No matter where you are in life, it's never too late to set a budget to invest and save for retirement. You need to know how to make your retirement possible and when you'll be able to hand in that final notice that you're leaving the workplace. It's time to get serious about your retirement plans.
As you work, you'll become accustomed to a certain level of financial stability. You'll want to ensure you can maintain the lifestyle you're used to, but you can't if you depend strictly on your social security checks. You'll need to be familiar with planning to make a comfortable retirement plan by:
You can start at any point in your working life, but it's easiest to achieve your goals and stay on track by beginning as soon as possible. There may be some challenges, but you control your path and how you plan for retirement.
As of 2021, the Federal Reserve reported that 27% of people in the US considered themselves to be retired even though 14% still worked part-time. Most retirees were said to be on social security, but 79% had a private source of additional income. This included money from pensions, interest, dividends, rental income, and part-time wages.
Census.gov released information from the 2021 Survey of Income and Program Participation that shows the disparity between generations with retirement accounts. Results showed that as of 2020:
The youngest generation has some planning to do, but so does about half of every other age group reported. While the Gen Z group may follow a similar path to previous generations by starting their retirement accounts as they age, there is much work to be done in every generation. It's never too late to take the steps needed to plan for a comfortable retirement. Planning early is ideal, but not planning at all could be devastating in the long run.