Value Added Financial Services

Customized Suite of Financial Services

Ariston offers employees a customized suite of voluntary financial services, on behalf of their employer, that can aid in the formation and execution of a retirement strategy.

We’re often told of the importance of saving for retirement, but it’s hard to push ourselves to do better when life’s immediate expenses keep staring us in the face. But if you’re serious about ramping up on the retirement savings front, here’s a new tactic that might help: actually picturing yourself during your golden years.

Most Americans are underprepared for retirement

You probably won’t be shocked to hear that most Americans have not saved enough for retirement. But the extent of the problem may stun you:

About 24% of workers — and, alarmingly, a hefty 21% of retirees — said they had less than $1,000 saved for retirement, according to the Employee Benefit Research Institute’s 2017 Retirement Confidence Survey. A whopping 55% of workers and 38% of retirees had less than $50,000:

You need a plan

The best way to avoid being part of an unfortunate statistic is to prepare — with a retirement plan that we stay on top of and execute well.

Fully 76% of Baby Boomers surveyed in 2016 were not confident that they had enough saved for retirement, according to the Insured Retirement Institute.

The median retirement age in America is 63. How many years from retirement are you, and have you saved enough money for retirement?

Plan carefully and conservatively

As you plan, be conservative, as there will be unexpected expenses along the way, as well as expenses that are far more costly than expected.

A 65-year-old couple retiring today can expect to spend an average of $280,000 out of pocket on healthcare expenses over the course of their retirement, per Fidelity Investments.

Speaking of healthcare, it’s important to understand that if you’re late enrolling for Medicare, it can cost you. Your part B premiums (which cover medical services, but not hospital services) can rise by 10% for each year that you were eligible for Medicare but didn’t enroll. The no-penalty enrollment period for most people is any time within the three months leading up to your 65th birthday, during the month of your birthday, or within the three months that follow.

You may live an extra-long life, meaning that your nest egg will have to support you for a long time.

Divorce can screw up your retirement, too: 24% of divorced Baby Boomers stated that they are, or expect to be, worse off in retirement than if they had not divorced, per a 2016 survey by the Insured Retirement Institute.

You can accumulate more money than you think

Fortunately, all is not lost. Even if retirement is only a few years away, you can make your nest egg significantly bigger before retiring if you save aggressively and invest effectively.

  • Check out the table below, which shows what you might accumulate over various periods if you can save large sums and earn an average annual return of 8%:
Growing at 8% for $10,000 invested annually $15,000 invested annually $20,000 invested annually
5 years $63,359 $95,039 $126,719
10 years $156,455 $234,682 $312,910
15 years $293,243 $439,864 $586,486
20 years $494,229 $741,344 $988,458
25 years $789,544 $1.2 million $1.6 million
30 years $1.2 million $1.8 million $2.4 million

 

Ariston Advisory Group

12 Broad Street
Ste 304
Red Bank, NJ, 07701

Call Us: (800) 973-0443

E-mail Us: info@aristonag.com