Nevin's Data "Points"

Over the course of my career, I’ve had the opportunity to participate in any number of “projects,” and to manage more than a few. Some were explicitly tagged as such at the start, while others simply expanded to fit that name. Most of those projects turned out well; others faded into the woodwork after a time; some drew to a close after “redefining success;” and a couple actually “crashed and burned.” A lot of variables determine whether a project will be a success or failure, but in my experience, projects that lack either a limited budget and/or a specific timeframe are doomed from the outset. I was therefore interested in some of the findings from the 8th annual America Saves Week survey this week. The survey, sponsored by the Consumer Federation of America, the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) and the American Savings Education Council (ASEC), found that more than half (57%) of those with a savings plan with specific goals said they were making good or excellent pr...

I’ve never been very keen on going to the dentist.  As important as I believe dental hygiene to be, I’ve come to associate my visits with the dentist with bad things: some level of discomfort, perhaps even pain, a flossing lecture from the hygienist, at the very least.  Most of which is readily avoided by doing the things I know I should be doing regularly – brushing, flossing, a better diet.  And knowing that I haven’t done what I should have been doing, I have good reason to believe that my visit to the dentist will be a negative experience – and so I put it off. However, it’s not as though the postponement makes the situation any better; if anything, the delay makes the eventual “confrontation” with reality worse.  That’s what retirement planning is like for many: They know they should be saving, know that they should be saving more, but they hesitate to go through the process of a retirement needs calculation because they are leery of the “pain” of going th...

This is the time of year when many people both look back at the year just past—and ahead to the next with a fresh perspective. It’s also that time of year when many make lists. So, whether you’re looking to make some New Year’s resolutions, or just looking to improve your overall financial situation, here are 10 things to check off your 2013 list—and that can get your 2014 list off to a strong start. Deal with debt (see Savings Resolutions for the New Year ). Establish a savings goal for retirement (see Estimate “Ed” ). Save for retirement—at work, or on your own (see Saving for Retirement Outside of Work ). Save early so that your savings can work for you (see The “Magic” of Compounding ). If you do have a retirement plan at work, make the most of it (see Making the Most of your Retirement Plan ). Maximize your savings—see if you’re eligible for the Savers’ Credit (see Credit Where Credit is Due ). See if a Roth 401(k) makes sense for your situation (see To Roth or Not...

April is Financial Literacy Month, and National Retirement Planning Week, sponsored by the National Retirement Planning Coalition (of which EBRI’s America Savings Education Council (ASEC) is a member) is April 9–13. Both events serve to remind us all of the importance not only of saving, but of establishing specific goals for saving. I was pleased, therefore, this past month to help one daughter set up her first SEP-IRA—and even more pleased to about the same time learn that my other daughter was, of her own volition, making a conscious effort to set aside what seemed to her father to be a fairly substantial portion of her modest income in savings. These are things I knew to do when I was their age, of course, but things I must admit took me a few years to act on. It’s easy, in the normal press of life, to put off thinking about retirement, much less thinking about saving for a period of life many can hardly imagine. We all know we should do it—but some figure that it will take...

The bad news is that times are still tough for many Americans—and surveys suggest that even those with jobs are nervous about their prospects for the future. The good news is that the current level of economic uncertainty seems to have brought about—at least for some—a heightened awareness of the need to set money aside for a rainy day, perhaps even those rainy days in retirement. That said, the weak economy has certainly constrained the ability of many to save. In fact, a recent national survey found that an increasing number of Americans are having difficulty saving to meet goals ranging from meeting emergencies to affording retirement. The survey—released as part of America Saves Week(1)—noted that over the past three years, there has been a decline in the number of people who spend less than their income and save the difference, are building home equity, have adequate emergency savings, and think they are saving enough for retirement. However, the survey also revealed that havi...