Understand Your Financial Readiness for Retirement
Keeping up with the Jones isn’t necessary. Personally, I don’t recommend it because spending all your money and going into debt will cause financial strain down the road. Saving enough for retirement, now that is a worthwhile goal.
For each of us, the amount we need to save and live off during retirement is different. Most people hope to have extra retirement savings to supplement their Social Security income. How do you know when you have enough?
Use an Online Financial Calculator to Assess Your Current Situation
There are many great online calculators that allow you to estimate how much you will need for retirement and how much you will have for retirement based on your current situation. These calculators often take into account how much you are earning today, how much you plan to spend in retirement, and what savings you have so far.
A few examples of these calculators that you can try for free include:
Don’t be surprised if the calculators indicate that you should be saving more. It is rare for the calculators to indicate that you are saving too much. Regardless of the results, these tools can help you think about money and retirement in new ways.
How Does Your Situation Compare to Others?
Now that you have tried calculating how much you need for retirement, you might want to know a few averages regarding how much others are actually saving. These are great numbers to keep in mind because the experts agree that most people are not saving enough for retirement.
Different resources will tell you different amounts, but here are some average ranges of how much people have saved for retirement based on age.
People in their 30s have saved an average of $30,000 to $75,000 for retirement.
People in their 40s have saved an average of $80,000 to $125,000 for retirement.
People in their 50s have saved an average of $140,000 to $250,000 for retirement.
People in their 60s have saved an average of $180,000 to $275,000 for retirement.
People in their 70s have saved an average of $170,000 to $275,000 for retirement.
Sources for retirement savings averages include: Fidelity, Vanguard, and the 2019 Survey of Consumer Finances.
Add a New Strategy to Your Financial Arsenal Besides Savings
We all want to have a comfortable retirement. We never know what the future may bring, so it is best to be prepared. Saving more for retirement is a great way to prepare for a better financial future.
Of course, spending less in retirement can make the money that you have last as long as possible. Guide Change is here to help people make sure that they make the most of the money that they do have by not wasting it. We can help you be more aware of what’s going on with your finances at any given point in time. When you don’t have unnecessary waste and mitigate your financial risks, your savings can last longer.
If you have any questions or would like any assistance from Guide Change, please do not hesitate to contact us.