or part of your pension plan or matching employer contributions.
When you change jobs, you must always refinance your 401 (k) and do not pull on. funds
Hard Boiled - calculating what you need
for a hard view of what you'll need in retirement to fill the gap between Social Security, military retirement and / or any pension income, use an online calculator "retirement"
the Two minute Egg Timer -. Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs)
by investing just two minutes a day for fourteen minutes a week, you can set up and manage an effective traditional IRA account that gives you a choice of investment options for your IRA, including stocks, bonds, mutual funds or CDs if you fund an IRA-approved account.
There several types of IRAs:
Traditional IRA - These contributions are using money that is deposited before tax, all transactions and earnings within the IRA have no tax impact, and withdrawals in retirement are taxed as income.
depending on the nature of the contribution, a traditional IRA can be considered a "deductible IRA" or a "non-deductible IRA"
Roth IRA . - often this is a good plan for younger investors who have higher levels of income in retirement
contributions are made with after tax assets, all transactions within the IRA have no . tax impact, and withdrawals are generally tax free
SEP IRA -.. This is the one I use as a small business owner It includes a provision allows an employer (typically a small business or self-employed) to make contributions to the pension plan in a traditional IRA in the name of the employee, instead of the pension fund on behalf of the company.
If you have a home business, this is the option for you
SIMPLE IRA -. This is a savings incentive match plan for employees which includes a requirement that the employer matches contributions to the plan whenever an employee makes a contribution.
The plan is similar to a plane (k) 401, but with lower and simpler contribution limits (and therefore cheaper) administration. Although called an IRA, it is treated separately
Self-Directed IRA - .. This IRA allows the account holder to make investments on behalf of pension plan
What can you do today to get your nest egg for tomorrow
photo credit: Raymond Larose via photopin cc
0 Komentar