INVEST FOR YOUR FUTURE $$$$

Make money , save & invest some money, earn money on your money, pay less taxes, worry less about money
money money money money money....................... OK not selling anything here OK

"I never think of the future - it comes soon enough" ...Albert Einstein

Yeah, but you can bet old Albert never had to live on Social Security alone. You can go to the Social Security website and find out approximately how much Uncle Sam will give you back if and when you make it to retirement. I am sure it wont feel anywhere near like what they have been taking out of your checks all these years. Nowadays SS checks will get you some dog/cat food & kool aid to subsist on after you've paid for your meds and your rent. So save some moolah NOW!!

There is no such thing as a sure thing. There is also no (LEGAL) way to get rich quick. If it sounds to good to be true , it damn well sure ain't true! It is tough saving money, whether you make $20k a year or $100k a year or anywhere in between which is most everyone I know. You can save some money but do it the right way. You can build a nest egg! The key word is build, the things that last always take time to build. If you build it they will come....oops no baseball here!!!! This is serious financial stuff.

Some pretty simple yet effective ways to start building include great tax savings benefits as well. If your employer offers a 401k, stop everything & sign up now. YOU get your money before Uncle Sam has a chance to take any taxes out and it goes into your account to build up TAX FREE. Also many employers contribute some money as well. This is EXTRA money that they put in your 401K on your behalf. Sounds to good to be true? Whats the catch? Well the government will take their taxes out when you retire and start taking money out...but that is further on up the road. You can contribute up to $15,500 per year ($20,500 if you are +50 years old). If you start with say 3-5% of your salary, you will barely notice the difference in your take home pay. Invest the money in something safe like a S&P 500 index fund and you are on your way to building your nest egg. If your employer does not offer 401k, quit working for the cheap bastards!!! Just kidding!! , we all need our jobs. You can do it on your own. Take the loose change out of your ash tray, jar, top draw, laundry bag, car , ex-wife or wherever and get started!!



You can open up your own IRA ( which is almost the same concept as a 401k). You can contribute as much as $4000 and may qualify for a tax deduction (depending on how much you make). The IRA is relatively easy to set up with many banks and financial institutions. I would recommend Vanguard & American Funds as they are two of the largest, well manged and low fees to YOU in terms of their fees and costs. They both have good index funds to get you going. You can start in 2007, even 20 bucks a week will get you going ($35-40 if you quit smoking). Hey if you don't take care of your money...other people will take it to do so!

All right enough of this lecturing, proselytizing, teaching, preaching !!!!

Next week we'll talk about easy ways to bathe your cat.................right!