Actual Money # savings

[nnkrealtor]

I know alot of you describe alot of your savings in % of income but I am just starting out and would like to know some actual numbers of how much some of you put away a year. I am opening a SEP before I file my taxes this year But I am also buying a rental in the spring so I dont want to put too much in my SEP. Also does anyone do any investing through MASS Mutual?

Thank you

 

[mickeyd]

Also does anyone do any investing through MASS Mutual?

As MM is a life insurance company, are you refering to an "investment" in one of their variable annuities, variable life, fixed annuities,universal life or whole life policies? I believe that MM controls Openheimer Funds, so maybe you are refering to this aspect of their operation.

No matter which one you refer to, I would stay away from this outfit unless you have a dire need to pay excessive fees and commissions and want to fund the college education of the agent's kids rather than your own financial education.

 

[Rustic23]

32 million has a nice ring. Or maybe a buck three eighty. How can someone answer this. How much will you need to live on in present day dollars and how long till you want it? Given that, one can take a stab at how much you will need to save to provide that amount. Me, I can live on about $24,000, DW however, needs $60,000 or so I think. How much do I need to put away?

 

[nnkrealtor]

yes 32 million does sound good but thats not what i was asking. what i was looking for is more along the lines of "I put away 3500 last year"

The deal with MM is simply I am looking to purchase some life insurance and they also handle IRA's and other investments and I was just wondering if anyone has used them for investments. Are their fees worse than most others (excluding vanguard and fidelity obviously).

Thanks

 

[Marshac]

I know alot of you describe alot of your savings in % of income but I am just starting out and would like to know some actual numbers of how much some of you put away a year.

Why does it matter?

 

[HFWR]

Maybe $13000... (he says as he lowers the cone of silence)

Or maybe not...

 

[nnkrealtor]

marshac : I was just curious. If you dont want to answer then why post in this thread?

have funds : Thank you, wow I wish i could put that much away a year.

 

[HFWR]

Cheap bastard... 8)

 

[nnkrealtor]

I know I am working on that

 

[grumpy]

For the five years before we FIRE'd, DW and I saved a minimum of $28K each year. Some years it was as much as $50K. This included maxing her 403(b) with catchup contributions, maxing IRA contributions and maxing my TSP contributions. The rest went into taxable investments.

Grumpy

 

[Rustic23]

Ok, without sarcasm, it is not really how much you think you can afford to put away. Where do you want to be and when. i.e. DW and I have decided we need $50,000 after taxes to live a comfortable life style. We also new we had $30,000 in pension/SS that left $20,000 that had to come from somewhere. Well if you add back in taxes say $30,000 (have to also pay the tax of the pension). Using an SWR of 4% then I would need $750,000 in savings to live happy. If I were 21, the amount I need to save is less than if I were 60. Bottom line, only you know how much is enough. While $50,000 works for me, maybe $30,000 or $80,0000 is your number.

I finally created a spread sheet to show how much I had, what income I could expect in the future, and what expenses in the future. I have the capability to change inflation and savings rates and look where I will be in 35 years…. Dead, I think, but the kids should be happy.

 

[justin]

$50k or so during 2006 (2 401ks and 2 IRAs maxed, plus some in taxable accounts). Plus another $12-15k or so from our employers' contributions to profit-sharing/retirement accounts (which could go to zero in unprofitable years).

During 2005 - Around $100k. That included investing partial proceeds from the sale of a paid off condo.

We save a lot. May have to buy a new/larger car if our family keeps growing at the current exponential rate. That will most likely reduce savings temporarily.

Or I may have modified my real savings amounts by plus or minus 300% to arrive at these figures. I cannot disclose this, regrettably.

 

[mickeyd]

I'm ERd now which means that I am kinda old but this is how I saved a ton of $.

1st Job (US Army): pay off new car, pay off college loan, save as much as I can of what was left. Remind self to never get a car loan again.

2nd job (now married): save as much as possible. Increase amount saved every quarter or so until it really hurts. Reduce savings by 10% or so. If if contunues to hurt, reduce it again.  If it no longer hurts, increase savings rate. Keep increasing/decreasing as life continues to deal you the hand the you get.

Subsequest jobs (3-8): Continue the increase/decrease activity but always note the pain or lack of same. If it does not hurt, you are not saving enough.

Read every investment book that you can get your hands on. Read it like you will have a final exam on it the day after you complete it. Continue to read until it is clear to you that you can never beat the market and indexing is the only sane way to invest for the long-term. Take action to insure that most, or all, investments are in index funds. Relax.

 

[Spanky]

401k #1 18K
401k #2 14K
RIRA #1 5K
RITA #2 4K

$41K (tax deferred) + $20K (taxable) = $61K

 

[LOL!]

We saved about $60K to $70K of W2 income last year. That is, we didn't spend it. That's about normal for us the last few years.

 

[aaronc879]

Saved $22,000 on a gross income of only $43,000.

 

[thefed]

saved about 4k on income of 25k net

 

[getoutearly]

....... If it does not hurt, you are not saving enough.

Read every investment book that you can get your hands on. Read it like you will have a final exam on it the day after you complete it. Continue to read until it is clear to you that you can never beat the market and indexing is the only sane way to invest for the long-term. Take action to insure that most, or all, investments are in index funds. Relax.

I'm with you mickey.  There were times 10 yrs ago, I wasn't taking home half my paycheck, by the time Uncle Sam got his piece, then I maxxed out on the 401k.  Was also maxxing out on the non-tax deferred contributions within the 401k (I know, probably not too smart - don't do it any more; but it was a forced savings plan). 

The trick is No car payments, very small house payment (to be paid off in next few years), live way below means, try to keep from pissing away too much.  Still need to work on the Financial Advisor and mutual fund fees.  I'm getting my plan together to go it on my own with indexes at Vanguard etc.  One advantage of the advisor is the assistance in the discipline department (on rebalancing mainly).  But I am in WAY too many managed funds right now... 

Let the Jones's stay way ahead of you.  I am amazed at some of the people I know that have no savings to speak of, but have 2 new cars with $400+ car payments, a $3k house payment (piti), a boat payment, and fantastic vacations on their credit cards every year.  And they complain they can't afford to save like we do for retirement / college.

Luckily, most of the people we hang with are more the millionaire-next-door types. 

But I digress...now what was the question again

 

[kaudrey]

Hi. Well, it's not very comparative since you say you are just starting out, and I have been working for 15 years, but in 2005 I saved:

$14K in 401(K)
$4K in traditional IRA (non-deductible for me)
$19K in taxable savings

=$37K

When I was starting out, I maxed out my 401(K) every year and saved whatever extra I could each month. For the last 5 years or so, I have been increasing my savings by the amount of my raises.

 

[SteveR]

For 2005

Saved in two 401(k)s and ESOP shares...$43k

Spent to pay down debt. (stock loan and mortgage pre-pay)...$30k

Wanted to save more but we had some house repairs that ran over $7500 and had some family expenses.

College costs for #2 son were $15k

 

[Jay_Gatsby]

Probably somewhere in the neighborhood of $50k a year these days, including 401(k) and IRA contributions. A couple of years ago I had that number up to $75k a year -- all by myself -- then I took an unscheduled paycut.

 

[PortlandDiehard]

I save around:

401k: $15K
Roth: $4K
Taxable: $8K
=========
Total: $27k

32, single, income around $78K.

Have around $300K in the pot so far...

 

[Calgary_Girl]

Save a minimum of $59K/year between retirement and taxable accounts.

Will hopefully be the same this year with the baby on the way but we'll see