4. Long-term savings
The purpose of this section is to explain the effects of saving pre-tax dollars versus after-tax dollars
and the importance of starting a savings/investment plan as soon as possible. Savings in a qualified
retirement plan is excluded from your income before you pay federal and some state income taxes.7
You should remember from the Income and Taxes part of the project that the term “qualified plan”
means that the plan qualifies for special, advantageous, tax treatment. This portion of the project focuses
on saving for retirement; however, there are savings plans for educational expenses that work similarly.
You should consider investing as much as possible in tax-advantaged retirement accounts. If you
save even a small amount each month when you first start working, your savings will accumulate to
a greater sum than is likely even if you save significantly more starting at a later date. Moreover, if
you are saving in an employer-sponsored plan, your employer may match a portion of your savings.
If at all possible, save enough to take full advantage of your employer’s match. If your employer matches
savings of up to 5 percent of your salary and you save only 3 percent, you are forfeiting 2 percent of
the employer’s money.
These employer plans are often referred by the section of the tax code that grants their tax advantages:
401(k) for for-profit entities and 403(b) for not-for-profit organizations. “Vesting” is the granting
of an employee’s right to the employer’s contributions made on his or her behalf. If your employer
matches any portion of your contribution, this amount is added to your account and you own it as
soon as you are vested (you own 100 percent of your contributions from day one). Vesting works differently
at different organizations. For example, employer contributions may vest 100 percent after
one year of employment, or these funds may vest 20 percent a year for the first five years of employment.
Several other vesting options exist; be sure that you understand your employer’s vesting program.
You should also endeavor to save in “regular” savings accounts that are not tax deductible (referred
to as non-qualified accounts). In general, you cannot withdraw money from your qualified
retirement savings account until you reach retirement age (currently age 59 ½) without paying a significant
tax penalty. Moreover, you will need other types of savings (see Section 3.1).