What's a lot of savings to have for 40 year old

3 the square

Just wondering what do people think is a lot of money to have in a savings account or similar ??

me_irl

One million euros... mwahawhawhawwwwww.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Depends on circumstances. Family, children, earnings, debts, housing, pension etc.

Barry Badrinath

8

uck51js9zml2yt

Fiver!

Ferrari3600

Can you spare any change bud

bmwguy

No answer to this. Depends on a huge amount of things. I have a friend mid 30s for example he would have had a lot put away and had a decent bank balance but he recently bought a new bigger house and hasn't a pot to piss in now.

Everyone should be putting money away towards retirement though a 40 year old today will not get a state pension until 68 which is too old in my opinion to have to work full time. 60 and I'll retire.

spacetweek

3 the square wrote: »

Just wondering what do people think is a lot of money to have in a savings account or similar ??

I'm a few years away from 40. I won't say the exact amount but I have more than 30k and less than 70k in savings. But I invested a lot last year and put a lump sum into my pension.

I think anything more than 20k is probably a lot.

me_irl

Senor Fancy Pants wrote: »

8

Thaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat's Numberwang!

Bonzo Delaney

Three fiddy

Your Face

Oooooo - savings account.

Well excuse me, Louis XIV.

bmwguy

spacetweek wrote: »

I'm a few years away from 40. I won't say the exact amount but I have more than 30k and less than 70k in savings. But I invested a lot last year and put a lump sum into my pension.

I think anything more than 20k is probably a lot.

Would you own a property at the moment? It's a nice whack if you own a house

Hande hoche!

42,000.

spacetweek

bmwguy wrote: »

Would you own a property at the moment? It's a nice whack if you own a house

We inherited our house.

stimpson

At least 6 months salary.

The Backwards Man

If you have enough for a good week in Vegas that's plenty

Dirty Dingus McGee

46 million euro.

bmwguy

spacetweek wrote: »

We inherited our house.

Frees up a nice bit of cash to give you plenty of options so, could build a nice lifestyle.

osarusan

I have 9 cigarettes in a box.

For a rainy day.

smelly sock

I have 8 grand save but have debts of 190k. I'm 32.

clairewithani

I regularly have no money for the last 3 days before payday.

Permabear

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smelly sock

Permabear wrote: »

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What's wrong with having a lot of money in a savings account?

Arghus

smelly sock wrote: »

What's wrong with having a lot of money in a savings account?

I think the implication is you should give it to some financial guru so he can work his magic...

Permabear

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Senna

Hold on, I'll check down the back of the sofa

jimbobaloobob

What would you suggest is done with it? Permabear

Permabear

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Vex Willems

Permabear wrote: »

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Now, I'm no expert on finances, and I know you work in that field but surely it's better in a savings account earning nothing than taking bad advice and putting it in a pension and potentially lose it all as many people have or in bad investments.

I'm sure you could advise better but when lots of people have been caught out surely you can understand why people would leave it as is.

cartman555

Vex Willems wrote: »

Now, I'm no expert on finances, and I know you work in that field but surely it's better in a savings account earning nothing than taking bad advice and putting it in a pension and potentially lose it all as many people have or in bad investments.

I'm sure you could advise better but when lots of people have been caught out surely you can understand why people would leave it as is.

Fully agree here unless the risk is small.

Permabear

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Odyssey 2005

79k ..

Arcade_Tryer

It depends, not only on the amount, but also on people's preference for saving.

A lot is probably in and around 150-200k.

For people who place little value on savings, that might seem a massive amount. But it's not really.

GirlOutWest

Ye do know, ya can't take it with ya when ya go...........only saying

tomwaterford

Permabear wrote: »

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What about all those who lost massively in stock markets 07-08??

Would they been better to keep it in a savings account??

smelly sock

Permabear wrote: »

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Surely better to have say 10k safe rather than gamble with it.

Wanderer78

tomwaterford wrote:

What about all those who lost massively in stock markets 07-08??

smelly sock wrote:

Surely better to have say 10k safe rather than gamble with it.

Oh I suspect there's another big bang on the way, I'd be extremely careful where I'd be putting my earnings. By all means invest a bit, but don't have it all in one basket, and be prepared to lose it if investing, it is after all a method of gambling which can go either way

m5ex9oqjawdg2i

Arcade_Tryer wrote: »

It depends, not only on the amount, but also on people's preference for saving.

A lot is probably in and around 150-200k.

For people who place little value on savings, that might seem a massive amount. But it's not really.

That's a colossal amount for saving, if you have assets and don't have any dependents. You want enough to get you through hard times and this amount would last some people 10+ years.

Nody

tomwaterford wrote: »

What about all those who lost massively in stock markets 07-08??

Would they been better to keep it in a savings account??

If they did not panic and sell it all they would have a profit close to 100% today (using a standard index S&P 500 fund such as Vanguard) and that's assuming they bought at the high point before the crash in the first place. Time in market has a tendency to do wonders for you as long as you don't think you are the next Soroz and buy cheap large index funds and leave them be no matter if the market goes up or down (timing the market is the best way to lose money).

Parchment

Everyones life is different - there is no figure that is appropriate or even " a lot", its all relative.

AlanG

4-6 months take home pay would be a minimum. A lot of savings would depend on what you are saving for and if you have a mortgage or not.

Wildcard7

Arcade_Tryer wrote: »

A lot is probably in and around 150-200k.

For people who place little value on savings, that might seem a massive amount. But it's not really.

Actually it's not only "people who place little value on savings" who this seems a massive amount for, but also "people who are not the top 10% earners". I can relate to what you're saying, because before we moved to Ireland we both had jobs that earned close to 100k pa, and it was astonishing how much we managed to save in just 2 years when we stopped buying anything we didn't absolutely need so we could afford the move and a deposit for a house. If you have a lot of disposable income then switching into "saving money mode" can make a huge difference.

But lots of people don't have a lot of disposable income. The average yearly income in Ireland is around 36k. Assuming optimal conditions (two adults, no kids) that's 72k a household. Before taxes. Saving every penny it would still take you a decade to save 200k. Longer if you're planning to buy a house during that time, or you have a big expense that you can't avoid (car blowing up, loss of income as a self employed person, ...). Even longer if you have kids, live alone, or one of you is working half time or for minimum wage.

IMHO savings of over 50% yearly income is not "a lot", but "too much". 150-200k is way above that, unless we're talking about someone who earns 200k in a year.

Patser

Hande hoche! wrote: »

42,000.

The rich man's answer to everything?

Permabear

Permabear wrote: »

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It might even ear maked for a house deposit for example which means you don't want tying it up in an investment or taking any risk with it? This could mean leaving it in a saving account for many years as if you aren't sure when you are going to buy you never know when you need the money. Something like having it in a pension as you suggested would be worse again as if I'm correct that money is essentially gone till you retire and you might want your savings for various different things through out your life. Pensions are also risky and if you already pay into one wouldn't you be much better investing in things you can cash in on in more reasonable time frames?

I do understand that investing it will make more money on it but for some having quick access is important.

Permabear

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Pac1Man

GirlOutWest wrote: »

Ye do know, ya can't take it with ya when ya go...........only saying

I wish I could share this viewpoint. I always prepare for the absolute worst.

super_furry

About three fiddy.

valoren

tomwaterford wrote: »

What about all those who lost massively in stock markets 07-08??

Would they been better to keep it in a savings account??

Stock market. The only 'shop' in the world where when there is a sale people run screaming out of the shop.

While some will look at the stock market as something akin to a casino, where 4 letter stock symbols are seen as lottery tickets, the reality is that it is nothing more than a facility provided to allow you to own a share of a business.

Here in Ireland we don't have an investors mindset. We don't even have something as basic as an ISA, which they have in the UK.

A whole generation got swept up in the telecom eircom float for example. The majority got burned on that 'sure thing'. I remember our Accounting teacher in secondary giving an impassioned speech about how our parents should invest. Ever since it seems to me that mention of the 'stock market' induces a special kind of fear in people of that generation. People got greedy, invested a lot more that they should have and got burned. The same happened with people whose pensions held bank stocks aka sure things, during the bubble and the subsequent crash. When markets drop, we see headlines such as Black Monday, CRASH! etc which reinforces that fear, the belief that the whole stock market is only a scam and a dangerous place.

Permabear

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bmwguy

tomwaterford wrote: »

What about all those who lost massively in stock markets 07-08??

Would they been better to keep it in a savings account??

My pension fund lost about 25% of its value in 2008 it was a scary time but gained it back in 2009/2010 and has grown ever since averaging 6% since inception even taking 2008 into account. Put this in perspective, paying into a pension since I left university and the fund is now made up of 60% what I put into it and 40% from growth.

And of the 60% I put into that, 40% was from tax relief.

So 36% from me, 24% tax relief and 40% from growth

Ush1

Permabear wrote: »

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It all depends on the stock of course.

If you invest in a startup that goes pop, moneys gone, no matter how long you wait around.

Didn't it happen to all the investors in Eddie Hobbs property investment group?