401k

[S O F I]

Do you have a 401k retirement account? If so, how affected were you with this financial crisis and what are you doing about it? From what I've heard, most people aren't able to take any money out. My mom lost 28% since January of this year, 16% of that in the last 23 days.

 

[dillaxx]

I don't even know what those are and what they do.

 

[raywaters11]

i have one, but i only got it when i started this job six months ago. so i couldnt have taken a huge hit, and i don't think i'll live long enough to see retirement.

i hate when life is so scripted... work, mortgage, retire, kids, dogs, grandkids, die.
fuck that.

 

[ARon]

I give credit to my Grandpa for talking me out of starting one a couple years back. He told me to just put the money in a savings account which I have done, thank god. I know my Moms is fucked though.

 

[Shadows]

I give credit to my Grandpa for talking me out of starting one a couple years back. He told me to just put the money in a savings account which I have done, thank god. I know my Moms is fucked though.

im glad i didnt get one either i was just planning on getting a savings as well.

 

[ARon]

I think a savings is the smart thing to do right now. If there was a market that wasn't on the brink of crashing it would be dumb, especially when you have an employer matching what you put in. On the other hand it is a great time to invest if you do have money, things will eventually bounce up and investing in say a Vanguard Roth IRA account for the long term could pay off. Buying anything right now at cheap prices and investing for the long term will most likely pay off since prices are so low and people are selling like crazy, or trying to. Truthfully if I had some money lying around I'd invest in something right now but sadly I don't. That's what sucks about trying to reitre right now or in the next couple years, it'll pay off more to wait say 5 years. Blah

 

[Prize Gotti]

I also think this would be a good time to buy shares and stock at the low prices, even if they fall, eventually they will go back up. You just have to make sure you invest in somewhere that won't go out of business in the foreseeable future.

 

[vg4030]

Ive taken a pretty big hit on mine (not sure of the % amount), mainly cos I put in the max amount. Im not looking on retiring anytime soon though, hopefully things will work out

 

[Jeremy]

I give credit to my Grandpa for talking me out of starting one a couple years back. He told me to just put the money in a savings account which I have done, thank god. I know my Moms is fucked though.

Savings account only give you .05% interest. You should never not put or stop putting money in a 401k no matter what the market is doing. If a company matches you 5% then they are just giving you free money. So if you put in a $100 a month then the company matches that. So that's 200 a month. 401k is about the long term investment or goal and since you are young this is the best time to start one or add to it since the market is so low. If you look at the history of the financial markets these type up things always happen but they recover. You don't want to start up a 401k when the market gets back to what is was you want to do it now cause when it gains you are going to make a killing.

A savings account will have you broke when you go to retire. You could at least get a bond that gives you about 5% interest. The best thing to do is start up a 401k or Roth IRA when you're young. The markets always recover. There is really no other way to invest that doesn't deal with the market except bonds or CDs that can give you at the most 5%.

I have lost about $6,000 total out of all my accounts which consist of a 403b (eduacation), mutual funds, Roth IRA, Regular IRA. All of it was capital gains and interest. I didn't lose any of my principle. I know it will recover in the next couple years. If you spread it out you should be ok if you go to retire. Of course these same thing could happen to us when we retire but what can we do about it? Every deals with the markets so you have no choice but to take a chance unless you want to work until you are 90 years old. I figure when the market gets back up I'm prolly going to throw $5,000 in a bond to get a steady 5% in case this happens again. Read on any of the financial sites and they will tell you to keep adding to your 401k no matter what. I wish I could find this WSJ article about the situation but I can't seem to find it.

 

[raywaters11]

i didnt opt to get one, my job automatically gives you one. you cant refuse it lol. i cant remember the % it puts in out of my check but its not a lot

I also think this would be a good time to buy shares and stock at the low prices, even if they fall, eventually they will go back up. You just have to make sure you invest in somewhere that won't go out of business in the foreseeable future.

i was thinking the same thing, especially with oil being about half of what it used to be. how could it not go back up.. especially if its supposed to get up to 10 bucks per gallon and you buy it when its 2.50 per gallon.. you quadruple your investment.

 

[Jeremy]

.....

No one can predict the future. However, historical data tells us that over time, markets increase in value. In the past 50 years, a globally diversified portfolio of stocks has never posted negative returns for a ten year period. Our markets are also extremely resilient. On October 22, 1962, at the height of the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Dow Jones industrial average was 573. Six months later it was up 25%. It was up over 15% six months after President Kennedy was assassinated and over 18% six months after 9/11. Remember, the market has bounced back after troubling times before and it likely will again.

If you are properly invested and have a long time horizon, do nothing. The biggest mistake you can make now is to pull your money out of your 401(k) plan. Most people face taxes and steep penalties if they withdraw their funds before age 59 1/2. It’s almost as bad to cut back on your contributions to your plan. Plus, my calculations show that young people need to sock away at least 15% of their income to meet their retirement goals – if you started late, you’ll need to save even more.

 

[Snowman]

ive got a 401k. i didnt start mine til the 3rd year of my job. i put in 7% and they match what i put in. our stock is at $2.96 a share when i started to work for the company in 2002 it was $26.75 a share.

like Jeremy said 401k is somethin to get into. if the place you work at offers it, dont hesitate to sign up for it. the most you can put in is 25%you decide on what you want to put in there cause it is free money. even if you dont retire from that place you'll still get your check from them, if you move on to another place.

im fortunate to have a 401k and a pension coming to me. if i retire from my job a lot of companies now here in Northwest Ohio are eliminating the pension's for people that get hired in. cause they dont want to pay that extra money there working til the day they die. they wont have a opportunity to retire. i will get to retire though. at my place they eliminated the pension in 2005.

if i ever invest in stock i'll buy microsoft.

also another good thing is put a little money if your place has a credit union. if your ever low on cash you can always make a withdraw have that extra $100 dollars to get you through the week.

 

[S O F I]

^Investing in blue chips like Microsoft is good if you're looking into just getting dividends. But, don't expect any capital gains really.

 

[dillaxx]

Well, if we're talking about the stock market here, then I have a friend whose dad is retired but has alot of money in the stock market. He just leaves it there and lets the market go where it wants, and over time he still makes money. He said that he's invested in big name companies, like Google, McDonald's and Coca Cola, and with the recent rising and falling of Wall Street, he's still managed to make about 10k once the storm had cleared.