A quick start guide to begin planning for your retirement as a millennial.

You graduate from college, get your first job and start a family. Life is good. For the next 40 years you will, hopefully, be working to provide for your family’s current and future needs. Retirement seems so far away that it’s easy to live life one day at a time and not think about where you will be financially when you make the decision to retire. Enjoying your retirement years playing with grandkids, travelling, exploring or reading a book all require that you have prepared and saved for the adventures you plan have planned.

This retirement dream can become a reality; however, only if you start building that foundation today.

The average American will spend 18 years in retirement and must plan for medical bill as well. Life expectancy in the United States continues to increase with medical breakthroughs and scientific discoveries occurring every day. In turn, that means you will need to support yourself in retirement for more years than ever before. Medical expenses on top of basic living expenses and other activities you wish to enjoy all need to be planned for. As daunting as that sounds, with adequate foresight and planning, it’s possible to be successful in retirement.

 Retirement Savings Tips:

• Start saving early  

  • Most long term investment accounts typically provide steady growth and will grow exponentially  

    • The longer you have money in an account the more interest it will accrue.  

    • A consistent small investment will turn into a large lump sum over time.

  • Some good milestones to strive to achieve in terms of 401k savings are: 

    • Save 1X your salary by age 35  

    • Save 3X your salary by age 45  

    • Save 5x your salary by age 55 

    • Save 8X your salary by retirement age

• Take advantage of your employer 401K match; don’t leave free money on the table!  

  • While not all employers offer this, many employers offer a match of up to 5% or more.  

    • This means that if you contribute 5% of your pre-tax income into your 401k account, your employer will match that amount. This gives you an additional 5% savings in your 401K for FREE that will, over time, grow exponentially.