Save my 401(k)! : what you can do now to rebuild your retirement future

Easy-to-follow action plans for reversing retirement investment losses and rebuilding wealth for the future Save My 401(k)! provides critical care to stop the hemorrhaging of your nest-egg dollars, stabilize assets, and rebuild wealth for the future. The book's assessment tools help you pinpoint the best approaches for achieving long-term goals while being able to customize your 401(k) game plan for future times of economic uncertainty. A "Putting It All Together" section at the end of the book gets readers ready to hit the ground running with checklists and other tools for confident, winning retirement investing. Contents 4 Preface 10 Acknowledgments 12 Part 1 Understanding Your Plan 14 Chapter 1 Getting to Know Your 401(k) 16 How 401(k)s Work 18 The Economy and Your Future 19 What’s in Your Plan? 20 401(k) Advantages and Disadvantages 23 Rolling Over Retirement Accounts 26 Replacing a 401(k) with an IRA 28 Chapter 2 Investment Options 36 What Are Your Options? 36 Option Fees 37 Where Funds Fit In 38 Option Categories 40 What Is Your Risk Tolerance Level? 43 Diversifying Your Investments 49 Choosing Your Options 50 What to Watch Out For 54 Chapter 3 Know Where You’re Going 58 Determining How Much You’ll Need 59 Getting Advice 62 Setting Retirement Goals 64 Boomer Retirement Strategies 65 Generation X Retirement Strategies 66 Generation Y Retirement Strategies 68 Retiring Home Free 68 What to Watch Out For 71 Part 2 Investing for Retirement 74 Chapter 4 Finding the Money You’ll Need 76 Where to Look 76 Spend Less 80 Create a Savings Goal 81 Get Rid of Debt 82 Set Up a Budget 84 Earn Extra Money 86 Chapter 5 Making Good Investments 90 Timing the Market 92 Using Online Tools 98 Separating Winners from Losers 102 Assessing the Risk-Reward Relationship 104 Tracking Your Investments 106 Using Brokers 107 What to Watch Out For 110 Chapter 6 Investing in Stock Funds and Bond Funds 114 Stock Fund Basics 115 Why Invest in Stock Funds? 116 Making Money in Stock Funds 117 Bond Fund Basics 118 Why Invest in Bond Funds? 120 Making Money in Bond Funds 121 Where to Find Quality Funds 125 Chapter 7 Investing in Index Funds 130 Index Fund Basics 131 Exchange Traded Fund Basics 132 Target-Date Index Fund Basics 133 Why Invest in Index Funds? 135 How to Find Quality Funds 135 Automatic Investing in Funds 139 Expense Ratios and Fees 140 Part 3 Managing Your Retirement 144 Chapter 8 Getting Ready to Retire 146 What to Do Right Away 147 Decide When to Activate Social Security 149 Sign Up for Medicare 151 Minimize Your Taxes 153 Estimate Your Cash Flow 155 Reallocate Your Assets 157 Deal with Inflation 158 Make Hard Choices 160 Chapter 9 Making Your Money Last 164 A Lifetime of Money 165 Check Your Investment Mix Appreciation 166 Asset Alternatives 168 Annuity Options 174 Reverse Mortgage Options 175 Returning to Work Options 177 Chapter 10 Setting Up Your Estate Plan 180 What’s an Estate Plan? 180 The Difference Between Wills and Living Trusts 182 Setting Up Wills and Living Trusts 184 Preparing Your Own Will 186 Selecting Beneficiaries 188 Power of Attorney and Health Care Directives 190 Estate Tax Considerations 191 Part 4 Putting it All Together 194 Chapter 11 Applying Everything You’ve Learned 198 More Big Changes Are Out There 199 Know Where You’ve Been 200 Know Where You’re Going 202 Know How to Get There 202 Know What to Do When You Get There 203 Have a Good Journey 205 Glossary 208 Online Resources 212 Index 218 A 218 B 218 C 218 D 219 E 219 F 220 G 220 H 220 I 220 K 221 L 221 M 221 N 222 O 222 P 222 R 222 S 222 T 223 V 223 W 223 Z 223 007173631X,9780071736312

This book shows you how to recover your losses-and rebuild your future.

Like millions of Americans, you watched helplessly as the economy plummeted-and took with it a large chunk of your 401(k) plan. And now you wonder if you'll ever regain your losses. Here's the good news: You can, and will, rebuild your 401(K) savings with this step-by-step action plan from renowned retirement finance expert, David Rye. Learn how to:

Recover the money you've lost

Reassess your 401(k) options

Reverse the downward spiral

Rebuild your savings for life!

Whether you're financially savvy or a complete novice, this easy-to-follow, user-friendly guide helps you customize a 401(k) plan to meet your individual needs. Plus, Save My 401(k)! also features special tax-saving tips and need-to-know information on employer contribution rates, IRA rollovers, and a whole range of investment options. It's all you need to grab ahold of the wheel of your 401(k)-and get back on the road toward a secure financial future.

Offers easy-to-follow action plans for reversing retirement investment losses and rebuilding wealth for the future. This book features assessment tools which help you pinpoint the best approaches for achieving long-term goals while being able to customize your 401(k) game plan for the times of economic uncertainty. Outlines a step-by-step plan for rebuilding a 401(k), discussing investment options, getting rid of debt, timing the market, stock and bond funds, asset alternatives, setting up an estate plan, and other related topics