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Daycare and Taxes>Saving For Retirement
Josiegirl 02:34 AM 09-22-2017
Probably a bit late for this question

My dh has an annuity through TIAA Cref. He's had it through his work for 35 yrs. I've been doing childcare for about that long but have no savings of my own towards retirement. I'm 63. Yikes.
My question is, what do I do as far as retirement now? He and I have been separated for 10 yrs. I know I will still get a portion of the annuity and will be eligible for social security when I hit 65. I'm just not sure if it'll be enough for my older years. Any advice?
Thank you!
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MyAngels 06:15 AM 09-22-2017
Have you looked at what you'll be eligible for through Social Security? I'm not sure of the exact rules, but depending on how long you were married you may be able to claim a higher benefit based on your ex-husband's earnings record. Social Security has a website that you can register for that will give you a projection of your benefits based on your lifetime earnings and your retirement age.

I know you can also make catch up contributions to an IRA over and above what the normal limits are.

Start by figuring out what you'll need to live when you retire and what your social security benefit will be. Once you've done that you can figure out whether the amount you get from the annuity will be enough to bridge the gap if social security is not enough.
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Cat Herder 06:44 AM 09-22-2017
I put $100wk into a Roth IRA (except when life pre-empts me). That would only give you 10ish thousand (up to 5500 a year allowed for me, varies by age I understand), in two years, but it is a start. I have not checked into how long you can continue to contribute, yet. My hope is for as long as you can continue to earn.
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storybookending 06:55 AM 09-22-2017
I'm only 26 but hoping to be a lifer in this career. I don't have anything set up in terms of retirement yet but know that I should. I had a retirement plan at the center.. still do as I'm still technically employed there and work one Saturday a month for 3 hours. But there is not much in there, I could probably live off it for like 3 months hahaha.
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MyAngels 08:41 AM 09-22-2017
Originally Posted by storybookending:
I'm only 26 but hoping to be a lifer in this career. I don't have anything set up in terms of retirement yet but know that I should. I had a retirement plan at the center.. still do as I'm still technically employed there and work one Saturday a month for 3 hours. But there is not much in there, I could probably live off it for like 3 months hahaha.
If you were to start saving just $50 per month in a tax deferred account now, and saved for 40 years, you would have a projected $174,550 at the end. Compare that to saving that same $50 per month for 30 years and you would have a projected $74,517. This is assuming an annual rate of return of 8%, but you get the idea.

Geez, I feel like an old lady (I am) saying this - Start saving now youngun'
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storybookending 10:30 AM 09-22-2017
Originally Posted by MyAngels:
If you were to start saving just $50 per month in a tax deferred account now, and saved for 40 years, you would have a projected $174,550 at the end. Compare that to saving that same $50 per month for 30 years and you would have a projected $74,517. This is assuming an annual rate of return of 8%, but you get the idea.

Geez, I feel like an old lady (I am) saying this - Start saving now youngun'
I plan on starting soon but these financial terms go way over my head. I need to find someone that knows what they are doing to help me out.
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TomCopeland 02:08 PM 09-22-2017
Originally Posted by Josiegirl:
Probably a bit late for this question

My dh has an annuity through TIAA Cref. He's had it through his work for 35 yrs. I've been doing childcare for about that long but have no savings of my own towards retirement. I'm 63. Yikes.
My question is, what do I do as far as retirement now? He and I have been separated for 10 yrs. I know I will still get a portion of the annuity and will be eligible for social security when I hit 65. I'm just not sure if it'll be enough for my older years. Any advice?
Thank you!
I would consult with a lawyer regarding your status as married, but living separately. You want to know if you will be better off divorced and getting a divorce settlement that can help with your retirement. You will be entitled to some of his TIAA Cref retirement account as well as half of his Social Security benefits.
Second, I would consult with a financial planner to help you plan for your retirement. It's never too late to plan ahead.
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Josiegirl 02:51 PM 09-22-2017
Thank you, those sound like very wise ideas.
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Mom2Two 10:50 AM 09-25-2017
DH and I both turn 50 this year, and a lot of our savings (DH's savings from before we were married) were wiped out with our medically fragile preemie, so we're looking ahead to a retirement that isn't exactly super wealthy.

But I don't really plan on "retiring" meaning that we'll work as long as we can. A provider near here is in her 60s with some health issues, and she has just stopped taking babies at all and won't deal with behavior problems anymore, but she still runs her home daycare.

I think that keeping on working at something that is enjoyable for you can go a long way.

Taking care of your health will also help a lot.

I also keep thinking how we could modify our house to make it a duplex so we could rent one part.

We do have some retirement savings, but not enough to throw in the towel in our 60s.
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