Before you take a job, check with the HR and find out what are the options. Sometime there are not many options during hard economic times such as now since most people will take whatever they can find. Negotiating retirement plans is not an option. Just keep in mind, even if your employer doesn’t offer the plan yet, you can always start your individual IRA.

Source: U.S. Department of Labor

The most common match is 50 percent of the employee’s contribution up to a maximum percentage of wages or salary (usually 6 percent). Although many companies are cutting back on the matching, you can still expect the find somewhere between 2-4 percent. That’s like getting free money! Although most temp and part-time employees do not get matching 401K, but if your job does, then join without hesitation.

The younger you are, the better your long term savings returns. Your savings will grow and your earnings will compound over time. Time is the best and most important factor in retirement savings. If you wait until 35 to start, then you’ve already lost 12-13 years of compounding opportunities. If you just recently graduated from college and luck enough to have a job, start now. Even just little amount each month.

Source: U.S. Department of Labor

Even at $50/month, you can expect a large return after 30 years’ of nonstop investing. If you’re just starting out, save little and gradually add as your life changes. Getting married and having kids can put your retirement on hold, but keep at it, whether through 401K or IRA, discipline is the most important message. Market goes up and goes down, but the return on your contribution is for the long term plan.

The simplest retirement investing for women is the employer sponsored retirement plan. If your employer offers a retirement plan, join it as soon as you can and contribute as much as the plan allows. Most employers with a 401(k) plan match a fixed percentage of the employee’s contribution.  You will find out about the employer retirement plan before you start your job. Study carefully and take advantage of it.

Remember, by saving early you have time on your side. Your savings will grow and your earnings will compound over time.

Source: U.S. Department of Labor

Many retirees are facing now running out of money towards the end of their lives. Many people are taking on part time jobs to help paying bills. Today’s 30 and 40 years olds will not be able to receive 100% of their social security income by the time they reach full retirement age.

The safest way for a women to plan for retirement is to save in 401K or IRA, or both. Stay-at-home moms should keep contributing to their IRA. Even if less than the maximum allowed amount of current $5,000.

Source: U.S. Department of Labor

If you are waged and your employer doesn’t have a retirement plan, you can open an IRA. Start by talking to your bank and open an IRA account. Most of them have a very small minimum requirement. You can put in very little each month. Try to setup a small amount that you truly feel comfortable and stick to it and forget about it. If you have a land phone line that you don’t really need at home, cancel it and use that money to fund your IRA.

If you are 25 years old right now, open your Roth IRA with $250 down and put in $50 each month until you’re 65. At 8% of interest, you will have $173,300 of tax free money when you’re 65. You can’t retire happily on that, but if you have other investments, and social security checks, you can be comfortable. Plus that’s just the savings from your land line phone bill. How can you beat that? With the same calculation, image yourself skip movies, shop second hand, skip Starbucks and manicure and put in $200 each month, with everything staying the same, you will have $676,906. Now you can really live comfortably with that on top of your social security checks.

Now how about skip lunches and bring your own sandwiches, at $7 a day, you can probably invest another $150 each month. Now the monthly contribution is $350. At 65, you will have $1,180,511. Congratulation!

Regardless the working status, women need to plan ahead. Even if you’re a stay-at-home mom, you can contribute to an IRA. The limit now is $5,000 a year. If you work full time and qualify, join a retirement plan now. The earlier you start, the less you will have to contribute. Waiting until children are off college or your 50s is not a good plan in retirement planning.

Retirement planning should start early and continue throughout your lifetime. Here are four reasons why saving matters to women – and especially to you!

• Women are more likely to work in part-time jobs that don’t qualify for a retirement plan. And working women are more likely than men to interrupt their careers to take care of family members. Therefore, they work fewer years and contribute less toward their retirement, resulting in lower lifetime savings.
• Of the 62 million wage and salaried women (age 21 to 64) working in the United States, just 45 percent participated in a retirement plan. Remember, even small amounts can earn interest and add up over time.
• On average, a female retiring at age 65 can expect to live another 19 years, 3 years longer than a man retiring at the same age. Savings can increase a woman’s chances of having enough money to last during her retirement.
• By and large, women invest more conservatively than men. Choose carefully where you put your money and learn how to make your investments grow.

Source: U.S. Department of Labor

You can use the person’s benefits on his or her behalf. Therefore, you must know what your relative’s needs are so you can decide how benefits can best be used for his or her personal care and well-being. First, you must make sure that food and shelter are provided. Then, you can use the money to pay medical and dental bills not covered by health insurance and for personal needs and recreation.

Source: SSA Publication No. 05-10127