Everyone likes the idea of saving for retirement, stashing money away so that you have a nest egg available when the time comes to hang up your suit and tie (or whatever work apparel you have!). And “everybody says” you should save for retirement, if you have the ability to do so.
But how? And where? What are your options? Should you, or can you, start an IRA? Roth IRAs sound like a good idea – how much should go in there? What about a 401(k), or a 403(b)? What’s an HSA, and how are they a “triple threat”? That’s not even a retirement account …. Is it? What about good ol’ fashioned investment accounts?
In the crazy, confusing world of retirement acronyms, the first thing we’re going to do is to split them into two groups – what you can set up as an individual, and what is only available through a business. There is some interaction between the two, true, but there’s clear distinction between them.
Here we’ll focus on the two main individual retirement savings options – traditional IRAs and Roth IRAs – providing you the basic info, advantages, disadvantages, and Q&As. In our next blog, we’ll move on to business-sponsored options – 401(k), 403(b), and business-sponsored IRAs (SEPs and SIMPLEs).
Keep in mind that there are a lot of details that we WON’T cover, so we recommend talking to a financial advisor about which savings vehicle is right for you!