Gary R McCarty

>Planning for your future income needs can get overwhelming to the point where most Americans tend to put off the process making it harder to meet their goals. The trend of putting off planning can cause our investments to stay in higher risk/higher gain vehicles for a longer period of time than necessary, creating a risky, stress filled retirement life or even a delay in the retirement process.

A simple plan is to follow the Rule of 100. This Concept creates a consistent process of review and transfer of your money.

Here is how it works. Take your age today and subtract it from 100. That number is the percentage of your investments that should be in the market. If your 401k is setup with 100% of your money in Growth and Income Funds, it’s time to make sure that you have money in a protected growth strategy. A $30,000 401k Balance for a 30 year old should be no more than 70% of the total holdings for the future. This amount is above and beyond the Emergency Fund you have established for Roof, Auto and Major medical expenses that may come up in the future.

Unfortunately, Americans are retiring today with 100% of their money still in the market where it can erode with a one day downturn in the Dow Jones industrial average. How does your retirement plan look? Are you in line with the rule of 100? A second opinion will cost you nothing but time but the benefits can pay dividends for a lifetime.