I couldn't fit everything on the first post, it said it was too long. lol
Here is the rest of my thread:
If you notice in the above chart, the market is volatile and goes up and down in the short-term quite a bit, but there is always a long-term growth trend. The following chart shows the business cycles which cause these short-term fluctutations:
These fluctuations are completely normal to business and our economy, and right now we are simply in a contraction phase. I certainly hope we have hit the trough, and are on the way back to expansion, but only time will tell. By the way, in case you guys don't know, the market is always bad during election year. Down times in the market are excellent buying opportunities!
One other point I want to add is be careful investing in your own company's stock. It is OK to invest in your company's stock, but do not let it take up a substantial portion of your portfolio. By working at the company, you are already exposing yourself to significant risk because your earnings are a result on the ongoing operations of the company. If your company were to go out of business (think Enron) and your entire (or a substantial portion) portfolio was made up of your company's stock, you have now lost your job and future earnings as well as your retirement account because the stock would be worthless.
I realize that some people may not be in a position to contribute the maximum allowed under the IRS, but the same principles can be used to contribute less over a longer period of time. All the broker firms have automatic contribution plans where you can automatically contribute whatever amount you want per month direct from your paycheck. It's never too late to start saving, and every bit you put in savings will make a difference, even if the amount is small.
Here are some statistics I found online:
The typical American household, headed by a 43-year-old, has retirement savings of $18,750.
The typical pre-retiree household (age 55 and up) has a retirement savings of $60,000.
Baby boomers between the ages of 41 and 54 have typically a retirement savings of $30,000.
Baby boomers have median total household personal retirement savings of $35,000.
Baby boomers who save in a 401k have an average 401k account balance of $80,000.
According to a survey, 51 percent of workers age 55 and up have saved less than $50,000 in retirement savings (not including the value of a primary residence). And 39 percent of workers in the same age group have saved less than $25,000 in retirement savings.
Another survey estimates that one in five pre-retirees age 50 to 64 has less than $5,000 in retirement savings.
A recent survey found that almost 70 percent of Generation Y workers (those 18 to 25 years old) don’t bother to contribute to a 401k. If an 18 year old were to simply save $2,500 each year from age 18 to 26 and never contribute again, he would have $1 million dollars at retirement.
That's it for now..I will add more depending on the direction this thread goes. I realize this is a truck forum, but I figured I would share what I know and hopefully help some people along the way. As I said before, feel free to PM me any questions you may have, or post up questions on here. I'm sure there are many other financial people on the forum also, and we can help each other. For those of you who actually read the whole thread, thanks! I hope it helped you.