Saving For Retirement

10 Year Countdown

To Retirement

Money

See Where You Stand - It’s time to assess how prepared, or unprepared, you are financially for retirement. • Take a quick test: Assuming your retirement is about 10 years away, you want to have roughly seven times your current salary in savings, according to research from Fidelity. That puts you on the road to having about 10 times your final salary saved by retirement and maintaining your present standard of living. Retire before hitting 67 and you’ll need more saved; after, you’ll need less. • Do a deeper dive: Plug your current numbers (such as earnings, savings and future pensions) into an online calculator to estimate your retirement income. Experts say you’ll need 75 to 80 percent of preretirement income to live well — debatable but a good starting point. • Don’t despair: You have 10 years to act, by earning more, trimming expenses or delaying retirement. “Whatever you can do can only help,” says George Papadopoulos, a financial planner in Novi, Mich.

Save the easy way

If you’re among the 82 percent of workers paid via direct deposit, save more by splitting your pay across accounts. Have your payroll department put part of each check into an online savings account, where it’s out of sight and out of mind. The direct-deposit users who split their deposits save up to $90 more per month than those who use another method to save, according to a recent study.

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AUG 21-SEP 12 | The Little Mermaid Based on the Hans Christian Andersen story and the Disney film that was produced by Howard Ashman & John Musker and written & directed by John Musker & Ron Clements. Originally Produced by Disney Theatrical Productions. For more info visit: http://bit.ly/2Txk6Vv

AUG 25 | Jazz Workshop The Bakersfield Jazz Workshop features FREE Live Jazz EVERY Tuesday Evening at Temblor Brewing Company. Featuring structured Jam Sessions and Pro Performances open for all Musicians, Vocalist and Listeners. All Ages Welcome! For more info please visit our site: bakersfieldjazzworkshop.com

SEPTEMBER SEP 06 Haggin Oaks Farmers Market Join us at Haggin Oaks Farmers Market every Sunday from 9A-2P. Enjoy fresh and organic fruits and veggies, breads, meats, salsa, tamales, yogurt, pho, and other tasty foods and snacks, including vegan options as well. Also enjoy items from crafters, and bring your cutlery for sharpening. For more info visit: http://bit.ly/38quClD

SEP 26 | 2020 Walk Like Madd & Madd Dash We walk and run to end drunk and drugged (impaired) driving. Since 2009, our community has seen at least 4,000 DUI arrests made each year, according to the Kern County District Attorney’s Office. That’s more than 11 DUI arrests per day. Sadly, many impaired drivers weren’t stopped in time, and instead caused major damage to innocent lives through DUI crashes. Bakersfield’s Walk Like MADD & MADD Dash - presented by Chain | Cohn | Stiles - is your chance to do something about drunk driving in our community. For the seventh year, Kern County will come together on Sept. 26th to proclaim, “No More Victims.” For more info visit: walklikemadd.org/bakersfield

OCTOBER OCT 1 Songwriter Series - Larry Stewart Though Larry Stewart was exposed to music early on, it was sports that initially captured his attention. After receiving a baseball scholarship to Nashville’s Belmont College, Larry, whose father had passed away from a heart condition, found music as a way to close the gap he was feeling without his dad. “In some ways, I moved to Nashville to live out my father’s dream,” admits Larry Stewart

If you already have significant savings in a 401(k), 403(b) or IRA, open a Roth IRA (in 2019 you can contribute up to $7,000 if you’re 50 or older), or put money into a regular taxable account. • Why do it? You’re laying the groundwork for lower taxes later. Say you need a new roof on your house in retirement; If you take money from a 401(k) or traditional IRA, it is taxable as ordinary income, and you may end up in a higher tax bracket, explains Carolyn McClanahan, founder of Life Planning Partners. But you can pull your contributions from a Roth IRA tax free (earnings, too, if you’re at least 59½ and have had the Roth at least five years). You can also invest via a basic taxable brokerage account; when you sell securities, you’ll pay only (usually lower) capital gains taxes on the profits.

Pay down the mortgage

The problem with a mortgage in retirement is that you may have to sell investments to cover payments. And sometimes that will be when the markets are down - the worst possible time to sell, says Shelley Giordano, chair of the Funding Longevity Task Force at the American College of Financial Services. Her advice: 1. In place of your monthly payments, make half payments every two weeks. Those 26 payments per year are the equivalent of 13 monthly payments, resulting in a faster payoff and lower total interest costs. 2. Got a tax refund? A bonus? A side job? Apply that to your principal. 3. Avoid refinancing your mortgage, since a new loan with a later payoff date means more of your monthly payment goes to interest expense, not an increase in your home equity. 4. Don’t use a home equity loan or line of credit for purchases. The new tax law makes that less attractive, says Giordano. And this is the wrong time to be growing your mortgage debt.

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of what was to become his musical destiny. “It comes from growing up in a small town where the people respected each other and looked after each other. The values I learned there pretty much shape the way I look at the world around me. bakersfieldmusichalloffame.com

OCT DAILY Bakersfield Scavenger Hunt One city in California has had its ups and downs, yet it always comes back better than ever. On this funfilled Bakersfield scavenger hunt, head straight through the heart of downtown, exploring the iconic buildings and tranquil parks. Who built the Rabobank Arena’s plaza? What feeds the river at Beach Park? Find out on this scavenger hunt of Bakersfield! You can do at any this interactive scavenger hunt at any time. Explore the art & culture & history of Bakersfield. Find out more at: http://bit.ly/39wRVLE

NOVEMBER NOV (TBA) Dia de los Muertos Expo Annual traditional Dia de Los Muertos celebration with family altars, arts, crafts, Mexican food vendors, music, costumes, face painting, family-friendly! FREE ADMISSION! A cultural event the old Mexico way. Proceeds (donations) will benefit

the construction of a new church shrine. For family altar space information, please call: 661-401-4141. Vendor booths: 661-345-5842.

NOV (TBA) Sister City Gardens Festival Join us in celebrating our city’s cultural diversity and community spirit. Explore the five Sister City Gardens and learn more about the people and cultures of Bakersfield’s current Sister Cities of Amritsar, India; Bucheon, South Korea; Cixi, China; Santiago de Queretaro, Mexico; and Wakayama, Japan. Also, learn about Bakersfield’s soon-to-be newest Sister City: Saint Jean de Luz, France—a Basque city on the Bay of Biscay. http://bit.ly/2wFg1VZ

Not sure where to invest additional money? Aim for growth, somewhere between a trip to Vegas and stuffing cash into your mattress. The sweet spot • Balanced mutual funds: Seek a mix of stocks and bonds; a 50/50 or 60/40 ratio of stocks to bonds is reasonable. • Target-date mutual funds: These balanced funds automatically adjust investments to lower risk as you age.

Conservative but sound • High-grade corporate bond funds • Money market accounts • U.S. government bond funds • Certificates of deposit and online savings accounts ( See bankrate.com for Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.–insured banks offering higher rates.) • Series I inflation-protected savings bonds (sold at treasurydirect.gov)

Work

Prepare Your Plan B - Ask yourself these questions, and be honest. 1. Do I work in a stable and growing industry? 2. Do I work for a stable and growing company? 3. Is my heart still in it? Have you answered no to any? It’s time to update your LinkedIn profile and see what else is out there. • Why do it: Only about half of workers cruise their way to a planned, voluntary retirement; the rest of us exit prematurely, often as a result of job loss or burnout. You still have time to regroup. “With 10 years to go, there is still enough runway to make a mark,” says career and retirement expert Nancy Collamer. • How to do it: You know the routine. Tell people who can help you. Sign up for job alerts on the go-to site in your industry. Browse the postings that interest you, and note the skills that employers are seeking. • Want to stay put? Get busy anyway. “Whether you drive a bus or work in a store or in a professional occupation, maximize your opportunities by building your capital,” Collamer advises. “Give talks or write articles to boost your profile, or take advantage of short-term training programs.” One option: Go to linkedin. com/learning and get online access to thousands of business, creative and technology courses for $30 per month.