Robert R. Johnson<\/a>, a professor of finance at the Heider College of Business, Creighton University.<\/p>\n\u201cPeople in their 20s should begin investing in a low-fee, diversified equity index fund and continue to invest consistently, whether the market is up, down or sideways,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Millennials: Born 1981-96<\/p>\n
If you\u2019re a millennial, aka member of Gen Y, you are likely secure in your career path and are now focused on other major life events. These might include starting or expanding your family, buying a home or paying off any remaining student loans. Here are the best money moves for you.<\/p>\n
Find the Best Plan for Paying Off Your Student Loans<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you still have student debt, working with an advisor can help you pay it off faster through debt repayment plans that the advisor specializes in,\u201d Walsh said.<\/p>\n
Be Aggressive About Paying Down Other Debts<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you\u2019re in your late 20s and early 30s, this is the time to make sure you are aggressively paying down any non-mortgage debt,\u201d said Amin Dabit, former investment committee member at Personal Capital Financial Services. \u201cIf you still have high-interest debt, you may be earning 8% in your retirement account, but might be paying 20% or more in credit card interest.\u201d<\/p>\n
Increase Your Retirement Contributions<\/p>\n
\u201cThe next time you get a salary increase or bonus, dedicate some of it to retirement savings or other investments \u2014 before you get used to having the extra money,\u201d Keckler said. \u201cAnd if your employer\u2019s retirement plan offers an automatic increase option, consider signing up for it to put savings increases on autopilot, with annual step-ups in your contribution rate.\u201d<\/p>\n
Generation X: Born 1965-80<\/p>\n
Gen X is in their peak earning years, and retirement is now on the not-so-distant horizon. These are the top money moves to be made.<\/p>\n
Set Retirement Plans and Goals<\/p>\n
\u201cWith retirement becoming a closer reality for Generation X, those in this generation should have a clear vision of their retirement dreams and goals,\u201d Keckler said. \u201cIf you haven\u2019t already determined how you\u2019d like to spend your retirement and how much you\u2019d need to fund this chapter of your life, now is the time to do this.\u201d<\/p>\n
A financial professional can be especially helpful in this phase of life.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow is the best time to sit down with a financial advisor to see if you are on track to retire when you want and adjust your savings to meet those goals,\u201d Walsh said.<\/p>\n
Get Disciplined About Retirement Savings and Start Catching Up<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you hit your 50s, you become eligible to make larger contributions toward retirement accounts. These are called \u2018catch-up contributions\u2019 \u2014 make sure that you take advantage of them,\u201d Dabit said.<\/p>\n
Catch-up contributions are $7,500 in 2025 for those between the ages of 50 and 59. So, if you contribute the annual limit of $23,500 plus your catch-up contribution of $7,500, that\u2019s a total of $31,000 tax-deferred dollars you could be saving towards your retirement.<\/p>\n
Under a change made in SECURE 2.0, a higher catch-up contribution limit applies for employees aged 60, 61, 62 and 63 who participate in retirement plans. For 2025, this higher catch-up contribution limit is $11,250 instead of $7,500.<\/p>\n
Be Prepared for the Unexpected<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve worked hard to build a smart saving and investing strategy, but unexpected events such as an illness or job loss can derail your future if you\u2019re not prepared,\u201d Keckler said. \u201cMake sure you protect your assets with the right insurance coverage and a cash reserve to give you flexibility to handle whatever comes your way.\u201d<\/p>\n
Be sure to have an emergency fund with three to six months of living expenses saved up, just in case.<\/p>\n
Baby Boomers: Born 1946-64<\/p>\n
Baby boomers are likely either somewhat recently retired or getting ready to retire, so the moves you make now are critical to being able to enjoy your golden years. These are the top money moves to make.<\/p>\n
Have a Set Retirement Plan in Place<\/p>\n
\u201cBy your late 50s or early 60s, you should have a better idea of what retirement could look like for you and what it really means for you to be \u2018retired,’\u201d Dabit said. \u201cDo you want to keep working as long as you can? Would you like to slow down? What are your Social Security benefits and when is the optimal age to start taking them? Are you eligible for spousal or survivor benefits?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce you reach age 65, there are still several considerations for your retirement, even if you are no longer working and accumulating wealth,\u201d he continued. \u201cSome of these include making decisions about Medicare, creating a plan around withdrawing money from your retirement accounts and evaluating any additional insurance needs.\u201d<\/p>\n
Have 1-2 Years of Necessary Income as Liquid Assets<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you are just retired or getting ready to retire, make sure you have one to two years of necessary income in cash or short-term bonds,\u201d Walsh said. \u201cWith equity valuations and bond prices at all-time highs, make sure you protect your portfolio.<\/p>\n
\u201cHaving one to two years of necessary income in liquid, conservative investments will allow you to retire on time and give your portfolio time to rebound in the event of a market correction.\u201d<\/p>\n
Adjust Your Risk Tolerance<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile you should consider investing more conservatively as you age \u2014 since you have less time to recover from market downturns \u2014 be careful about shifting your investment portfolio to become so risk-averse that inflation eats away at your future purchasing power,\u201d Keckler said.<\/p>\n
\u201cGrowing life expectancies mean your retirement could last 30 to 40 years, and maintaining some exposure to growth-oriented investments can help your money last.\u201d<\/p>\n
This article was provided by MoneyLion.com<\/a> for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial, legal or tax advice.<\/p>\nMore From MoneyLion:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Some financial advice is not one-size-fits-all \u2014 the best money moves for someone who has just gotten their…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":331832,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[163549,114,268,1572,4197,85,46,163548,163550,266,267,688],"class_list":{"0":"post-331831","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-personal-finance","8":"tag-brian-walsh","9":"tag-business","10":"tag-finance","11":"tag-financial-advice","12":"tag-gen-z","13":"tag-il","14":"tag-israel","15":"tag-marcy-keckler","16":"tag-money-moves","17":"tag-personal-finance","18":"tag-personalfinance","19":"tag-retirement"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/331831","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=331831"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/331831\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/331832"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=331831"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=331831"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=331831"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}