What do you think I was living off for the last three years?
"Many using 401(k)s as a safety neT; Tapped-out workers tapping retirement funds, Fidelity says" by Erin Ailworth, Globe Staff | August 21, 2010
American workers, many in their prime earning years, are raiding their retirement savings in record numbers to either stave off eviction or foreclosure, pay for college, or buy a home....
Or just to EAT!
Related: Congress Saves States By Cutting Food Stamps
Yup, a RECORD NUMBER of Americans going HUNGRY -- and I AM ONE of them!
“The economy is really forcing people to perhaps look to other sources to help supplement their reduced household income or the fact that they have less take-home pay,’’ said Beth McHugh, vice president of market insights at Fidelity. “The challenge is that folks may not be thinking about the long-term implications of doing so.’’
There IS NOT GOING to BE ANY LONG-TERM if I do NOT MAKE it through TODAY!
Most financial planners advise against tapping retirement funds early because there are taxes and penalties involved, and most plans won’t accept new contributions to an account for at least six months after a withdrawal.
And because THEY WANT TO KEEP YOUR MONEY!
And then there’s the long-term danger of not having enough money to live on during retirement....
You know, I REALLY WASN'T PLANNING on it since SOCIAL SECURITY has been LOOTED and the TREND SEEMS to be WORK until you are DEAD!
That is, of course, if I EVER GET A JOB!
“If the economy is starting to bite into retirement savings, you are setting yourself up down the road,’’ said Ted Truscott, chief executive of US asset management for Ameriprise Financial, a financial services firm with operations in Boston. “I think the fact that people will come in, reduce their retirement savings, and pay a penalty suggests that there are some people out there who are getting pretty desperate.’’
Some of us are BEYOND THAT to the point of CATATONIA!
“I have seen clients who have literally exhausted their 401(k) contributions,’’ Boston bankruptcy lawyer Richard N. Gottlieb said.
Oh, there might be a few coins in there because I held open the account in the hope that.... never mind.
Bankruptcy, he added, might be a better option because it discharges debt and gives people more time to work out their financial problems, leaving their retirement funds — which are protected from bankruptcy — intact.
Leslie Linfield, executive director of the nonprofit Institute for Financial Literacy, which promotes financial education, said, “They’re actually trying to stave off bankruptcy. They’re robbing Peter to pay Paul.’’
Banks are now being called Paul, American Peter?
While borrowing against your 401(k) account may hurt your long-term returns, financial planners say a loan could be a viable option for some people....
Who has a long term these days?
And look at the Globe PUSHING the LOANS!!!
So what office do you work out of at the bank, Globe?
--more--"
Related: Bush Bankrupted Pension Insurance Fund
Corporate Pension Funds Next in Line for Bailout Loot
Oh, yeah, you will be bailing yourselves out in retirement, too, taxpayers.
Also see: State Budgets: Pensions and Prisons
