Fox Business weighs in on the retirement debate in 401(k): Pass or Fail? In the article, I discuss the effects of linking investing and retirement in 401(k) accounts, but reporter Kathryn Buschman Vasel states the problem succinctly, "many of us don’t have the skills and become too emotionally attached when investing."
In my research, we have found that retirees need to save nearly 20 times their yearly income to maintain his or her standard of living in retirement. For example, someone taking home $100,000 a year will need about $2 million (on top of Social Security). If they cannot save at this rate - or they don't fare well in the market - they will face downward mobility in their "golden years."
The history of 40l(k) plans helps to explain why they are inadequate. 401(k) plans were invented for a specific group - high-paid workers wanting to reduce their pre-tax salary. However, these accounts were then sold by consultants packaging the idea for a broad set of companies. 401(k) plans were never intended to become the main tool for retirement savings.
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