Cost

Pam

Pam begins saving $2000 per year at age 25, saves for 10 years, and then stops completely at age 35.

Michael

Michael delays saving until he turns 35 and then begins saving $2000 per year for 30 years until age 65.

Karen

Karen begins saving $2000 per year at age 25 and saves for 40 years until age 65.

*Assumes a seven percent rate of return and tax-deferred compounding.

UPAL was founded in 1985 by five professionals who envisioned a cooperative group of professionals that would collectively develop programs and services to reduce personal costs and business overhead through group leverage.

Today, the Association has over 700 member professionals in 18 states and offers more than 30 programs to its members. These programs and services range from financial services to office equipment and from payroll services to electronic data interchange vendors and make up the UPAL Member Advantage.

As a member of UPAL, you have the Advantage of participating in the UPAL Retirement Program and the many other programs and services listed in this web site. Please review this information to find out how the UPAL Member Advantage can benefit you, your employees and family.

Experts estimate that you'll need at least 70% of your pre-retirement income to maintain the same standard of living once you stop working. For most people, Social Security alone will not provide this level of income. Some workers have pension funds that will provide additional income in retirement. Increasingly, however, workers do not have access to traditional pension plans and instead must rely on their own savings to provide for their financial needs in retirement.

How can I save for retirement?

Take control and start planning now.

Whether your retirement is 40 years away or on the horizon, it is important to take stock of your savings situation and take charge. Experts estimate that many Americans will spend nearly one third of their lives in retirement. To make sure that your retirement is the golden time it is meant to be, start planning now.

Saving and investing for retirement.

Just putting money aside isn't enough. It is important to invest your savings to win the race against inflation. And the sooner you start, the longer your money will be able to grow. By investing small amounts of money on a regular basis, your money can grow to a considerable sum by the time you retire.

401(k) plans are a good place to start.

Take advantage of plans offered by your employer. Many companies offer profit-sharing and 401(k) plans. In fact, more than 50 million Americans are currently participating in profit-sharing or 401(k) plans - or both. Use these plans to your best advantage. If your employer doesn't offer one, ask it to start one.

You can afford it.

Saving adequately for retirement, while dealing with day-to-day expenses, may seem to be an impossible task. But, guaranteeing your financial future can be as simple as passing up that daily cup of gourmet coffee, or eating in one more day a week. If you invest the money wisely in a 401(k) instead, that $2.75 or so a day can grow to a million dollars in 40 years.

Controlling factors

Three factors greatly affect the amount of money you'll have when you retire:

Everyone Should Have an Annual Retirement Checkup

Contact Lea Ann Nunley at lnunley@upal.com

Content: 401k.org