Why Can't Americans Save a Dime?

[canadalaura 0]

In regards to savings - I want to set aside a portion of our savings for long-term investments... not a huge amount say maybe $100/month for now. Would a roth IRA be a good idea or is it too limiting in when you can withdraw the cash without it being taxable... or since we're so young should we look at higher-risk investments.... it's not a whole lot to save per month so I don't really want to lose a big chunk to an investment planner - but to be honest I don't know too much about US investments - I'm still new here - and not even a PR yet, if that matters.-

[pedroh 21]

we have a savings account.. a little short now cuz we paid the tickets to Mexico in summer.. my wife has very good credit... the only debt we have is car payments.. she has 1 credit card.. I have an American Express, which I'd recommend for someone starting credit, because its not a credit card, its a (aghh, there's a name for it).. well if u use 200 bucks u have to pay 200 bucks.. there's no minimum payment option for AMEX the 1st year.. after that I got a visa with 300 bucks limit (havent asked for more).. she has her state retirement plan thingie and I have my 401k... plan to get more income into savings after we pay all the debt from xmas gifts lol..

[Satisfaction 1]

I've read this many times. According to the latest data, Americans save as little as 40 cents for every $100 of disposable income!!… Europeans and even Chinese households save more.

This is what happens when one is manipulated into thinking that spending goes along with the sky is the limit. Just look around you: do people really need to drive SUV’s, have a television set in each bedroom and buy a 5 bedroom's house? No wonder they cannot save anything. Some of the reasons are bad credit habits, but also some unscrupulous lenders’ tendency to give away money to people who would otherwise not qualify, combined with the inaction or complicity of regulators and lawmakers. On the other end, reverting the trend and starting to save will eventually lead to a severe recession. Go figure...

[LenJayUS 0]

In regards to savings - I want to set aside a portion of our savings for long-term investments... not a huge amount say maybe $100/month for now. Would a roth IRA be a good idea or is it too limiting in when you can withdraw the cash without it being taxable... or since we're so young should we look at higher-risk investments.... it's not a whole lot to save per month so I don't really want to lose a big chunk to an investment planner - but to be honest I don't know too much about US investments - I'm still new here - and not even a PR yet, if that matters.-

Which kind of IRA that would do you guys the best depends on many factors... we couldn't hope to be able to give you the best advice. To compare the two kinds, check this out... http://www.statefarm.com/lifevents/recompar.htm

The traditional gives you a tax break on your Income Tax... but for me that wouldn't matter... I end up with 0 taxable income anyway.

As far as you being able to get one, it would be best to check with a bank or broker... I THINK that if you have a SSN, then you can do it... but I'm not positive.

[Cassie 8]

One of the things Jerry and I have realized in the last year while trying to reduce our debt (mostly my student loan, ugh) is the amount of stuff we have kept around the house -- and it really and truly is just "stuff". Cutting down on purchasing more stuff, and yardselling/donating a lot of it has cleaned up our house and made us much happier. And no more purchases on credit, unless we have the means to pay it off ASAP.

[KarenCee 3]

I have credit card debt...from a time when I didnt know what else to do. My ex didnt pay any child support for 14 months...I had to survive somehow. I'm sure someone will pipe up and say 'surely there was another alternative'...well, i checked...there wasnt anything out there for a single mom who's divorce wasn't completely final at the time. I've almost got it paid off...less than 5K. Thank god! All I have now is a car payment, other than my CC debt. I'm gettin' there too...and my ex didn't defeat me the way he thought he would.

[canadalaura 0]

In regards to savings - I want to set aside a portion of our savings for long-term investments... not a huge amount say maybe $100/month for now. Would a roth IRA be a good idea or is it too limiting in when you can withdraw the cash without it being taxable... or since we're so young should we look at higher-risk investments.... it's not a whole lot to save per month so I don't really want to lose a big chunk to an investment planner - but to be honest I don't know too much about US investments - I'm still new here - and not even a PR yet, if that matters.-

Which kind of IRA that would do you guys the best depends on many factors... we couldn't hope to be able to give you the best advice. To compare the two kinds, check this out... http://www.statefarm.com/lifevents/recompar.htm

The traditional gives you a tax break on your Income Tax... but for me that wouldn't matter... I end up with 0 taxable income anyway.

As far as you being able to get one, it would be best to check with a bank or broker... I THINK that if you have a SSN, then you can do it... but I'm not positive.

Thanks... I've pretty much got it narrowed down to a Roth IRA... just need to speak with the bank, I guess!

Thanks for that comparison link, too - really useful!

[britbird 4]

Roth IRA's are cool - and it's well to use them now while they are still available - they probably won't continue to be around for much longer as they are such a good deal. Basically you pay money into them that you've already been taxed on, and later on the money you make on them will be untaxed...you're basically getting money for nothing.

The other good thing is that for things like house purchases you can remove money from your IRA without penalty.

Me and my husband got a couple earlier this month...you and your husband can put in $4K each per year at the moment.

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

...

[Autumnal 25]

I know about savings -- but we're not smart savers, oh no. Putting aside 10% of your paycheque just doesn't happen. Student loans are murder on my husband, and after being in a fairly rough spot where he couldn't pay them and never asked for a deferral.... Interest is a lesson that I'm grimacing at rather unhappily at the moment.

Lessons are learned hard, and there aren't many places where you can really find free advice from people. For my schools, all through high school/university, there were no real opportunities to take classes unless you were in the business line.

[chocolaterie 0]

I agree, it has a lot to do with immigration. My hubby supported me for about 2 years because I didn't have a SSN and I refused to work under the table. Neither of us have a credit card either.

[Marilyn. 340]

hubby has a couple of credit cards but we make sure that when we use it (which isn't often) we pay it off as soon as possible....

We are trying to save up some money and it is going ok... we have a 401K that is doing nicely plus every pay check a portion of it is automatically deposited into our savings account

we are trying to pay off our car quickly, we just have a few months left.... taxes came in handy this year, we paid off a good chunk of the car debt ... plus hubby had a few old bills he cleared up too .... he is trying to clean up his credit...

[rejane 1]

Saving s on the good way for us... since we do not have to pay anymore immigration fees for a while....