Layout:
Home > No Matter What Your Age

No Matter What Your Age

April 2nd, 2012 at 03:51 am

(Evansville Business Magazine…February/March 2012)

OK, it’s mid-winter and your New Year’s resolutions about money are kicking into high gear…or, more likely, you’ve simply kicked them down the road. Fear not. ‘My Money’ has produced the definitive ‘There’s Still Time’ resolutions for you.

20-Somethings: In the words of Suze Orman, you are young, fabulous and broke. (1) Cobble together $500 to start an emergency fund. (2) Pay off student loans. They will always be an anchor around your financial neck. (3) Contribute enough to your 401(k) to earn the company match—a.k.a. free money. (4) Don’t buy insurance that you don’t understand. (5) Work hard to increase your salary, and have some fun.

Young Families: Your life is no longer yours. It belongs to your employer, your spouse and your kids. Quit whining; you’re now officially a grown-up. (1) Put as much as possible—automatically, every month—into your retirement account. It gives you no reward now, but you'll be so glad it's there when you need it. (2) Open a 529 college savings account for your children and ask every relative to help fund it. (3) Buy a house if you can put down at least 20%, or move up if it’s affordable. Mortgage rates are incredibly low. (4) Read to your kids, and have some fun.

Established Families: Your life is still not yours. Now you’re dealing with teenagers and/or aging parents. (1) Keep socking away the retirement and college savings money. (2) Consider long-term care insurance. It’s affordable at your age. (3) Prepare now to retire, even if it’s 20 years away. Sitting down with a pro to map your financial future can help tremendously. (4) Plan so you can pay off the mortgage before retirement. (5) Your wallet’s probably lighter than you hoped; find cheap ways to have some fun.

In Retirement: It’s not as relaxing as young folks think. You worry about your health and outliving your money. (1) Exercise daily, even when the body wants to sit in the rocking chair. (2) Understand Social Security and Medicare rules so that you take full advantage of both. (3) Keep your investments conservative, but keep investing. You have plenty of years remaining. (4) Stay engaged by working part-time or volunteering. Do all that, and you’re sure to have some fun!

0 Responses to “No Matter What Your Age”

Leave a Reply

(Note: If you were logged in, we could automatically fill in these fields for you.)
*
Will not be published.
   

* Please spell out the number 4.  [ Why? ]

vB Code: You can use these tags: [b] [i] [u] [url] [email]