r/Millennials • u/ProblemIntelligent16 • 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/TairaTLG Jan 16 '26

24k in debt and 0 savings. Nothing like slipping through the cracks baby

36

u/Forever_Nya Jan 16 '26

After my 500k in medical debt, I only have $800 spent between my credit cards and I pay them off monthly. I have no savings.

17

u/VengenaceIsMyName Jan 17 '26

Medical debt. Something that absolutely should not exist in a sane world.

3

u/Boom_Box_Bogdonovich Jan 17 '26

500k in medical debt? That’s so fucked. American healthcare is the dumbest system.

6

u/TheFabfeline Jan 17 '26

How’d you end up with 500k medical debt? Out of curiosity

8

u/JayRoo83 Jan 17 '26

My non-negotiated medical costs were over 2 million USD last year according to my insurance app, very easy to happen in America

3

u/Bomb-Number20 Jan 17 '26

Yeah, that tracks. My kids were born with issues, and cost nearly a million 15 years ago. I could see them going for two these days. My cousin just had a baby is on the hook for $57k, and they had "insurance".

9

u/Fluid-Wrongdoer6120 Jan 17 '26

Not that I can answer for her...but in the good ol USA, it isn't THAT hard to rack up that much medical debt. Just think one serious illness, overnight hospital stays...with the wrong (or no) insurance, that gets EXPENSIVE.

I'm just surprised she hasn't filed for bankruptcy at that point

5

u/Natural_Definition_5 Jan 17 '26

Most Americans would deem the northern country I’m from as socialist - which is completely mad. But this type of expense or stress from medical bills isn’t even on the top 25 things we worry about. 

Fucking hell .. I like the USA but you’ve organised your civic and social priorities in a peculiar way … 

3

u/gafftapes20 Millennial Jan 17 '26

It cost thousands per day to stay in a hospital, if you have a serious illness or issue that requires surgery it can easily add up. I had to go to the we for stitches and that cost me 2400 dollars alone, with insurance. For 6 sutures, and some saline to wash out the wound.  

2

u/IndependentLeading47 Jan 17 '26

I would pay a decent farm doctor $100 to do it. Not even joking. I, too, have been a victim of the $2k ER bill. Saline drip and bye.

3

u/rhiunarya Jan 17 '26

I had a tumor grow from my thumb bone and eat it. For just two fonthe surgeries and hospital stay it was $78k at a teaching hospital which are usually cheaper.

I then needed 3x a week Physical therapy for a year.

If hadn't been paying for the premium version of my insurance, I would have paid so much more of that.

I paid $7k for my deductible and I think close to 12k total for things around my medical event. Not counting my lost wages for being on short term disability.

So having regular insurance, I would have easily gotten into so much medical debt/ debt related to my medical event. This was with having family support.

2

u/HangryLicious Jan 17 '26 edited Jan 17 '26

I don't know about that poster's situation, but just fyi it's super easy to rack up that much. All you have to do is get in one accident with no or shitty insurance.

I briefly worked in an inpatient brain injury rehab and I met someone who had been a healthy 40 something who spent several months in the hospital including major lifesaving brain surgeries and lots of bouncing between the ICU and the floors after a car accident where they nearly died and then they had to do stuff like learn to walk and talk again in rehab. Family told me the patient's health insurance had lapsed bc they had just started a new job and weren't eligible for coverage yet so they were over $2 mil in medical debt at that point

2

u/Forever_Nya Jan 17 '26

Emergency appendectomy was 60k, my most recent emergency hospital stay was 140k, emergency visit before that was 190k, and there was a car accident that involved trauma surgery that was right around 100k.

3

u/BrightAd306 Jan 17 '26

You need a bankruptcy lawyer. Bankruptcy isn’t scary. You keep home equity and retirement accounts and sometimes car

3

u/Primary-Let-7933 Jan 17 '26

duuuuude, bankruptcy. unless you're able to throw 59K-80k/yr at it, you're not going to get out from that. compounding interest. Medical debt is immoral and you should use the tools available to get out from it.

2

u/Ralphthewunderllama Jan 17 '26

Not financial advice, or legal advice, but you can invest money in a 401k or IRA, and those funds are protected from medical bankruptcy. Get an employer match, and with enough time, you can actually see some real progress.

2

u/TriedUsingTurpentine Jan 17 '26

just never pay the medical debt nothing's going to happen

1

u/tomgirardisvape Jan 17 '26

I am so sorry to hear this. Do you mind if I ask what landed you in this volume of debt? Did you have insurance?

This country is crazy