mrmarket

Thank you

What kind of low-risk options are you talking about here? Do they produce returns consistently better than inflation (more than 3.1%)? If not, then those investments are to be considered very risky and guaranteed to lose your spending power over time.

I would have to agree with that. What is even more alarming is this: As a Financial Advisor who regularly sees LDS clients (I don't market to them - high LDS population here) I often find they save significantly less than their non-member neighbors. This according to those I meet with is because of a lot less disposable income. A faithful member has many more expenses than most other people - Tithing, Fast Offerings, a mission or two or three etc. These expenses consume a huge amount of money which if invested instead of spending it on these categories can/would have compounded to very larger sums. I am not advocating people avoid these expenses, but rather we need to live significantly below our means and save even more money if we want to enjoy retirement (be able to afford it- you define enjoy) because our expenses are permanently higher than the non-members around us. The concept of living below our means has been taught for a long time, but from my perspective it is rarely followed. Some may think the non-members just spend all their money at Vegas, drinking or on their boat. Truth is for the average person, Mormons spend more than the non-member does on tithing alone if one is actually paying 10%. I Obviously this is purely anecdotal, but from the people I am visiting with and judging by the numbers they are giving me I am confident I am not too far off the mark. Those who save for the future (Mormon or not) will not be out blowing their money. When you take two people who have different permanent built-in expenses then the result down the road will be significantly different. I witness this all the time. I pay enough in tithing to max out a 401K, yet my savings rate is very low relative to my peers. I even live in a neighborhood where the median income is probably about 70K because after all my expenses, savings, church obligations, kids on missions, I frankly don't have much left. I know for a fact I will not have enough saved to go abroad on a senior mission with my wife and I am a very aggressive saver. When trying to determine what you will need to save for retirement here is a tip: Figure out approximately how much Social Security you will get, factor in any pensions if applicable and finally Subtract that from what you feel is a decent annual income. Whatever that figure is, multiply by 25 and you have your minimum savings goal. Example: after expenses I need $25K in annual income. $25,000 x 25 = $625,000 $625K to produce about $25K per year in income. That is considering you only will need income for 25 years. If your death is not already planned one would be wise to be invested in the stock market so your nest egg can grow and keep your source of income producing a stream of money indefinitely which can be increased or indexed for inflation as well. Save lots, live way below your means and stay in the market. Play the long game.

Hi! Glad to be here. I am looking forward to participating in discussions 🙂