At what age is it appropriate to save for retirement ?

Question

I'm 21... I have a chequing account, saving account but i don't know what kind of funds would the best one.Any ideas?? I'll have my degree in 2 years so...When is it a good time to start?? At what age you started ??

Answer 1

NOW,  start saving for retirement now. compound interest will make your life great when you are ready for retirement. i dont care if you are 3 years old or 90... start saving now.. go to daveramsey.com and check out some of the retirement calculators. you will be amazed.

Answer 2

Never too early to start.  I started many years ago at age 17.

Answer 3

generally, the plan is this: start a job, save enough for six months of living expenses (in case you get laid off).  after that, start investing either in or outside of a deferred tax savings plans (i.e. 401(k) in the US, RSP in Cd'a). in the meantime, watch your debt levels. try not to take on credit card debt and line of credit debt - essentially any debt that is at a rate higher than your rate of return on investments.  in other words, if you have $100 in your jeans, it makes more sense to pay down your credit card debt charged at 20% per annum than investing that $100 at the bank which will pay you probably 0.5% per annum.

in terms of funds, if you're not sure, go to your bank and ask for a reputable balanced (invests in stocks and bonds) fund or an efficent index fund.  you can do your own research on mutual funds before you plop your money down.  a good site for mutual fund research is morningstar.com.

never stop learning about investing and personal finances.  it's in your best interest.  as you accumulate wealth and learn more, you will start to diversify and start to invest directly (buying stocks and bonds on your own).  this is the natural progression.  never risk more than you are willing to outright lose.  there are no guarantees - especially in the equity markets.

i actually learned part of this strategy from a business prof when i was going through school.  it's worked for me so far.  hopefully, it will give you a few ideas of your own.  good luck.

Answer 4

as soon as you have your 1st job

younger the better

Answer 5

NOW is the best time to start saving for retirement.  Time will work for you.  If you understand the time value of money, many years will increase your return.

As far as a fund, find a no load fund and start investing in a value or growth fund.  Set aside a certain amount each month and stick with it.

Answer 6

My answer might be slightly different.

The biggest benefit of "retirement" saving is being able to deposit money from earned income pre-tax.

So "when you get your first job" was a good answer re: retirement.

But the best time to start investing is NOW but for your life, not for your retirement. You will have more money if you have your money making more money for you.

I am of the opinion, other than depositing in a 401k to get a match (they call that "free money" that you lose if you don't contribute), and if you are in the 15% tax bracket or below you should invest in taxable accounts.

You want to increase your income while your taxes are low.

Once you near the top of the 15% then you want to invest more pre-tax, to reduce your taxes, your taxable income.

My self, I worked where there was a pension and profit sharing for most of my career that didn't require a contribution. The 401k came later. So I didn't need to invest in what we call "retirement accounts" today when starting out.

I didn't start with those until about 40. And then later I was maxing it out but I could do that because I had other investments generating income.

I also managed to retire very early but I am still many years away from being able to touch my 401k without a penalty.

Good Luck.