How do I know exactly how much $ I need to have in my 401K today to have a comfortable retirement?
409788
No one can answer that question unless they know how old you are now and how old you will be when you retire. Also,one would have to know what kind of investments you chose for your 401K...\n\nAlso, whatever brokerage house you use for your 401K, usually have a free service to assist people with questions like this. \n\nAs soon as I retired (at 57) I rolled over my 401K from Chase(where it was performing dismally and being eaten away with hidden fees) to Fidelity, where it has continued to grow and without all the sneaky fees.And now at 62, I haven t had to touch the principal..just the interest..and I am making more now than when I worked!!\nProduct connected investment counselors should be avoided. I work with a person who takes a percentage of what I make! So, the better I do, the better he does. Its in his best interest to make me more money..
735350
A good rule of thumb is 10% of the GROSS amount of your paycheck.\n-MM
1057076
A LOT of things would determine this.\n\nSome people could live on $35,000 a year, some need $75,000 in today's dollars.  It also depends on what type of pension or social security you will be receiving.  Do you have any savings?  Also, at what age do you want to retire, expected life span?  \n\nI don't know anything about you by your question, but here are some numbers I ran yesterday for a 27y.o. wanting to retire at 40.  These were just quick estimates.\n\n\nIdeally, if you retire at 40 and live another 40 years, can obtain a 7% rate of return, and need $40,000 a year for the 40 years in retirement, you need to have a little more than $500,000 in savings by the time you are 40 years old.\n\nYou can reach this $500,000 if you save about $27,000 a year for the next 13 years, given a 7% rate of return. \n\nDepending on your salary, this may be obtainable but you have a lot of work to do since you have basically no savings. Also, I used 7% because thats the average rate of return in the stock market but depending on your investments, it may be more or less. I would take full advantage of your TSP (401k) because all that matching the gov't does will really pay off. Also, it may be tough, but buy very few "wants" and try to stick to spending money on "needs." People usually think it is impossible, but it really isn't. Also, I'm sure you'll want a home at some point and you have to take that into consideration as well. Good luck
1006265
with corporations no longer funing your retirement and cutting back on medical insurance and everyone talking about privatizing social security. you need to be activly engaged in your investments. no sleeping on the job...\n\nif you are 25 and save $400,000 by the time you are 67, it will generate about $2000/month... can you live on $2000/month?.... but before you answer, remember that in 42 years from now, with 3% inflation it will spend like it's only $573. that will be for your rent, food, bills and medical. BUT... if your rent today is $1100, in 42 years the same place will cost you $4000..... and what's worse, you will probably live for an additional 30 to 40 years... the numbers just get worse...\n\nif you want to sleep on an investment, you'll be sleeping in a cardboard box eating an occasional can of cat food.\n\nwe all need to wake up and learn to invest
742987
Check with your HR or Benefits department, but generally speaking you can not cash out your 401(k) unles you seperate from service first.  The only alternative is a loan, but that could become messy if you wind up leaving before you pay it back.\n\nIf somehow your plan allows early distributions prior to retirement or seperation of service, then the other answers are correct.  If you receive a check directly from the plan, then by law they have to withhold 20% for taxes.  The entire distribution will more than likely be taxable (if you have after tax contributions, then you pay no tax on those) and you will be subject to a 10% IRS penalty. \n\nIf you meet one of the qualifying distribution exceptions for IRAs (first time home purchase, medical expenses, college expenses, etc...) then if you roll your 401(k) into an IRA FIRST and then take a distribution you may be able to avoid the 10% penalty.  You also control the amount that is withheld, so you may be able to keep more of your money.  Again, this is usually only an option if you're over 59 1/2 or if you seperate from service i.e. quit or change jobs.  But you may be able to keep more of your money.  You can open a rollover IRA at any bank, find one that DOESN'T charge a fee for the account.
434245
consult your employer or 401K manager
905970
Microsoft Excel can help with these kinds of calculations.  Though, an interest formula like this fails to take into account future additions to the principle of your retirement account.  Most people take some of each paycheck and put it into a retirement account rather than depositing a lump sum and forgetting about it.\n\nDon't forget to factor in inflation and taxes somehow!
574662
depends on the income. Subtract deductions, contribution to IRA/401K etc. and see what the net income is. Then look at the tax tables to determine the federal tax
4641
yup, unless you're 59 and a half, then you will have to pay the full tax on the money taken out of your 401k plan, which means if you are working right now, you are in your income earning years, hence your tax bracket should be higher, maybe even to the next level depending on how much you take out of your 401k, since that would be counted as regular income.  and the IRS (uncle sam calls it a penalty, but I like to call it a tip) would also be needing that tip from you, a 10% tip for every buck you want to take out.  so, if you take 20,000 out, that would be more like 14,400 if your bracket is in the 28% range minus $2000 for that tip i would telling you about, which leaves you 12,400 for taking out 20,000.  not really worth it huh
498567
Yearly take-home pay ~ $54.4K\nMonthly take-home ~ $4.5 K\nExpenses ~ $2 K <people never get this right so I double it>\nMonthly savings of $2.5 K.\n\nIf you can automatically have $ go from work directly into saving vehicles do so ... this will stop temptations.  You should pocket 40% for expenses & living <getting your date> ... and 60% savings.\n\n1.  Before you do anything else <except pay off all debt> ... Build up to $20K in Emergency Savings first <$2K * 12 = $24>.  I then tell myself I have no money when I deplete the account to $15 K. Then I change allocations, and make sure I always have this highly liquid stash. <T-Bills, CD's, Saving/Checking accounts ... safe & liquid>\n\n2.  Savings - After the safety account is established goals reached, then you need savings that are more risky but still liquid <make sure there are no penalties to get $$$>.  You can invest the money into bonds, mutual funds, or stocks ... what ever you are educated in and feel confident in.  This account is taxable so be mindful of that when you make investment decisions.  \n\n3.  Retirement - 401(k), SEP, ROTH, IRA ... See what you're company has for retirement.  If they match, then contribute what they match.  If no retirement is offered, then go to a broker and get their help.  You should be investing 10-20% of your savings here.\n\n4.  Housing - With only $1K in expenses I'm guessing you don't own a home.  I would look into buying a home <Loft, condo, town home> It's money well spent, and you can get great loans today <tomorrow the good loans will be gone>
785959
The other answers forget..\n\nRule 72 (IRS) allows u to pull the $$$ from IRA (assume it applys to 401k too)...\n\nIt allows u to get it before 59.5 with only taxes to pay if u do it over a specified period of time.\n\nFor example u pull 40k out but do 4k per year for 10 years.\nThis is a way get $ out before 59.5 without penalty.\n\nIRS recongizes that there are life events that force many to grab funds from existing sources for emergencies.\n\nU could use this rule to pull out 100% of the 401k, and use portion for wife and portion for self.
1034946
To be honest there is no set amount, but I can advise this off of what I have read this past year. Think about your bills right now. then think about what you own and what you are still paying off. Then think how much you make. Gets so numbers written down.  If you are struggling base of what you makin not then your not ready to retire.  You want to be able to cover all the cost of your bills for as long as your not work. There is no one set number. Just the more you have the better.
612238
First of all, check if you actually have an existing 401k plan.\nHow do you not know what you have/or don't have in your own 401k plan?\nYou can verify for further information by contacting your company.\nAt least 10 years ago, if you were to withdrawl money from your 401k Plan prematurely you can expect to pay 10% early withdrawl fee and taxes accordingly.  I am not certain today  if that is the same. \nCall any financial institution.  A Finacial Advisor or Representative should know this by heart.
183155
I am not sure exactly what your question is asking.  If you retire at 55, but need to access your IRA money right away, you should look into IRS rule 72t.  There are a few different methods of doing this and you need to sit down with a tax advisor to make sure that you do it right.  Click this link for an article that has more info\nhttp://ktla.trb.com/business/yourmoney/sns-yourmoney-0403moneytalk,0,7524444.story\n\nGood Luck!!!
28144
Does your employer have a 401k?  Make sure to contribute enough into it that you are getting the full match.  Then start a Roth IRA.
4569
30 years of contributing the max to a Roth IRA each year should create a million.  If you have a 401k at work that offers matching, contribute enough to get the max of the match.
103673
She's right if that is as much as you can invest.  Your best bet is to max out both if you can afford to.\n\nHere's the order:\n\n401K to match:\nROTH IRA max\n401K max