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Green America's Guide to Socially Responsible Investing
America's Most Popular and Comprehensive Guide to Socially Responsible Investing
Home Make a Plan Choose a Bank Your Retirement

Guide to Socially Responsible Investing
Practical advice for investing in a better world
Discover real saving strategies that work for you
How your checking account can build healthy communities
Mutual funds that value what you care about
Plus a comprehensive directory of financial advisors and resources to get you started


Your Retirement

While Social Security’s future may be uncertain, one thing is for sure:  the best way to save for retirement is to save early and often. 

How much you decide to save depends on your goals and financial needs.  A $1 million nest egg will provide you with an income of roughly $80,000 a year for 20 years if you choose to keep the nest egg in an insured account paying 5% interest.  Keep in mind that because of inflation, $80,000 a year will buy a lot less in 20 years than it will buy today.  An inflation rate of 4% will turn that $80,000 into roughly $36,000 in today's dollars.

 

How to Retire a Millionare in a Better World

To get an idea of how your monthly savings can add up over time, look at the table below. It shows how much you need to save each month to reach three different nest egg goals. Using this chart is simple:

  1. Decide on a nest egg goal from the chart below.
  2. Subtract your current age from the age at which you plan to retire. That's your "years to retirement."
  3. Find your "years to retirement" in the first column.
  4. Then look in the column to the right that corresponds to your nest egg goal. The number you see there is how much you need to be saving each month to reach your goal.
Monthly Retirement Savings Chart

 

Nest Egg Goal

Years to
Retirement

$ 2,000,000

$ 1,000,000

$ 500,000

65 (newborn)

$15.30

$7.65

$3.82

60

$26.39

$13.20

$6.60

55

$45.57

$22.78

$11.39

50

$78.73

$39.37

$19.68

45

$136.21

$68.11

$34.05

40

$236.19

$118.10

$59.05

35

$411.20

$205.60

$102.80

30

$720.94

$360.47

$180.24

25

$1,280.01

$640.00

$320.00

20

$2,325.76

$1,162.88

$581.44

15

$4,419.18

$2,209.59

$1,104.80

10

$9,243.43

$4,621.71

$2,310.86

5

$25,184.99

$12,592.50

$6,296.25

This table assumes that you put your money into a tax-free retirement account that will average 10.95% annually, the long-term historical average for the stock market (a taxable account will require larger contributions). Note that the earlier you start, the less you have to put away.

 

Chances are you have some savings for retirement. Use this chart to gauge the future value of your investment.

 

Growth of your Current Nest Egg Account

 

Size of Retirement Account Today

Years to
Retirement

$10,000

$50,000

$100,000

10

$28,267

$141,333

$282,666

15

$47,524

$237,618

$475,236

20

$79,900

$399,499

$798,999

25

$134,333

$671,665

$1,343,330

30

$225,850

$1,129,248

$2,258,495

35

$379,713

$1,898,566

$3,797,132

40

$638,399

$3,191,995

$6,383,991

 

Choose socially responsible banks, money markets, and mutual funds if you want to build personal security and help steer society toward a better future. The good news is that more than 80% of the social investment funds tracked by the Social Investment Forum achieve the historic stock market average or better.

 

Learn More

To get more information on how you can save for a secure retirement while building a better world, join Green America today. You'll receive our members-only social investment guide, Green America's Guide to Socially Responsible Investing, which contains detailed planning worksheets and a directory of hundreds of social investment resources.

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