All in all, I would rather have to complain about MY money than complain about not having any money.

Or.... I'd rather have to deal with my retirement funds instead of having to work when I should be retired.

How many think that Social Security will be their "retuirement funds", or will be there at all when they retire???

My main concern now is wether we will be on the gold standard by the time I retire, or if we will still be the "United States" of America.

Too many variables to give any kind of answer right now.

I have SEP/IRA which I manage and I have some corporate bonds that pay 4% every year. Granted I bought them a few years ago but I just let the money sit and it gets compounded.
No fees as I manage my money.

You know. Right now I am absolutely broke. I have limited funds in brokerage IRA etc. I have a commercial property that is trusted to me. That I have plenty of sweat equity into that should be 100% paid for by 2025. I have a three family that will hopefully be paid for around 2030. And my home which will be paid for in 20??.

My wife has a Roth, 403b, and a pension. We don't have a ton of money currently but we have things that will provide us income when the time comes.

Nothing is a guaranty currently in the world we live in. But I guaranty if you spend everything you make you will always have to work in one way or another. All you can do is set your self up to the best of your ability and continue to live like you are poor so some day you don't have to.
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Check the price of gold today vs yesterday. ;)
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Living like your poor now for more money tomorrow, or being extra frugal so you can enjoy retirement just isnt my wheelhouse. Were put on this earth for a short period of time. When i look back it will be the moments I was snowboarding in vail, fishing in tortola, and getting hammered in italy that will make me smile. Not me sitting on my deck drooling on myself in Florida. Waiting to give all my money to my kids. Save some, spend some!

Different strokes for different folks.

But if you don't plan for your "non-working" years, all you will have is your memories...until they go as well!

I don't live a miserly life but I budget myself with the funds that are left AFTER putting funds into my retirement account.

I tell my family that if I don't need it, I don't buy it!
If I want it, I save up for it with before mentioned "after savings" funds.

I grew up in a large family, so I learned how to "do without" from an early age. Iwince whenever I see parents doling out money for the "fad of the day" for their kids, only to hear them complain that they can't afford to fix the house, the car, their teeth or take care of any other problem that should have been a priority from the get-go.
Too many parents want to buy their kids affection, and end up sending themselves on a path to the poorhouse in the process.

Remember when every kid NEEDED to have a pair of Reeboks, or some clothing article they grew out of on the way home? Now it's the newest electronic gizmos that are obsolete the day they come out!

How many times do you have to "upgrade" any of your devices simply because the company fixed another ONE of their bugs?

I say keep it simple, spend less, save more and you too should be able to ENJOY your retirement years and not have to work through them just to survive!

When your sixty five you'll change your tune.
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Yeah I agree with "living in the now" and enjoying life now but still trying to be smart for later and I feel like I don't have much extra for either! Now I am not going to say I am starving and living out of my car but at the same time I don't feel I am spending a whole f of a lot like many folks are. I don't eat out, have a new truck, a $300,000+ house, fine clothes or a huge bankroll. I squeak every week on bills, put a little away in my 401K, pay my bills, etc. but at the end of the day I am still left wondering where will I get the $$ to get new windows, new towels to replace my 14 year old rags or pay for the driveway to be repaired! WTF?! TRUST ME I don't live extravagantly but once in a while I have to say WTF? and get lobster....we all have to live, right? Manicures, $100 haircuts and $200 pair of shoes every month are NOT part of my life. How do people afford these things, I cannot figure out. Sure they may make more than me but when I see people spend 10 times what I do I know damn well sure they don't make 10 times what I do. Leaves me wondering what I am doing wrong. Then when I hear many don't even have $1,000 retirement it all becomes clear. They must be kidding themselves, up to their eyeballs in debt and making it all "look good".

Whatever....maybe I am way worse with money than I figured and I am the one kidding myself. I just don't get it.....one minute I feel like I am not doing so bad and the next minute I feel like a total financial failure. I appreciate what I HAVE but not understanding how I cant afford what I NEED when I see folks spend foolishly on so much and yet supposedly almost a third of working folk have nothing for the future. Holy S&^$ I need a nap........

If you are able to live withing your means, then you are able to LIVE!
Way too many people are focused on just the "here and now" and spend that way. Many figure that their house will be their retirement nest egg and they will be all set, yet they are mortgaged to the max, use credit cards like monopoly money, and think "budget" is what they try to get their fat arses to do off the couch!

How many parents figure that buying their childrens affection is easier than earning it? I see it way too much for it to be a coincidence. It just adds to the problem and perpetuates that kind of mind set for the kids to follow.

So I always made a decent living as did my wife but we were very judicious about how we spent our discretionary cash. We bought a used Popup camper when we first got married and camped. That was vacation. 2 weeks trout fishing in Maine. Great times and cheap.

I'm not gonna get into a life story but I think you get my drift.

You should live as you can afford to live. You need to always be aware of the fact the SSI will not allow you to retire without eating dog food twice a week.
You NEED to put away for retirement! Don't be mislead that you can live on SSI. We didn't and now we can retire with a sense of confidence and peace.

Thanks for making me feel a little better guys :) I KNOW I got a little "ranty, sideways and sort of off topic" in my last post. It's just so hard to understand sometimes and I know I shouldn't be comparing my situation to others and I don't live life stewing over what I don't have that others do but lately (what I call "the gap") seems more and more baffling to me! It all started with my curiosity over the retirement thing. Oh well typical of me to get sidetracked :) I will be ok!

Manicures, haircuts, color, clothes, shoes, vacations, new cars every two year.... yup, that would be my ex-wife's MO. Don't know about what she and new husband have done about retirement, but the message to my kids is not one about what reality....

If people can not save now....just think when Obamacare kicks in and your hours R cut from 40 to 29 hours....most that own property and have a mortgage will need a second job....will not be able to spend more time with family and could only enjoy skiing, boating and vacation until their charge card is exhausted.

The average pack of cigarrets cost 8-10 bucks per pack...take the 8 bucks a day x 7=56 bucks if U R a one pack a dayer x 52 weeks =$2,912...U have to be a rich person to smoke in the first place....and doubled if married and both smoke....stop smoking and start saving

Jenn the difference beteeen those other people who seemed to have so much more than you is thier house will never be paid for, nor will anything else. They probably lease the cars they drive. Have numerous credit cards, we only ever had one. Never charged to it what we couldn't afford to pay off evrr month. And dont worry, somehow those windows will get replace.
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We have a close friend who we have known for 25 years. She drives a 20 year old car that is beat to s#@*&, bald tires, etc, etc. Constantly complains about not having any money. Yup, you guessed it, her and her boyfriend both smoke a couple of packs a day. I don't get it.:smash:

I've been trying to max my 401K the past few years. I wasted a few years without contributing- catching up!!

It's fun to play around with the 401K calculators to see the potential in thirty-odd years.

Still need to diversify though- Roth IRA, some mutual funds, maybe some high-risk stocks. I need to speak to a financial adviser.

Our government discriminates when it comes to the Roth IRA and many other things for that matter. They exclude people from participating at certain income levels.....
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If I ever make $114,000 a year, I'll probably be able to live without the Roth!

I get the concerns. But we have made the sacrafices now for our future. Financial advisor, and maxing out both our 401K's. we have a slush fund that never gets touched. Whats left over goes to play time. Work hard, play hard.

The government thinks so as well
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This has been a very informative thread so far and made me get off my butt and take a serious look at what if I'm doing the best I can with my retirement savings. I've been with the same company 30 years and started 30 years ago slowly each year increasing the deduction from my paycheck. I just initially picked what co-workers agreed to invest in, and not risky, and let it ride. The problem I'm having is, at 56, after 30 years of dedicated service I think I'm being unceremoniously phased out. I'm scared I'm going to be forced to break the one most important rule about retirement savings I've learned, and that's under no circumstances touch that money for any reason until you retire. My wife and I aren't extravagent in our spending so I'm just praying when the time comes I can find something for a few years just to keep the lights on. I've been thinking about it for a while, but I think a financial advisor is in my future, too, as some others have mentioned.

I feel that a lot of the reason people get into financial issues is they were never taught about money, I never was. Why in the world finances are not taught in our schools is beyond me. You get all kinds of useless classes, I have a 13 year old in school right now so I know, but nothing about how to deal with money in your life. I also agree a financial planner is an important person to have in your life for guidance.

about 30 years ago we looked for a financial adviser without affiliation with any large brokerage firm. Once we found him, it has been the best money spent for the return. And we have a plan towards a goal. I don't have the stress of trying to figure that stuff out, they do it all.

Agree a fee only advisor. Having a diversified portfolio involves foreign investments that are hard to pick and follow. A good advisor will use an investment house to post and keep your securities where you can track them 24/7 on your computer.