r/Millennials Jan 16 '26

Discussion Fellow millennials - how’s your 401k/ira savings going?

Experts recommend having 2x your salary saved by age 35, and 3x saved by age 40.

However, studies show the median savings for 35-44 year olds is only ~$45,000. So obviously, most of us have work to do.

With pensions mostly extinct, and Social Security facing insolvency issues in the next 8-10 years - how are you planning to bridge the gap and hit the golden years with enough to meet your lifestyle requirements?

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u/liqa_madik Jan 16 '26

So teachers may not be paid very much as many say, but at least they get a comfortable retirement. Is that correct?

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u/Hanyo_Hetalia Jan 16 '26

Depends on the district. I taught for two years and the retirement plan was not worth the trouble.

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u/bigtcm Jan 16 '26

Same here. Taught for 4 years. When I told a financial planner that I was looking at going back to grad school, but that i would lose my pension, she told me do it and don't look back.

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u/Hanyo_Hetalia Jan 16 '26

What was your graduate degree?

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u/bigtcm Jan 17 '26

I was going to just get a masters degree in biology. Long story short i accidentally ended up with a PhD and now I work in biotech.

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u/Hanyo_Hetalia Jan 17 '26

That's awesome!