just set up 401k

mickeyrat

good move now ? or should I have waited til after election?

Lesbelges

It's impossible to say whether it was a good move or not. However, if you consider historical stock levels, this period in general is a great time for long term investments (10, 20, 30 years). You stand to gain a lot in the long term, just make sure you have enough on you to survive if there is a further downturn in the stock market. What you should do is slowly put in through your paycheck to hedge your risk. So that sometimes you will put money in when the market is up, and other times when it is down.

Regardless, this is a great time to be opening a 401k

mickeyrat

kinda what I thought. Funny thing is the intial transaction goes through on Oct. 29.Kinda ironic given the current fin. climate.

wolfbear

Starting to save is always a good thing. Diversify your investments and you'll do fine.

mickeyrat

I agree.Saving is a good thing. This is a first for me. Uncharted waters. Guess I was looking for some validation on my decision.I'm beginning to grow up at 40 yrs. old.lol.
I'm newly married (9 months) and am starting to set some goals for me and with her , for us.

madtowndave

Don't forget....Whatever your employer will match, put in at least that percentage. Free $$$$$

mickeyrat

madtowndave wrote:

Don't forget....Whatever your employer will match, put in at least that percentage. Free $$$$$

Yes it is through work and they will contribute up to 3% I think.Bonus I happen to work for a privately held company that is growing. 3 new stores this month and 9 slated for next year.Potential promotion and relocation next year to Indy.

know1

It's always a good move. Contribute the max and never look back. You'll be a millionaire when you retire.

Fighting Hellfish

not a good move, a great move. If I may ask, how old are you?

NM---just saw that you're 40. Put as much as you possibly can into it. $15,000 s the max.

mickeyrat

well I've started with 7% from me and 3% from company.As I understand it I can change how much I contribute. I have to see how that affects my takehome with bills and all that.Also thinking about setting one up through my bank, And putting in some bonus money . I get those 3-4 times a year. And a yearly raise(salary).
If I do get the promotion next year that would increase how much I do contribute of course.That promotion is to store level management which has a signifigant bonus structure.
But I'm getting waaaaaaay ahead of myself with that.COuld very well be an opportunity at the store I'm currently at.
Who knows.I do know if I keep doing what I am now good things will continue to happen.

Lesbelges

I think the max is 15,500? Maybe I'm wrong. Also, the 401k has a great tax benefit.

There are 2 types of 401ks. The normal one and the Roth.
The normal 401k lets you defer taxes to when you take money out of your retirement account. WHile the Roth 401k is the opposite, you put in money after tax, but take it out tax free.

Now myself, being 25, I am using the Roth 401k (putting the max in) because I have TONS of time for whatever I put in to appreciate in value making the tax I currently pay insignificant with respect to what I will gain by not having to pay taxes in the future.

Now, normally, I'd say that you being 40 should use the normal 401k. However, with so much upside potential due to how low the market is right now, the decision is not so clear cut.

Either way, contribute as much as you can. Good Luck!

mickeyrat

Thanks everybody! Now any tips on where to park it? Different funds , that sort of thing?Seriously flying blind here.

Fighting Hellfish

anything you have left over after your 401k should be headed to a Roth IRA. As to investments, i'd be looking at the large cap funds now. Be greedy when everyone else is scared, and be scared when everyone else is greedy.

no1fromnowhere

I'm glad this thread is here, because this is ecactly what I've been thinking about lately. Does it make any sense to sigh up for a 401K when you know (or at least hope) you won't be at your current job much longer? How hard is it to carry it over to a new job? I'm pretty much in the dark about all this, too.

mickeyrat

no1fromnowhere wrote:

I'm glad this thread is here, because this is ecactly what I've been thinking about lately. Does it make any sense to sigh up for a 401K when you know (or at least hope) you won't be at your current job much longer? How hard is it to carry it over to a new job? I'm pretty much in the dark about all this, too.

mine is set up through work . And my bank offers one through them.A little research should help you out. It might not be be pretax money but it's something.

intodeep

Great move stocks are low now you'll gain when they go back up.

I'm actually going to be upping my contribution now.

thunderDAN

you should also set up a Roth IRA--- no taxes when you take it out

mickeyrat

thunderDAN wrote:

you should also set up a Roth IRA--- no taxes when you take it out

What , is this like a regular savings account or is it invested like 401k?

thunderDAN

mickeyrat wrote:

What , is this like a regular savings account or is it invested like 401k?

It's an investment account. I have both a 401k and a Roth, but what makes them different is if you make less that $117k (I think that is the #) you can pay into a Roth IRA and not pay a dime when you take it out when you retire at 55 or 60 (I can't remember the exact age). So basically you are paying the taxes upfront because it is not taken out of your payroll, but IMO it's better than a 401k because you won't have to pay any taxes on the interest your investment makes. So me being 24, I can put in $100 now, and when that $100 turns into $1000 when I'm 60 I don't owe taxes on anything, no matter the worth of the investment. Say things go perfect and I have a Roth worth 2 million- guess how much I owe? zippo! The only catch is that you can only put in $5,000 a year- but if you google it you can set one up in about 10 minutes for free. I did one through ING back during college and put in $50 every 2 weeks- now I just put money in my 401k just to get my employer match and the rest I work towards maxing out my Roth because I believe the Roth is a much much better investment for someone my age making the money I do

oh and also, you get a tax break when you file your taxes for having a IRA. I'm not sure exactly but I put in $2000 last year and got an extra $250 added to my tax return because of it
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roth_IRA

mickeyrat

thunderDAN wrote:

It's an investment account. I have both a 401k and a Roth, but what makes them different is if you make less that $117k (I think that is the #) you can pay into a Roth IRA and not pay a dime when you take it out when you retire at 55 or 60 (I can't remember the exact age). So basically you are paying the taxes upfront because it is not taken out of your payroll, but IMO it's better than a 401k because you won't have to pay any taxes on the interest your investment makes. So me being 24, I can put in $100 now, and when that $100 turns into $1000 when I'm 60 I don't owe taxes on anything, no matter the worth of the investment. Say things go perfect and I have a Roth worth 2 million- guess how much I owe? zippo! The only catch is that you can only put in $5,000 a year- but if you google it you can set one up in about 10 minutes for free. I did one through ING back during college and put in $50 every 2 weeks- now I just put money in my 401k just to get my employer match and the rest I work towards maxing out my Roth because I believe the Roth is a much much better investment for someone my age making the money I do

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roth_IRA

my company's 401k is set up through ING .so I'll have to check it out.I'm 40, starting waaaaaay late at this , But I started thats the main thing. Thanks for the info.Do you know if I can do both IRA's?

thunderDAN

mickeyrat wrote:

my company's 401k is set up through ING .so I'll have to check it out.I'm 40, starting waaaaaay late at this , But I started thats the main thing. Thanks for the info.Do you know if I can do both IRA's?

yeah I actually have my Roth set up through ING. I just went to ING Direct main page and went here:

http://home.ingdirect.com/products/products.asp?s=RetirementResources

I set it up in about 10 minutes and made a initial deposit of $50. They now take money directly from my checking account every 7th and 21st of the month. You just pick what mutual fund(s) you want by how risky they are. I put money into my company's 401k at the minimum of 4% so I get the match they give- but I invest more in my Roth because it is tax free. I pay the tax in my paycheck so it's solid money going into the Roth- where I have to pay high taxes on the value of the 401k if it goes well. I mean they are both better than nothing at all, but a Roth is something to look into

mickeyrat

thunderDAN wrote:

yeah I actually have my Roth set up through ING. I just went to ING Direct main page and went here:

http://home.ingdirect.com/products/products.asp?s=RetirementResources

I set it up in about 10 minutes and made a initial deposit of $50. They now take money directly from my checking account every 7th and 21st of the month. You just pick what mutual fund(s) you want by how risky they are. I put money into my company's 401k at the minimum of 4% so I get the match they give- but I invest more in my Roth because it is tax free. I pay the tax in my paycheck so it's solid money going into the Roth- where I have to pay high taxes on the value of the 401k if it goes well. I mean they are both better than nothing at all, but a Roth is something to look into

Thanks again.

jbalicki10

I just wanted to say congrats for taking an interest in your own retirement instead of "weightin for da guvernant' to bale yuo out.'

mickeyrat

jbalicki10 wrote:

I just wanted to say congrats for taking an interest in your own retirement instead of "weightin for da guvernant' to bale yuo out.'

yeah I'm thinking Social Security is gonna be null and void when/if the time comes for me to draw on it.

Fighting Hellfish

no1fromnowhere wrote:

I'm glad this thread is here, because this is ecactly what I've been thinking about lately. Does it make any sense to sigh up for a 401K when you know (or at least hope) you won't be at your current job much longer? How hard is it to carry it over to a new job? I'm pretty much in the dark about all this, too.

it's very easy to transfer your 401k when you leave a job. You can either:

roll it into the 401k at your new job

roll it into an IRA

generally speaking, it's better to roll it into an IRA, because the investments options are virtually unlimited, while 401k's generally only have a few options. Either way, set it up ASAP, get that snowball rolling. It'll start off small, but build over time