What should I do for my retirement savings?
Question:
Answer:
I would not do the employee stock purchase. If the company crashes things will be really ugly.
I would put the max in the 401k. If I had the option, I would convert this to a Roth 401k which grows tax free.
I would open a Roth IRA for I and my spouse and fund the maximum allowed.
If I had more money to invest then I would open a traditional brokerage account and invest money in that.
I don't know your specific income and all but I would think you need to be saving at least 15% of your gross income and probably more like 20%. You probably want to get a book or two on investing for retirement that has some good worksheets to calculate how much you need to be saving. It's ultimately your responsibility to handle this.
IRA's offered at John Hancock are running 8.25 %
if you can afford, buy a few T bills
rates are very good
Dont buy stock in own company ..in case the company folds you are out of luck
Dont be too aggressive with 401k unless you are not going to retire for another 10 years
At 41 you should have at least about $300k in retirement already or you will not have enough to retire on. At 41 I would be more aggressive in your investment choices. Put at least 60% in aggressive stocks (small cap). You need to catch up since you started late.
Should not over invest in your own company so would limit that & work more on the 401k. Make sure don't make too much money to do a roth as well. You should if you can - yes. Diversify. Already tied to company as you work tjere. Enron just 1 example of having your life drowned by total financial tie to a company. PEO ADX EWA EFA IAU for Roth
I would not get more aggressive unless you can recover should your aggressive investments fail. Opening up a Roth IRA for you and your spouse and contributing the max to it every year would be a very good idea. You unemployed spouse can contribute to a Roth IRA as long as you two file a joint return. The tax free gains benefit would allow you to keep more of your money at retirement. It would be a good idea to first contribute first the max to the 401k that your company would match. Second, contribute the max to the Roth IRA's. Lastly, participate in the employee stock purchase plan. I would see a financial planner for a plan that fits your specific situation.
Load up in a Roth IRA. If your over 50 yrs old, you can make "catch-up" contributions. Instead of the usual $4000 annual contribution, you can make contributions up to $5000. Continue to maximize your employer's 401k plan. Look at the funds that your 401k offers and decide if your taking the best advantage of your choices. Look at the funds average annual rate of return since inception, and investment style (aggressive vs. conservative). You did not mention your company's name so advice on their stock is impossible. Just remember not to put all your eggs into one basket. Remember Enron?
Hi, i suggest a great site with plenty of Issues related to your Investing and everything around it. it also provide clear and accurate answer to many common questions.
http://investing.sitesled.com/
I am sure that you can get your answers in this website.
Good Luck and Best Wishes!
More Questions & Answers...