1. It is difficult for fund managers with years of experience to beat the market so why not just invest in S&P 500 index funds or whole market index funds with low fees. Investors will beat out actively managed funds most of the time.

2.Fire your full service broker that charge really high fees or a percentage of your assets. If your paying 1.5% on $100,000 your paying $1500 per year in fees. This means that you will have to make 1.5% more on your money to just break even before inflation. Get a low cost broker like Ameritrade or Etrade.

3. Dollar cost averaging can help smooth out the roller coaster that is investing. Invest fixed amounts of money over a period of years to invest more when the market is lower and less when the market is higher.

4. Escape taxes by investing in municipal bonds. Municipal bonds pay lower rates, but they are tax free from state and federal taxes if you buy municipal bonds from in-state issuers.

5. Save for college in a 529 college savings plan. The sooner you start saving in this account the sooner it starts to earn tax free returns for your child’s future.

Checkout these sites for job opportunities for older workers:

Enrge.us
This website specializes in helping retired government workers find jobs in the private sector. Workers can post resumes for free which potential companies can then view (for a fee). There are no job postings allowed by the companies.

ExecSearches.com

Helps government, nonprofit, education and groups
“fill executive, midlevel and fund raising positions”. People seeking jobs can receive emails alerting them to potential openings that fit their needs and skill levels.

RetiredBrains.com
Allows job seekers to search for part-time or temporary jobs. Also, project assignments or full-time positions.

Retireeworkforce.com
Features 3 dozen or so companies posting job openings. No fees for job seekers.

Retirementjobs.com
No charge for job seekers. Employers pay a fee to post openings and access to the websites database. They screen and identify employers that offer an “age friendly environment”.

Seniors4hire.com
Job seekers can post resumes and job wanted ads.

Workforce50.com
No charge to job seekers. Job seekers can store up to 3 resumes on the website. Offers a large number of resources and articles for job seekers.

YourEncore.com
This website was founded by Proctor and Gamble and EliLilly. They specialize in placing retired scientists and engineers with employers that join the website. Jobs are primarily for part-time technical assignments.

So, your ready to start investing. You have your high interest debts paid down (or off) and you have your emergency fund setup that can pay for 3-6 months worth of expenses.

Dollar-cost averaging is a simple concept. You invest fixed dollar amounts on a fixed time schedule regardless of price into an investment.

An example of how it is done:

Let’s say that you set aside $100 per month to invest. The market goes up and down all the time, that $100 will buy less shares when the price is high and more shares when the price is low. Using the dollar cost averaging strategy, you’ll invest that $100 regardless of what the price is so you don’t have to keep up with all the daily fluctuations of the stock market. Your investing plan will be on autopilot and will do that for you. At the end of a year, you will have purchased more shares at the lower price and fewer shares at higher prices.

The alternative plan is to have a lump sum and invest it all at the same time. By doing this you don’t get the advantages cost averaging.

No one can predict what the stock market will do. If the stock market declines throughout the year then you will end up with more shares, but they will be worth less. If the stock market goes up then you will end up with fewer shares, but they will be worth more.

Most experts recommend that if you have a lump sum to invest it as soon as possible to take advantage of the potential returns. This assumes that you have a lump sum to invest.

Dollar cost averaging will allow you to get into the market in a small way without getting killed by an extreme downturn in the market.

If you have a lump sum to invest then you can compare the two plans, but for the average person the dollar cost averaging method allows you to take advantage of a strategy that will hopefully net you great returns over the long run.

You want to retire some day and you would like to have 1 million dollars to do it. Here are some calculations of what it would take at ages 25, 35, 45 and 55 from Kiplingers Magazine.

If you start saving $286 per month at age 25, assuming an 8% average annual return, you will have $1 million by age 65. Having forty years to work with is helpful.

If your 35 and you want to reach one million by age 65 you need to save $671 per month.

If you have no savings at 45, you’ll need to accumulate $1,698 in your portfolio every month to meet this goal. If you have $50,000 set aside for retirement, your monthly contribution will be only $1,298. With $100,000, a 45 year old can likely start retirement with $1 million by saving $861 per month.

If you have no savings at age 55 then it would take $5,466 per month to reach 1 million.

Obviously, reaching this goal is more difficult the later you start. Why wait that long start as soon as you can.

See Kiplingers full article here:

Top things you should know from Money Mags Article on Retirement

1. Save as much as you can as early as you can.
2. Set realistic goals.
3. A 401(k) is one of the easiest and best ways to save for retirement.
4. An IRA also can give your savings a tax-advantaged boost.
5. Focus on your asset allocation more than on individual picks.
6. Stocks are best for long-term growth.
7. Don’t move too heavily into bonds, even in retirement.
8. Making tax-efficient withdrawals can stretch the life of your nest egg.
9. Working part-time in retirement can help in more ways than one.
10. There are other creative ways to get more mileage out of retirement assets.

See the Full Money Mags Article Here

1. Spend less money than you bring in. You might need to earn more by getting a part time job or by spending less.

2. Saving and Investing your funds. Try to put your savings on automatic. Have a portion of your pay put into savings before you even see it and you won’t miss it.

3. Invest for the long term. Put money into an index fund or let the power of compounding work for you in a money market or cd. Checkout Bankrate for interest information on money markets and cds.

4. Don’t touch the money if you don’t have to. Many people put money away and then they can’t stand to leave it alone and they have to use it for something. Put aside money for an emergency and put money aside for savings. When a problem arises use the emergency fund and let the savings grow so that you have something to retire on eventually.

Here are some things that CNN Money says you need to retire early,

CNN Retire Early

I agree with some of these like the saving, living less than large, banking your extra income from various sources like tax refunds and designing a post retirement career. The only one I have a problem with is the be aggressive in your portfolio. I prefer index funds for their stability, low expenses and solid returns.

1.Save, Save, Save

2.Live Less Than large

3.Be Aggressive with your portfolio

4.Bank Your Extra Income

5.Design a Post-Retirement Career

See my bio in the About Us Page.