To People Who Haven’t Saved Anything Yet
Author: Carl Richards of The New York Times
We often hear about the importance of starting to save early. Usually the examples are focused on saving whatever you can when you’re in your 20s to take advantage of the power of compound interest.
But what if you were too busy trying to pay a student loan and other bills in your 20s, or like many of us, had to use all the savings you built up to get through the last few years? Now you find yourself closing in on 40 and feeling like you missed the boat.
I’ve thought about this problem ever since I read about the recent study that found that nearly half of Americans wouldn’t be able to come up with $2,000 in 30 days if they needed it. This reality hits home every time I have a conversation with people 35 to 45 who feel so far behind the savings game that they aren’t sure what to do.
For that group the advice is no longer start early, but simply start now. The only thing that matters at this point is that the longer you wait, the more painful it will be. Compound interest can still work, but not until you start saving. Â Continue reading….
My Comments:
Carl Richards is a certified financial planner in Park City, Utah. His sketches are archived here on the Bucks blog and on his personal Web site, BehaviorGap.com.  I really like his articles on financial planning.
