How many of you have nest eggs built up for yourselves?

I've had a few jobs with retirement plans but I always end up withdrawing the money. Like I'm about to do here in a few weeks.

I just plan on working till the day I die.

I have the 401k as well..

I have a very sad little amount of savings now, but that is more saving to move rather than saving for the far future.

I can only retire in Mexico.

I started this some share option scheme at work when I was 24; it comes out from my pay before I get it. Won't be worth gazillions but will definitely give me breathing space when I quit work this summer.

(he says but he doesn't believe)

plus doesn't everyone get their parent's home eventually (presuming they owned it and you have a small number of siblings)?

my savings situation is not great b/c i went to law school relatively late (in my late 20s/early 30s) and had to use what savings i had for living expenses.

Erm, well, *cough* thus my comment above (there's just me and my sister). I won't go into details but it's nice.

I just rechecked the retirement options as well via the UC -- holy heck. I think I've got a better job here than I realized! (Still need the reclass, though.)

Actually I don't buy boxsets either.

yes -- 401(k)s are funded w/ pre-tax $$, and funds in the 401(k) grow tax-free until withdrawn.

Most wise! :-) The one thing I would have liked to have told my past self is to have cut back and not spent so much that way, and I regret not having more savings as a result of past indulgences (I might well have purchased property by now if I had). But it could be far worse and otherwise I'm doing quietly well.

Yup. Slightly different set-up with the UC savings deal -- I actually have three separate funds within the overall umbrella -- but same basic pre-tax function. For me it's a bit interesting in that I was first hired as a casual employee -- with a noticeable amount withdrawn each initial biweekly paycheck -- and then as career, with a different though initially smaller amount withdrawn and put into another fund. But interest earns on them all, and along the way the university has occasionally put in more money as part of a further payout (keep in mind the university could, in my opinion, be doing a LOT more...but this is why my union and the UC are currently in some rather bitter negotiations ;-)).

401(k) remnants from jobs I got fired from = about how much debt I have.

fuck.

1. when you're young, invest aggressively.
2. don't always assume a 6% return a la Bush, but historically the equity markets return over time.
3. "over time" is the key to the last sentence.
4. never take early withdrawal.
5. if you ever win some sort of settlement/the lotto/a trust fund/etc., never ever take a lump sum.

:/

I need to get a higher paying job.

:-(

What does this mean?

dumb lotto winners (at the high level) and lots of inheritors (low level I suppose, but some really rich people do this too) take lump sums, and get SCREWED on their taxes. Basically, money accrued over time is better (tho maybe we should all ask to get the euro equivalent, since the Bush administration is determined to ruin the dollar's value).

Both really sound tips to my mind. (The lump sum seems more tempting on the face of it but you always want to think long-term.) I'd *never* withdraw from either the savings scheme or the life insurance/mutual fund deal, I want them to sit there, build up and do what they're supposed to (I'm always quietly surprised and pleased to see what the latter has done over time, without trying I've been able to invest soundly with a reasonable if not spectacular return). Then there's Social Security as well, but that seems to be a whole new can of worms these days. ;-)

if you really really have to take early withdrawal, I guess you gotta. I still think about it all the time because then i'd be debt-free, but then being at zero is being at zero, sort of (if that makes any sense).

xpost - coolness, jbr. you're prolly way more sensible than me with your money anyway. i am horrible so don't take my advice, take my mom's.

You can take an early withdrawl penalty on a 401(k) when you leave a company or you can roll the funds over into an IRA with no penalty.

anyway, remember that when you're young it's okay to make mistakes. hurts a lot more when you're older to make 'em (ie. don't be my dad).

GE personal finance. advanced financial solutions, for the future.

then again, stupid things my dad has done:

1. quit his position with a filtration manufacturer (and gave up a nice home near Tampa, FL), right before he would've been granted sizable equity in the company. A friend of his who worked for the same company lives in the same area as my dad and owns a house worth about 10x my dad's.
2. after quitting position, took more money to work for an asshole, quit after a year.
3. went into partnership with an old college buddy (bad move). got bought out but didn't negotiate much.
4. sunk a bunch of savings into buying an AAMCO. yeesh.
5. buys new cars like every year.

The key is repetition. People tend to spend to (or beyond) their means, so the idea is take it out before you see it and you won't miss what you never thought you had. Worked for me.

Disagree about the lump sum thing though, if you invest right you can do much, much better than an annuity (over a long period of time).

OTM, very OTM. Also, though you only get karmic capital for it ;-) I donate to charity in the same way, and similarly I try to increase the amount donated over time. But to each their own on that front.

there's also lots of fun that you can have w/ trusts -- more specifically, have the donor put the $$ into a trust for YOU. DON'T have it paid DIRECTLY to you!

it won't matter, american empire will be over by 2020 anyways.

compounding and tax-free growth.

not 401k (maybe to some extent but its a little clumsy) or IRA obv, but wonderful little things like "tax", "pre-tax", "tax shelters", "trusts", "invest", "rollover", there are more. it is fun to say these things.

am i alone?

and fuck GE for dumping PCBs in the berkshires too.

I'm actually not ignoring this possibility either! Rugs may well be pulled out more thoroughly than anyone can dare to guess. I've mentioned elsewhere that my reluctance about buying property around here has something to do with my concern that the whole basin has gone past a massive tipping point on a variety of fronts, and I'd rather not be holding the bag.

Yeah, something like this occurred when my grandma passed. I think we're going to do the same thing as time goes on, but we're not thinking about that yet, as my parents intend on living a long and full life, as they should. :-)

I've spent a lot of time lurking here, thought I should throw in a few words about something about which I think I know a thing or two.

Never hurts to be cautious! I'll say this -- in my folks' case, they're happy as heck with the advice of my dad's friend and have built up a relationship that has worked over decades and has always relied on flexibility with assets and working both with long-term investments and more immediate needs and plans. My parents have always taken the time to be very thorough about their own awareness of their funds and what they are doing, which enables the relationship with their advisor to be both practical and personal.

i do think it is wise to be extremely careful and diligent when it comes to choosing a financial advisor, much less following their advise.

(In my defense, I have a shitty job with lots of time to think about nothing.)

Oh don't think I'm not aware of it! ;-) I was actually literally about to buy four years back but it fell through as a lawsuit was filed against the complex. However, given my debt level at the time, it was better for me in the end to settle the debt rather than have that as well as purchasing, so I don't regret my decision not to look again since as other factors have come into play.

Wise -- actually you'll more likely than not be better off than you would be even if you tried to spend time picking your own. Or, even better, get a total stock market index that will include small and mid-cap stocks. And, if you're worried about the end of the American empire (sure, I could see it too), diversify internationally!

(Seriously speaking -- given my current income the current savings and investment plans I have covers what I can afford. As mentioned, I have hopes for some sort of increase or possibly just getting another job later in the year, at which time I'm going to seriously consider further diversification, and looking overseas could well be part.)

i'd also be wary of financial planners w/ ties to the insurance industry -- they WILL try to sell you on some sort of insurance product which may or may not be good for you.

If I stick to this, at the rate I'm going, I should be quite comfortable.

(like 6.5k... Canadian)

caveat: lots of well-performing index funds require a hefty initial investment and a high minimum account balance or they charge you "maintenance fees." (tho I had one that was only $2.50 per quarter if you didn't have a min. of $10,000. so, not horrible.)

Aside from that -- well, if it lands in my checking account, I TRY not to go wild, but I get dismayed when I always end up with the same amount in the account at the end of every month. I want to save up money there too, but, well.... And with the cost of gas increasing ever upward....

I am good with paying off things, though. And I'm with roxy in the "credit card-free" zone, no matter how alluring it can be. And I'm making damn sure I'm paying into Social Security, no matter what ends up happening to it, so that if I ever need to claim disability in the future, I'll have enough quarters to where I can actually draw money from it instead of getting raped by the system the way my poor mom did.

is there no compulsory employer superannuation contributions in the US and UK?

I've got a few thousand in my retirement account but nothing close to what I should have 10 years out of college.

Apart from that, I have a very small amount of savings that I think of as emergency money I might spend at any time, and I have a retirement plan through my Univ. of CA job, which I've been paying into for 10 years now, so I think that's pretty decent but I have no interest in looking at the details.

xpost w/jay: that's the monthly amount I'm planning to put into this new home-purchase thing.

I really don't like money, although I like the things it buys. Sigh.

aye, this is causing rifts within my family even now.

saving $1200 a mth?!? shit I think I'm doing good when I don't go out and manage to save $40. My kids are going to be on their own, fuck.

It went to 12,000 this year. And it can be a gift to anyone, not just a relative, so TRY TO SAVE SOME BILLIONAIRE'S KID FROM GETTING RUN OVER BY A STREETCAR!!!!
And forget about the lotto lump-sum vs. installment payouts. Don't buy lotto tickets, period. Take the money you would have spent on lotto and put it under your mattress! Five dollars a week!
Seriously, though, 700 a month is too daunting. You set yourself up to fail.

i cant even fathom being able to save $700 a month!

after bills and crap, i have about $200 left over (which is pissed away on booze and other stupid things).

So I need to get a personal one, but even the thought of researching it does my head in. I can afford to save a couple of hundred quid a month if I'm careful, and at 31 I'm already a decade too late to start really, but hell. If any UK ILXors have recently done this I would LOVE to hear from you off-board.

I'm finally in a job that has both a pension and a 401k plan, but my current plan is to leave it by the end of the year, so bah. No matter how old you are, if your employer offers matching funds of any kind, take full advantage of it! Don't pass up the free money. Mine is fully matching up to 5% and I'm fully vested in it, so when I leave I get it all.

hmm, I don't think that's entirely true. if the person owned land or property in excess of $15K then it must be paid off. we learned this when my grandmother died recently. She had more credit card debt than we thought and they are holding my aunt liable.

xpost
Maybe it's the estate then. All I know is I was surprised her debt wasn't dismissed all together. Her land and house had to be sold to take care of it.

I did find out that debts in one person's name only are inherited by surviving spouses in community property states, which is a bummer as I incurred most of my debts before remarrying and don't want them saddled on RJM if I die first.

otherwise, we're close to hand to mouth. we just started this annoying budget to force us out of debt as soon as possible. it's okay, but a little rough. we're doing an envelope sort of system for groceries and eating out. we put some cash in at weekly intervals and that's what we have for that thing.

"we need milk."
"the grocery envelope is empty."
"we've got 3 days left."
"suck."

m.

Does your debt affect your spouse's credit when you marry in community property states?

Supposedly only if you apply jointly. It seems very whacked to me. I know that community property laws in AZ allowed my first husband to get a nice big loan for a truck based on my income (since he wasn't working), but without my knowledge (until he showed up with said truck). It may be time to move to Oregon or something.

bad credit score stuff sucks. i remember being denied for the corporate AMEX at this one job i had. really embarassing.
m.

Yeah my credit is troubling us now. After my divorce (about six years ago) my credit tanked and now my rating is the kind that gets laughed at if you try to apply for anything. My BF has spotless credit. We want to buy a house and the market here (austin) just keeps getting more expensive. we're not sure if applying for a mortgage together would hurt or hinder. obviously two incomes are better than one but I'm not sure if my nasty credit would outweigh that benefit.

Maybe you can just talk to the mortgage people and see what your best bet is? Do they make you apply before they'll talk to you?

m.

Miss M., I wish you all the best in your house hunt. I hope you find something perfect and that everything goes smoother than you could possibly imagine it.