Maybe we all should start a company called Toilet Financial Advisors LLC. 
āMaybe we all should start a company called Toilet Financial Advisors LLC.ā
Oh yeah! What can be our motto? āYou earn it, and we flush it down the toilet for you!ā Except for our commission, of course.
Iāll work till iām 70 if health holds out, which seems likely, and retire with no debt, but relying on SS heavily. Iāve access to a unique inexpensive housing situation and expect to live a simple life style, which is fine with me. The only think Iāll miss is travel. Perhaps, I can budget one trip in a year till Iām too addled 
If I would be able to work till Iām 70 (which is unlikely in my field), I would likely have no debt and it is likely that I would also be able to accumulate quite a large size of retirement nest egg (in my standard) since I will not need to contribute to the higher education expenses.
But I could not even dream of being able to work so long.
At what age did you start to contribute to your retirement account (401K, IRA, etc.)? I think I started relatively late ā likely between 35 yo and 40 yo. This was a big mistake.
I actually notice a pattern here: If someone does not finish his schooling early, he or she tends to start contributing to his/her retirement account late. Many advices from the financial advisors say it is better for a person to start contributing to 401K in the early 20s; I think this is unrealistic for many people (unless having a BA or BS degree is good enough for his/her career ā e.g., like those who enter the finance industry with only a BA degree and learn the rest while on the job.)
I started contributing at 22, when I got my first job. I contributed 5%, because thatās what was matched. Now I contribute the max every year, but I havenāt always been in a position to do that.
I remember 30+ years ago, when 401ks were relatively new, being employed by a bank that would allow you to contribute 6% of salary (to the max) and they would match 2 for 1. So, for a 6% deferral, I would be āsavingā 18%. They also had a defined benefit pension. Many of my co-workers didnāt participate in the 401k, because it reduced their take home pay too much, they were still young, it could wait, etc.
Needless to say, the pension became a cash balance pension, and the matching went from 200% to 50%. My wifeās new employer doesnāt match at all for highly comped employees, and the pension is not material. Unlucky for those who thought they could wait.
Still, my wife (who worked there longer than I did), managed to grow the 401k to 7 digits and the cash balance pension to mid 6 digits. I did about as well, but my ex got half of that :((
" I did about as well, but my ex got half of that "
I guess thatās why they say one of the most costly things people can do that impact their financial future is to divorce. Though often, it seems to be worth it.
@busdriver11, my divorce was one of the best things I could do for myself, personally, as my marriage had become toxic. It had effects on my 2 children with my ex (and also my 2 children with DW), and if I could live my life over again, Iād do things differently. But, it wasnāt a close call, and I think that everyone involved would probably say it was the best thing that could have happened under the circumstances.
I think itās the case that, even without divorce, your choice of a spouse is one of the most financially important decisions you will make.
The best financial advice I received (and followed) was from the HR person at my first job out of college. He stressed to all of us just graduated and started earning a real pay check, to start contributing to our 401k from the very first paycheck and to maximize the company contribution. He was an older gentleman who came across (to me) like an authoritative father figure. Not knowing anything else, I did just that to get the maximum contribution from the company (and contributed more as I went on) and never stopped.
I watched almost all my peers at the time ignored that HR ādadāsā advice (It was a little like a threat to me). They spent their money on happy hour/going out to eat, brand new furniture for the whole apartment, etcā¦ I didnāt have as much disposable income as they went directly to 401k. Now almost 30 years later, I often think back and thank that HR ādadā.
A good change, late in coming, is that employers have moved to an opt-out decision. Barring an act on the part of the employee, they will be signed up for some relatively vanilla 401k choice.
My plan is set up so we pay employees 3% whether they contribute or not. We literally beg employees to contribute, especially when they get raises. Hubby has gone so far to explain how a small amount pre tax practically has no impact on take home pay, but how much it will add up to over time. Iāve had meetings with the financial advisors for everyone. We just canāt get most to contribute. And those who leave almost always liquidate after leaving.
I "retired"at 30 when we were expecting our first child. I had always planned on being a stay-at-home mom, at least until the (hoped for) children were in high school. Then I thought I would go back to work, as a teacher, to help pay for their college. Being home for them was so important to me that I told my husband very early in our marriage that I would live, and be happy, in a one bedroom apartment, if that is what it took.
So we decided to save and not change our lifestyle much, from when we were āpoor college studentsā. (We both come from very middle class families.)
I strongly agree with those who feel saving early is important. We started saving for retirement and the āfutureā kids, when I was 23 and DH was 24. It was not a hardship, in part because we moved to a ālow cost of livingā city. Being careful with our spending was what we were used to and consequently, we were able to save my salary and then some, each year.
I agree with @IxnayBob. We had many friends who started out in a similar situation, but due to their spending habits missed out on the opportunity to save early and reap the benefits from it. Delaying gratification was a big part of our financial plan. And actually in hindsight, it was kind of fun to be the couple who drove the old Toyota Corollas and used our college trunks for nightstands in our first house.
Anyway, my husband decided to retire in our 40s. Before making the decision we really looked at our expenses, now and in the future. <<< which was an interesting exercise, btw. Thankfully he is financially astute (yeah, he loves Bogleheads). He had a number in mind that he felt would make early retirement comfortable and relatively speaking, stress-free. Fortunately for us, we reached his magic number and life is good.
Oh and another reason we were able to retire early, we have parents who saved and will not be dependent upon us to take care of them. In fact DH manages both their finances nowā¦which is a good thing because in their zeal to chase yield, had made a few mistakesā¦lucky for them and us, he discovered them early and could make corrections before there was a problem.
I contributed the max to my 401k from age 21, when I had my first job (and was sole support as H was in school and didnāt have a job). Those were the days of really awesome company matches. I believe in āpay yourself firstā and to me, contributing the max is the default position.
I completely agree with the point about graduate and professional degrees delaying retirement contributions. DH and I didnāt finish our PhDs and get our first jobs until we were 28 and 31, and thus didnāt begin to contribute to our retirement plans until that point. We tried to make up for lost time by tucking one whole salary away into retirement and savings until our son was born. At that point we shifted to putting about 1/3 of our salaries into retirement and savings and have stuck with that percentage ever since. We figured that if we never really got used to living on two full salaries after living cheaply as grad students for so many years, weād never know the difference. I think it is harder to save for retirement if you get used to living on a full salary and then have to scale back.
DINK (Dual income, no kids) - if you can start like this and contribute max to Roth, 401(k), get company matching etc. We had modest incomes, and then later went to one income due to job loss and parenting. Hās pension went away. Still we have done well with saving - a lot with the use of time value of money. We moved 5X in 6 yrs across three non-connecting states st the beginning of our careers - and the last move sealed it as H being main breadwinner (I begged him to consider the other opportunity which in the long run was best for him and me as far as careers and income) - however I realized H has to be happy in his job and life. Kids were able to be raised in a very good envāt. H is 5 years away from retirement. We have our nest egg at comfortable risk and good returns. One kid graduates in a few weeks in nursing and looks to having a job lined up where she is at; the other has a great internship in her eng field and is on track. I beat stage III cancer. So we are in pretty good shape staying vertical!
Totally agree about who you choose to marry being a very big factor in life, money, and happiness. One can always change career fields, change a lot of other things.
We are teaching our kids to āpay themselves firstā with retirement taken right off the top, auto withdrawal - so they never see the $$. Same thing with maximizing Roth, etc. Saving up to move up in car. Living cheap (as possible) with room-mate(s).
We also can put money away for them if we have money available. Have done a little of this with Roth to their small part time earnings.
Given my training, I maxed out every item of savings with an employer match. My first employer also had a pension. But, my first real job was a post-doc/professorship, which I think I started at age 26. But, I couldnāt really put lots away until I started my own company and could set up a defined benefit plan. I am about one year away from maxing that out.
I have tried to get my kids on the automatic withdrawal and will succeed with my D. My S will be in startup mode when he leaves school so the real question is whether he can put some of his shares in a tax-deferred entity. Possibly, but it is complicated. and depends.
@shawbridge sounds like you have your family on a successful track for finances.
I know people that pray for their daughters to have a good H, and I guess I need to start doing that because I do believe in the power of prayer!
The early yearsā¦H and I met in college, so we started out together building our finances together.
Right now younger DD is wanting to make sure she can spend time with her friends on some of the school breaks. I told her she was fortunate, because many kids need to work on all their free time to get through school. Mom and dad have to tell her how to discretely put in the short break either before or after paid summer internship w/o seeming like a princess.
I donāt think I worked for a company that offered a 401k until sometime in the mid-90ās. The few companies before that had pension plans, but I wasnāt there long enough to vest. Some had nothing, and all you could do was a crappy IRA, which was limited to $2K/year back then. Not too many companies have had 401k matching, unfortunately.
DS dove right in with his first job post-college. It helps that his company offers a 150% match or something crazy like that. When DD lands a job, now that sheās graduated, I expect I will be able to get her to save. Sheās pretty tight with her own money already.
@SOSConcern, I am not a big one for praying, but go forth. I think there is a fair amount of evidence that it helps the one who prays ā not so much evidence that it helps the intended beneficiaries of the prayers. Nonetheless, I am focusing with ShawD not on a getting a good mate ā although I really hope for that for her happiness ā but on learning how to match expenses to income. So, move to a place where the supply/demand balance is good for what she does (nurse practitioner) and as well that she can live decently on her expected salary (net of savings).
With ShawSon, I suspect that a mateās income will be valuable in the early stages of his entrepreneurship, but with luck would become irrelevant over time. I see a mate in sight ā he is talking about current GF as his āpartner.ā She works in marketing at one of the big tech companies.
If I were to retire today (which I have no interest in doing), Iām pretty sure our retirement savings in tax-deferred plans and the trust we set up will handle our retirement but would not do so much the progeny. If I have another productive decade or two, I think I will be leaving significant assets in a dynasty trust for the kids and their kids.
In case you are interested in this info:
What is ātotal contribution limitā here? (e.g., $53,000 for the year 2016.) Is it the maximum a person can contribute to 401K each year, even though only up to $18,000 (or $24,000 if you are 50+ yo) is tax deductible?
Contribution Limits for 401(k) Plans from 1978 Until Today
Employee Contribution Limit Total Contribution Limit Age 50+ Catchup Contribution
2016 $18,000.00 $53,000.00 $6,000.00
2015 $18,000.00 $53,000.00 $6,000.00
2014 $17,500.00 $52,000.00 $5,500.00
2013 $17,500.00 $51,000.00 $5,500.00
2012 $17,000.00 $50,000.00 $5,500.00
2011 $16,500.00 $49,000.00 $5,500.00
2010 $16,500.00 $49,000.00 $5,500.00
2009 $16,500.00 $49,000.00 $5,500.00
2008 $15,500.00 $46,000.00 $5,000.00
2007 $15,500.00 $45,000.00 $5,000.00
2006 $15,000.00 $44,000.00 $5,000.00
2005 $14,000.00 $42,000.00 $4,000.00
2004 $13,000.00 $41,000.00 $3,000.00
2003 $12,000.00 $40,000.00 $2,000.00
2002 $11,000.00 $40,000.00 $1,000.00
2001 $10,500.00 $35,000.00
2000 $10,500.00 $30,000.00
1999 $10,000.00 $30,000.00
1998 $10,000.00 $30,000.00
1997 $9,500.00 $30,000.00
1996 $9,500.00 $30,000.00
1995 $9,240.00 $30,000.00
1994 $9,240.00 $30,000.00
1993 $8,994.00 $30,000.00
1992 $8,728.00 $30,000.00
1991 $8,475.00 $30,000.00
1990 $7,979.00 $30,000.00
1989 $7,627.00 $30,000.00
1988 $7,313.00 $30,000.00
1987 $7,000.00 $30,000.00
1986 $7,000.00 $30,000.00
1985 $30,000.00 $30,000.00
1984 $30,000.00 $30,000.00
1983 $30,000.00 $30,000.00
1982 $30,000.00 $30,000.00
1981 $45,475.00 $45,475.00
1980 $45,475.00 $45,475.00
1979 $45,475.00 $45,475.00
1978 $45,475.00 $45,475.00