When your young you don’t realize how short life really is. A one-hour car ride can feel like a lifetime and playing outside all day was just the beginning of fun. But now that you are an adult and you have people, bills, and grandparents pestering you nonstop, you have to wonder – should I start saving for my retirement now?
There is truly no correct answer here because everyone’s situation is different. You should start when you have a good job and earning money for yourself. Over time, you should put that into a savings account and then once there is enough there, you should be able to open a retirement account and move money there. It’s not always that concrete though.
The first step to all of this is to make goals. Long and short term – what is your ultimate goal? Income is another factor to consider. “Discretionary income is the first factor to consider when deciding when to start a serious savings plan. Also known as disposable income, it’s the amount of money you have left over after you pay for your” all your bills (What Age). The lower this income is, the sooner you should start a retirement fund plan.
How much is going to be enough? This depends on your goals you created and “identity your target replacement income (TRI). This is the percent of your current income you’ll need to love on after you leave work” (What Age).
Another article insists that you should do it as soon as you can. “Ideally, you’d start saving in your 20s, when you first leave school and begin earning paychecks” because the soon you start the more time you have for your money to grow. There’s a big difference if you start saving at 25 versus when your 28, due to interest and annual return rates, as it depends on the plan. But the time frame key is the sooner the better.
Will it be enough in the end? “[I]f you’re making $75,000 per year and retire today at age 65 with $500,000 in retirement savings and withdraw $43,000 a year, there’s a 52% chance your savings will last until age 90” (Ultimate guide). This is just an estimate depending on whether you have been saving the right amount each year and have enough to even retire at the age of 65. The economy is dependent as well in this. If the economy is good and continues to be good, then you will be fairly safe – as long as you keep saving.
This all depends on how much you 
wish to spend during your retirement – this has to do with those goals in the beginning. If you want to travel the world when you retire, then you should plan on saving more for that now. If you plan on being at home and taking care of your grandchildren, then you will probably be okay with a simple plan. It all depends on what you want to do and how to prepare for the fact that accidents and surprises happen.
In conclusion, there’s no true correct answer, but you should start saving when you are earning your own money and start building a life of your own. With a retirement plan that you start at age 25, you should be good until the ideal retirement age, 65. This is all dependent on the type of plan you chose and the economy as well.
Bill Fay Staff Writer. “What Age Should I Start Saving Money? – Where to Save, How Much & When.” Debt.org. N.p., 2018. Web. 28 June 2018. <https://www.debt.org/retirement/what-age-should-i-start-saving-money/>.
Frankel, Matthew. “When Should You Start Saving for Retirement?” The Motley Fool. The Motley Fool, 01 May 2016. Web. 28 June 2018. <https://www.fool.com/retirement/2016/05/01/when-should-you-start-saving-for-retirement.aspx>.
“I’m Saving a Lot but Will Still Fall Short.” CNNMoney. Cable News Network, n.d. Web. 28 June 2018. <https://money.cnn.com/retirement/guide/basics_basics.moneymag/index11.htm?iid=EL>.
