By Joe Palumbo III
Reports from the Employee Benefit Research Institute conclude that currently four out of 10 workers are not saving for their retirement, mainly because most have unreasonable expectations as to when they will actually retire. Worse still is that many workers are not realistic as to how much money they will need to comfortably retire.Take college for instance. If you had children at a later age in life and retirement monies may come into play to help pay for college, here is a sobering thought: Presently private colleges average $120,000 for four years per child. For higher end universities like Harvard, the number jumps to approximately $240,000 for a four-year degree.Many younger single men and women today can easily think of better ways to spend their cash. However, these are the years when risks to make bigger paydays can be taken. As time goes on, the level of risk drops dramatically, because families are no longer in a position to take the gamble of an investment turning sour. Here are avenues to explore: Talk with your employer's human resource department about tax sparing employer sponsored plans. These include 401Ks and 457 plans. Many employers will match your contribution, so this can be a very advantageous route to follow. Also, consider IRA and Roth IRA plans, where you can contribute up to $4,500 if you are 50 or older, and up to $4,000 if below that age bracket. Roth IRAs allow tax free withdrawals after you reach age 59.So how's business with regard to retirement? According to the current numbers, almost half of us are not saving for our golden years. If you aren't saving for retirement right now, no matter what age group, seriously look at where your money is being spent. We all remember the saying “Life is what you make it.” Retirement is no different. Don't wait until it is too late.Joseph J. Palumbo III is a managing partner for the Palco Group. The Palco Group deals in asset management, real estate, sales training and business consultation. Palumbo can be reached at 718-461-8317, or at palcogroup@aol.com.
