I need some FINANCIAL direction...

[gr8tpanther]

I am 36 and have nothing for retirement. I wasn't brought up that way. But, I have been doing some thinking on the matter.

I know nothing about investing or saving money for when I can't work anymore.

For those of you who know about this stuff, can you enlighten me? I am a single mom with very little extra by the time bills are paid, so taking anything out for when I am old doesn't seem viable, or at least not enough to matter.

Any thoughts? I have to go to work, so I will check this thread when I get home and hopefully I can get some ideas.

TIA

 

[Pop Daddy]

best bet is find a rich husband

 

[monkeyboy]

I think Dan Murphy is a financial advisor

Maybe PM him and he can offer some advice

 

[chrissyk]

Does your work offer a 401k or 403b plan? That's a good place to start. See if they offer to match a certain % of what you put in. Then, try to put in at least up to what they will match.

If your employer doesn't have a 401k, you could start a Roth IRA for yourself. Maybe you could do Ebay on the side to make the extra 2K a year for the Roth IRA (or whatever the limit is now). Anything that you can save is better than nothing

 

[PRINCESS VIJA]

Can you meet with an investment banker for help at your local bank? does your work offer 401k? If so, take advantage of that. Sorry, I don't have much more than that.

 

[perdidobay]

I'd recommend you read Financial Peace by Dave Ramsey

 

[jrydberg]

My first bit of advice is to take out money for retirement BEFORE you spend it on anything else. Sit down and work out a budget of how much you can reasonably take out of each paycheck and take it out before anything else. If you don't, you'll always find other things to spend the money on. Even if it's a small amount, small amounts add up over time.

At 36 years old, you've still got time on your side. The more you invest now, the easier it will be down the road.

As for specific investments, if you don't have the time to do the research yourself (and since you're a single mom, I'm sure you don't), I'd recommend things along the lines of index funds (for stock investments anyway). Basically, for example, a Dow Jones Industrial Average index fund would mirror the performance of the DJIA. There are index funds for any of the major stock market indices.

My last bit of advice on investments, don't look at their value on a daily basis. They're going to fluctuate up and down. Think long term. Best of luck with it all.

 

[EsmeraldaX]

Agree about the 401K. I just checked mine the other day and it's surprising how quickly a little bit adds up.

 

[Ted and Holly]

Read "The Automatic Millionaire" by David Bach. He lays out some financial ideas that will really get you thinking. He covers much of what people above have mentioned. And it is a nice quick read.

Ted

 

[Miss Cleo]

1 word. Lotto.

 

[Serena]

I invest in mutual funds. I have a certain amount taken out each paycheck. I pay bills with the rest.

 

[floridafam]

Don't buy any financial books. If you want to read one, check it out at the library for free.

Cut down on any extras you can dow without-dining out often, extras on your phone service, cable, etc.

Check at your employer about a 401k plan. Also check into a Roth IRA.

Put the money away before you see it-have it taken directly out of your paycheck.

It's never too late to start saving money.

Good luck.

 

[orvilleair]

Retirement. My employer has a 401K account that will will put in $0.35 for every dollar I invest. When the account gets to around $500, they'll will invest it in a stock market mutual fund. I can move the money from one fund to another. Hopefully, your company has something like that where they will match your contribution. Plus it lowers your taxable income (the money is put away in the account before it is taxed, so you'll end up with a less taxes at the end of the year).

Also, you can set up a medical savings account to pay doctor bills etc.... Again, it is pre taxed money that goes into this account. The bad thing is that the money has to be spent by the end of the year or you'll lose it. Same thing for daycare.

 

[EsmeraldaX]

Originally posted by orvilleair
Retirement. My employer has a 401K account that will will put in $0.35 for every dollar I invest. When the account gets to around $500, they'll will invest it in a stock market mutual fund. I can move the money from one fund to another. Hopefully, your company has something like that where they will match your contribution. Plus it lowers your taxable income (the money is put away in the account before it is taxed, so you'll end up with a less taxes at the end of the year).

Also, you can set up a medical savings account to pay doctor bills etc.... Again, it is pre taxed money that goes into this account. The bad thing is that the money has to be spent by the end of the year or you'll lose it. Same thing for daycare.

Yes. My company offers this. It is called a flexible spending account. Pretaxed money that you use for over the counter medical stuff, medical bills that are not covered by insurance, etc.

We also have one for trasnportation. These are great because the money comes out pre-tax. Then you put in a claim for it and get it back to cover the costs of these things duringa certain time frame. You just need to use it by the end of the year.

Check to see if your company offers this sort of thing.

 

[GoofySuse]

I agree with FloridaFam but have a bit more to add.

Cut up the credit cards and pay them off. Keep one for emergencies only. Start living the "If I don't have the money I won't buy it." life.

As to savings. You should also start thinking about a college fund. If you contribute to an educational IRA for your kidlets that too should be a pretax deduction.

We have three IRA's with Fidelity and they have, like all of them, had their ups and downs...the biggest hit being 4-5 years ago. Generally they perform reasonably well. If you can start putting just a little aside each month you'll 'll begin be surprised at how quickly you'll begin seeing the rewards.

Do you get a large tax refund? If so take that money and open the account, rather than thinking of it as a windfall.

Something else, and this is hard to do but wise, set up a regular savings account and contribute a small am't each week...$10.00-25.00 until you have at least six months income in the account...just in case!

It's not easy but, in my opinion, acknowledging that there is a need is a huge step and the best thing that you can do for yourself. No one can take care of you better than you can take care of yourself! Remember that and be the strong woman that you know you are!

 

[Tiffany]

Originally posted by gr8tpanther
I am 36 and have nothing for retirement. I wasn't brought up that way. But, I have been doing some thinking on the matter.

I know nothing about investing or saving money for when I can't work anymore.

For those of you who know about this stuff, can you enlighten me? I am a single mom with very little extra by the time bills are paid, so taking anything out for when I am old doesn't seem viable, or at least not enough to matter.

Any thoughts? I have to go to work, so I will check this thread when I get home and hopefully I can get some ideas.

TIA

Pay yourself first. Example 401K or similar? Read "Automatic Millionaire".

 

[Mom2Ashli]

If you don't have access to a 401K type plan. Ing direct offers several options.

http://home.ingdirect.com/open/open.html

Ing Direct has several different type of accounts that they offer. You could start with a Saving account, CD or mutal funds. And make money on your own money.
Their saving account right now is paying 2.20% which is normally better than any average bank.

You do it all over the interest. I love my account, you can set it up to do a direct deposit from from your checking account.

GOOD LUCK!

 

[Snoopymom]

It's a little like losing weight, once you lose a few pounds, you really get motivated...once you see how fast your little investment grows, the more you want to save. Check out clarkhoward.com. He's a consumer expert on the radio here with great investment advice, travel advice too. Good Luck!

 

[gr8tpanther]

I have an ING account already that I put so much in each check, I get Direct Deposit and it comes right out of my checking account automatically and I don't even miss it because it is gone before I wake up in the morning

I found out today that my work matches for our 401K, I just need to figure out what percent to put in and what they match to.

I hate making these decisions. The lotto would be nice.

 

[janette]

In a 401K I would consider the minimum to put into it the match amount. If your company matches up to 3% put in 3%, if they match 6% try to put 6%. You will find that it doesn't make as big a difference in your paycheck either since it is before tax.

We've been able to increase our 401K and see little to no decrease in take home pay due to the tax difference.

One way to look at a 401K is that you'll make your company match + the tax incentive regardless of what the investment earns.

If you have to chose funds to invest in look at the suggestions provided, most will have a mix that is rated for different risk / safety factors.

I put mine into all different funds since the company I work for gives us many options. I've done pretty well considering the shape the market has been in.