Retirement Archives - Making Sense Of Cents

How Is Early Retirement Even Possible?

December 5, 2018 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 20 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info.

How Is Early Retirement Even Possible? #earlyretirement #retirement Early retirement has been extremely popular lately, and I'm sure you've been hearing about it a ton.

Between “Why I Hate the FIRE Movement,” says Suze Orman (from Afford Anything), Mr. Money Mustache, and any of the other amazing FIRE blogs, early retirement has been in the news a lot lately.

And, I love it!

But, I know there are a lot of people who are confused or even skeptical of what early retirement is and whether or not it is a real thing.

First, if this is the first time you have heard of FIRE, it stands for Financial Independence, Retire Early, and it can mean a lot of things to different people. But, the basic idea is that you work towards financial independence– either having enough saved and/or enough passive income to cover your expenses. You can then choose whether or not you want to work. [Read more…]

How I Repaid $65,000 In Student Loans and Invested at the Same Time

November 30, 2018 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 4 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info.

Today, I have a great guest post to share. Here is how this person paid off $65,000 in student loans all while investing at the same time.

Student loans… everyone’s got ‘em everyone wants to get rid of them. This is a story of my battle with student loans and how I found success in the middle of a vicious cycle of urgency to invest, save for a house and pay off debt.

My background on student loans

I went to a fairly large out of state school, which resulted in a huuuuge annual tuition payment along with room and board, food, annual travel expenses, etc. I had to pay for it somehow. Just like everyone else I had to revert to student loans… For all four years. Yikes.

But, that wasn’t all of it. Student loans only covered tuition expenses. I had to work part-time while going through college because I had to pay for food, rent, living expenses and more. Solely on my own. This ended up being a blessing in disguise as I graduated without any credit card debt. [Read more…]

You CAN Reach Retirement! Avoid These Top 5 Retirement Mistakes

October 8, 2018 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 34 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info.

Have you ever checked in to see if you are on track for retirement? I know this can feel like a daunting task, but preparing yourself for retirement can help you save more and avoid common retirement mistakes.

For some, retirement means quitting their job after 40+ years, but it can also mean working towards early retirement, in your 20’s, 30’s, 40’s, and so on.

I know that’s not for the “average” American, but by avoiding some of the retirement mistakes I will talk about today, you can start preparing for retirement at any age.

The thing about retirement is that sadly many out there are not saving enough money. In fact, according to Zacks Investment Research, 72% do not save enough for retirement each month.

Also, according to surveys done by Bankrate, 20% of people aren’t saving any money, and 61% of Americans have no idea what they will need to save for retirement.

These numbers are very alarming. [Read more…]

How To Start Investing With Little Money

September 10, 2018 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 20 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info.

How To Start Investing For Beginners With Little Money #howtostartinvesting #investingforbeginners #howtoinvest I always say the first thing you need to do if you want to start investing is to just jump in. However, what if you don’t really even know how to start investing?

In addition to not knowing how to start investing, it can be scary, stressful, and overwhelming to begin.

Even though it can be scary, it will probably be one of the best decisions you make when it comes to being prepared for retirement.

With today's post, I hope to make it easier than ever with my beginner investing tips so that you can start investing your money and build a retirement fund as soon as possible.

Just as a refresher, you want to invest because:

It can help make sure you aren't working for the rest of your life.
You can retire sooner rather than later.
You can lead a good life well after you finish working – traveling, pursuing your hobbies, volunteering, or whatever you choose!
Compound interest means the earlier you save the more you earn.
You won't have to rely on your children or others in order to make ends meet.

[Read more…]

Personal Capital Review 2018- Manage Your Money For Free

August 22, 2018 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 15 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info.

This Personal Capital review goes over the Personal Capital app, which is something that you need! This free financial app will allow you to manage your money better. #moneymanagement #moneysavingtips #personalcapital #free Do you understand your money? Are you properly managing it? Today, in this Personal Capital review, I am going to go over my favorite personal finance tool, and explain how it will help you improve your financial life.

Over 1.8 million people use Personal Capital, and I am one of those people!

Personal Capital provides free personal finance software that is somewhat similar to Mint.com, but better. If you like using Mint, I highly recommend checking out Personal Capital.

I recommend that everyone sign up for Personal Capital, whether you've been investing for years or if you haven't even started yet. There is something for everyone when it comes to this free financial software, and it is extremely beneficial. Plus, it is free, so there is nothing to lose. [Read more…]

How This Couple Retired at 38 and 41

May 23, 2018 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 45 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info.

How This Couple Retired at 38 and 41 My monthly Extraordinary Lives series is something that I'm really enjoying doing. First up was JP Livingston, who retired with a net worth over $2,000,000 at the age of 28. Today's interview is with Tanja Hester, who retired at the end of 2017 at the age of 38.

You probably know her from the amazing blog Our Next Life. Our Next Life is one of my favorite blogs, so I'm glad Tanja said yes to this interview!

In this interview, you'll learn:

How she managed to retire so early;
How she still lives comfortably in one of the most beautiful places in the world;
Her advice for retiring early no matter what your career choice is;
How she decided how much she needed to retire on;
The sacrifices she has had to make;

And more! This interview is packed full of valuable information! [Read more…]

The 4 Best Tools to Keep You Safe in Retirement

May 17, 2018 BY Michelle Schroeder-Gardner - 3 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info.

The following is a sponsored post.

Retirement is the most complicated time in your life, financially. That’s driven by many factors, including: (1) you don’t know how long your retirement will last, (2) you won’t have a traditional salary coming in the door, and (3) you might not have the same mental capacities as you do now to make financial decisions.

The complicated nature of retirement has increased over time as life expectancy has increased — from around 60 years in 1930 to closer to 80 years today — and pensions have gone away. Maybe your parent or grandparent has a pension? That pension, which might not seem like a big deal when you’re young, makes a big difference in retirement. It fixes all three issues listed above by providing you a continuation of your salary for as long as you live. Now, not only are employers not offering them, but many of us don’t have traditional jobs with benefits in the first place. [Read more…]

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