Retire with MONEY

You Should Be Saving at Least 12% of Your Pay for Retirement. Here's Why by Carla Fried To reach retirement in solid financial shape, you likely need to up your savings game today. Vanguard reports that the median 401(k) contribution of American workers is 6% of pay. After adding in the median company matching contribution, the total workers are setting aside falls just short of 10%. That may not be enough. Vanguard recommends a total contribution rate of between 12% to 15% of salary.

I Challenged Myself to a No-Spend Month — and the Universe Laughed at Me. Here’s What I Learned by Christine Hennessey My moment of truth occurred in the home goods section of Marshalls. I shouldn’t have been there in the first place. June was supposed to be my self-imposed “no-spend” month, which meant every item on the shelf was off limits.

Midyear 401(k) Checkup: 3 Things To Do Before the Summer Ends by Martha C. White With the stock market hitting record highs and summer in full swing, it can be easy to forget your 401(k). But if you want to maximize your gains, investing experts say there are a few moves you should make before Labor Day. According to Fidelity Investments, the average 401(k) balance was $103,700 as of the first quarter, an 8% increase over the previous quarter.

Using an AOL or Hotmail Email Makes You Unhireable, Career Experts Say by Jill Krasny Applying for jobs is stressful enough without worrying about your email. But if you’re using an old-school provider, you may be doing yourself a disservice. Not only do these dot-com-bubble era accounts look hopelessly dated, they signal to employers that you might not be taking the application process seriously, warns Alexandra Levit, the chairman of DeVry University’s Career Advisory Board.

This Is The Most Popular Home Renovation Project in America—And How Much It Costs by Shaina Mishkin If you’ve finally decided to redo that outdated bathroom or kitchen, you’re not alone. A “room remodel” is the most popular home renovation project in America, according to HomeAdvisor’s 2019 State of Home Spending report.

3 Secrets to Saving Money in the Kitchen (Even If You Hate to Cook) by Paul Schrodt Few things prompt daily financial worry like cooking and eating. After it, all consumes a sizable portion of our lives. You wonder, did I buy too much at the grocery store? Or too little? Will those weeknight dinner dates leave me broke by the weekend? It gets trickier for those of us who are not naturally inclined toward the kitchen. Fortunately, that’s one department in which Cat Cora is qualified to help.

Online Banks Are Lowering Payouts on Savings Accounts. Here's Why — and Where to Find the Best Deals by Kerri Anne Renzulli Last month, the Ally Financial — winner of Money’s 2018 award for best online bank — sent an unusual message to its customers: Interest rates on its popular high-yield savings account would be going down. Shortly afterwards Marcus, Goldman Sachs’s online bank, did the same.

It's Not Just You. Wall Street Loves Costco, Too — and Its Stock Is Beating Amazon and Walmart in 2019 by Sarah Max Pull into a Costco parking lot on virtually any day of the week, any time during warehouse hours, and you’ll likely be hard pressed to find a parking spot. People aren’t just there for the free samples.

Meet a Retiree Who Now Saves People From Avalanches In His Spare Time by Elizabeth O'Brien For many folks, the beauty of retirement lies in being the master of your own schedule: there’s no more boss telling you what to do and when to do it. But Charles Pitman has willingly ceded control over much of his time since he’s left the rat race. A search and rescue volunteer for Summit County, Colo.

Here's the Easiest Way to Catch Up on Retirement Savings by Sarah Max It’s no secret that most Americans are woefully underprepared for retirement. But if you find yourself at risk of not having saved enough for your golden years — like about half of American households — take heart.

"This Is How Much the Average American Spends on Housing At Every Age. How Do You Stack Up?" by Shaina Mishkin Housing costs eat up a big part of American budgets — and young people feel the crunch more than almost anyone else. Those under the age of 25 spend nearly 24% of their pre-tax income so-called shelter expenses alone, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s among the highest of any age group.

These Economic Indicators Are Flashing Red, According to Experts by Ian Salisbury With the stock market up and jobs plentiful, the U.S. economy appears to be hitting on all cylinders. Not so fast, say many investors. Earlier this month the S&P 500 hit a record high. Meanwhile the U.S. unemployment rate, at 3.6%, is the lowest it’s been since at least the late 1990s. President Trump, for one, has been quick to herald these successes. But there may be trouble just beneath the surface, say experts.

These Are the 5 Best Beaches to Visit this Summer, Based on Activities, Hotel Costs, and Airfare by Shaina Mishkin Dust off your swimsuit and shake out your beach towel, because the definitive list of best beach vacations is here. At MONEY, we know that summer fun comes with a price. So we crunched the numbers to find the best beach destinations for your dollar.

An Instagram Ad Tricked Me Into Overpaying for a Bathing Suit. Here’s How You Can Avoid Being Duped by Prachi Bhardwaj It was a moment of weakness timed perfectly with a well-placed advertisement — at least that’s the short version I tell myself about the time I paid too much for a bathing suit. On a recent sleepless night, I was scrolling through my Instagram feed, when an ad popped up for a red and white striped two-piece.

Student Loan Showdown: Let's Compare How Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders Would Make You Debt Free by Prachi Bhardwaj With the first two Democratic primary debates getting underway this week, two front-runners are going head-to-head on student debt. On Monday, Vermont Senator and two-time Democratic primary candidate Bernie Sanders announced a plan to relieve all 45 million Americans with outstanding student debt to higher education institutions. That invoice has reached an unprecedented $1.