Saving to Retire

Retirement. It’s the light at the end of the tunnel, the tape at the finish line, and for many a tremendous loss of income. Many financial experts stress saving for retirement early. The more you save, the happier you’ll be in the golden years.

But what if you have debt? Trying to save money for retirement does not seem like an urgent problem when you have thousands in debt. You assume you’ll start saving when the other debt is paid off. If you’re only paying minimums, it could be years until the debt is paid.

Some people will try to borrow against retirement accounts. Often, it’s a Band-Aid for a wound. Unless you take enough money from your retirement to pay all of your debt – you will still owe creditors and owe the retirement loan. You could face tax penalties for an early withdrawal and have less retirement savings.

Bankruptcy could be a solution to the problem. Think about how the minimum payments. If you eliminate the debt with a Chapter 7, the money for minimum payments can be saved for retirement. A Chapter 13 is a budget based repayment plan. You consolidate your bills based on what you can afford. When the plan is complete, you use the affordable Chapter 13 payment for retirement!

Please visit Bankrate for a useful calculator (you can click here). You can input income and number of years to retire to find the amount you need to save to meet your current annual income. You’ll be amazed at the amount. If your current plan to retire is not working and you need help with debt, call Geraci Law. Peter Francis Geraci is a financial expert and his attorneys can determine if bankruptcy is right for you.