Quick Saving for Retirement Guide by Age * Trene Allen

So you came across this article because you need to save money? To be more specific you want to know how much money you should be saving at your age. You may have scrolled through the internet and loaded up on tons of infographics. (Don’t worry there will be some in here as well.) Even though you’re loaded up on the info you need more of the specifics.

The relationship between money and age is all part of growth. Your growing in age and as well you need your finances to do the same. At some point, you want to surpass this amount at retirement. To have a nest egg, sort of speaking, something to live off of. I’ve created this guide as a resource for how much money you should have saved at your age.

We’ll walk through it guys, age by age so you can start where you are at. And you’ve probably heard this before, but “You can save at any age”. And its never too late to start. I’m not going to bribe this post by saying it’s going to be super fast!

That you are going to get this money quickly! The speed of your savings depends on your ability. And quite obvious “How you manage your income”. As you read this you going to get all the true and actionable steps. I will be giving tips for all the age categories to help you start your goal.

Let’s start with savings at any age

These are the things you should have at all ages. You can place them in separate accounts and label them so you know their purpose. As long as you have these three set up aside you are making solid ground. If you need a goal to start with, start with these three. It’s hard to move forward without it. And by skipping these steps, at some point, you will find that you need to step back and fill up these funds. I highly recommend that you start here and then you can save for retirement.

The Emergency Fund

An Emergency Fund is something you need in case of an “Emergency”. You will not be filling this up in hopes of an emergency and its surely not a waste. Emergencies do happen all the time. Think of how convenient it is to have something to take the headache away. As analogy does it right, I would compare this to having ibuprofen in the medicine cabinet. You don’t want to have a migraine but at least you know you’re covered. $1,000 is a great amount to have for an emergency fund. If indeed you have to break this seal of needing this money, you focus on filling it back up, as soon as possible.

3-6 Months of Living Expenses

Why should you have 3 to 6 months of expenses saved? One reason is that the emergency fund might not be enough. Say if you laid off from work, or you have to take maternity leave. The 3 to 6 months of expenses has got you covered. You still can pay all of your bills and don’t have to stress about money. All large life changes are covered under this expense. In any case, 3 months is just enough, total up your monthly costs including your spending cash. Add all of them together and times it by 3, whatever the amount is that’s your goal.

A Traditional Savings Account:

Everyone needs a traditional savings account to have money growing with interest. After both of your funds are filled, this is where you put the rest of your savings. You can use your savings to help you pay off debt, medical bills, and even buy a home or car. I like to have a picture of what I’m saving for so it reminds me of my goal. Try applying for a high-interest savings account to get more bank for your money.

Do you need help on Starting a Budget?

Visit these other articles below both on Budgeting and Saving

Budgeting 101

Saving More Money

How much do I save by Age?

This is where we get to the good part. Fidelity has drawn up their own idea of what we should have at a certain age. They describe it like this, to save at least 1x your income by age 30, 3x by 40, 6x by 50, and 8x by 60. (1)

For our example, we will use a typical income at age 30 (American household), at the Smart Asset they mentioned $45,552. And we will break it down by five-year intervals. So in your 20’s your goal is to hustle to have a roundabout $40-$45,000 saved. Goal check for your 30’s, now you have the first installment for retirement. The rest follows this example

35 years old ($91,104)
40 years old ($136,656)
45 years old ($182,208)
50 years old ($227,760)
55 years old ($273,312)
60 years old ($318,864-$364-416)

Your goal may be to have a Million dollars by that time, with this breakdown its easier to see how hard that is. If you want to reach a million, you have to increase your income and savings.

In your 20’s and 30’s

In your 20’s a millennial’s view of retirement might be seen far away. There are many obstacles in the present, first, you might be just starting a job. Now you are earning an income but guess what? You might be a burden with student loan debt and everything else. Credit card debt is very tempting at this age as well. In our 30’s we are now hit with the possibility of a car payment and the start of having a mortgage. I can see why saving for retirement can be like an “I’ll get to you later” goal.

The truth is the earlier you start, the less money you have to save in your later years. At this age, your income might now not be that much so you have to live frugally. Your main focus is to earn more income as you age. Increasing your income can help you have the ability to put money aside. The age I call “The Hustle Period” because you have to work harder at this now. Find other alternatives to add money to your savings by doing some side jobs.

Though expenses might be stressors on your right now, make a low contribution percentage through your employer for retirement. Start off at the typical introductory percent, it might be as well as 3% but its something. As your income increase so should your percentage be at a minimum of 15%.

Your almost there, 40’s and 50’s

Let’s hope at this point you have more money in your savings account. You have a good budgeting strategy in place and most of your debt has been eliminated. If you have had children you might even be making financial plans on colleges. Don’t let it keep you away from your path of retirement.

In your 40’s you have an increase in income so you can contribute more. You even might be dabbling into some investments, in stocks or real estate. This is the “Tightening it up Period”, getting all your ducks in a row, organizing your plan. Already have an amount in mind to retire with. And of course, monitoring your savings.

Questions to consider

Ask yourself, How much money do I actually need to retire?
Do you plan on spending less than you do now?
By the time your retire, what expenses are you actually going to have?

Time to Retire, your 60’s

If you are starting off late, you can see where this becomes the hard part. This is the point where you try to live a low as you can below your means. Start budgeting your income to contribute more funding to your savings In your 60’s, your income should be at a higher increase, and your expenses lower. Your savings effort needs to be increased more towards saving money

Most plan on having their house owned, mortgage-free, no car payment, and other sources of income from other investments. If your children are older now, you won’t have the monthly expense as a parent. The major concern that an older retiree might have is debt, this can be from medical bills, etc. Plan on working on your current debt now and regularly check your credit report for discrepancies.

Make sure you follow up with your insurance companies on any pending claims or changes to your annual plan. Let it be your habit to know the ends and outs to any term agreement on a monthly expense before you accrue them. If you’re signing up for a service like a phone, internet or cable, any kind of membership or subscriptions, read the fine print. Managing your expenses now and then relates to how you budget. Maintaining a monthly budget on any income size is key.