Supercharge Your Savings in Your 40s, 50s, & 60s

Be one of a kind with Mike's Plan.

Age is just a number. Retirement is just a word, but naps, naps are eternal. Welcome back to the One of a Kind Financial Show Daily with your host, Mike Milligan. It is December 3rd, and here we are again with another segment from the One of a Kind Financial Show Daily. Let me set that up for you. Did life get in the way of saving for retirement? Many people, uh, because of things like soccer, travel soccer. My kids play travel soccer, private school tuition. My kids went to private school. And just, just financial crisis here, emergency there. Things happen, guys. You're not alone because, and most importantly, you're not out of time. Whether you're in your 40s, 50s, or even 60s, there are powerful ways to supercharge your savings and build the retirement you deserve. We talked about that on the One of a Kind Financial Show, and I wanted to share that with you on this hump day. Be one of a kind. We'll see you soon.

Let's face it, for a lot of folks, saving for retirement early wasn't Realistic. Maybe you're raising kids, paying off student loans, helping a parent, or just trying to keep your head above water. Now the retirement horizon is coming into view and it's starting to feel urgent. The good news, it's not too late, but it's time to get intentional. Today, walking through some practical, high-impact strategies to ramp up your retirement savings, even if you're starting later in the game. How about this one, Mike? Start with a rock-solid emergency fund.

Uh, before you even think about investing, you have to lock down your financial safety net. Guys, you're not going to get on a tightrope 30 feet above the air if you didn't know there was a safety net there.

Yep.

Right? And sometimes when you invest in the market, like when it's at an all-time high, that's almost like being on a tightrope. If you invest in the market when it's at a low, maybe it's down at other levels, the rope's a little bit lower, but you're going to have a safety net, guys. You want 3 to 12 months of living expenses set aside and you want that accessible. Not where you could take it to go out to dinner, but if you lose your job or your car breaks down or your air conditioning goes out, your refrigerator, right? You need to automatically, you know, you need to fly somewhere last minute because somebody passed away. You want it to be stable, right? And you want it to be there. So this may not fit all, but right, a potential option would be for some, a high-yield savings account or a money market account where it's easy to access without exposing to market risk. You're not trying to grow it. like the stock market. You're just trying to protect it and earn some interest along the way.

All right. How about maxing out your 401, especially if you're over 50, Mike? That sounds like a good idea.

Yeah. If your employer offers a retirement plan like a 401 or a 403, that's your first and most powerful tool. So you start by contributing enough to get the full employer match, because that's free money. Uh, uh, NerdWallet report reported in 2025, you could contribute up to $23,500 in your 401. And if you're 50 or older, you could do a catch-up of $7,500 additionally for a total of $31,000. And by the way, if you're between 60 and 63, there's a little above that also.

Yep.

The bottom line here is this is, uh, uh, if you're trying to play catch-up, the easiest way to do that is by maxing out that plan and using that catch-up premium.

Yeah, we talk about Roth IRAs on the show from time to time. So I guess a good idea would be open and fund a Roth IRA if you qualify, Mike?

Yeah, after maxing out your workplace match, you know, consider a Roth IRA. This offers, right, some tax diversification when you're actually withdrawing money in the future too. Roth IRAs are funded with after-tax dollars, but withdrawals in retirement are completely tax-free. That flexibility is gold in retirement. According to the IRS site, for 2005, the total contribution you could make to all of your traditional IRAs and Roth IRAs cannot exceed $7,000 or $8,000 if you're 50 and older. Heads up though, Roth IRAs have income limits. So for 2025, the phase-outs begin at $146,000 if you're single and $230,000 if you're married filing jointly. But guys, if you're over the limit, you can call us because there is a backdoor Roth strategy that is available and many people are using today.

And Mike can help you with that for sure.

And that phone number is 800-748-1838.

800-748-1838. Or text ideas to 600-700. If you're just joining us, the show is the one-of-a-kind financial show with Mike Milligan. Mike is with One Oak Financial. We thank you for joining us this holiday weekend. Great to have you along. That phone number again is 800-748-1838, or text the word ideas to 600-700. Don't overlook the triple tax advantage HSAs. We talk a lot about HSAs on the show as well, Mike. Yeah.

And I want you to hear this part first, guys. If you have a high deductible health plan, all right, if you don't, wait until Gary talks again, just run and get some coffee. But if you have, come, come back to the show then. But right now, right, if you have that plan, an HSA can be one of the best stealth retirement accounts out there. You contribute pre-tax, it grows tax-free, and you withdraw it tax-free for qualified medical expenses. According to the IRS, for tax year '25, the contribution limit for an HSA is $4,300 for individual and $8,550 for family. And if you're over 55 or older, you can add an additional $1,000, right? I mean, Gary, it's like the IRS is giving free money out for you to be able to grow and use tax-free.

It's so nice.

If you're over 65, you can use HSA funds for any expenses without penalty. You just pay income tax like a normal traditional IRA. For people who max out their 401, who max out their Roth, they need to see if an HSA has options for them to put money also.

Right. A couple of minutes left. Make sure you tackle high-interest debt hard and fast. Take care of that debt.

Man, Gary, you could— you can't invest your way out of a 20% credit card interest payment. It's impossible. In most cases, paying off high-interest debt is a guaranteed return that beats the market. For example, if your credit card charges 22% interest, paying it off is like earning a 22% return tax-free. So pay off, even if you can't pay it all off, pay off what you can and try either the debt snowball, which is the Dave Ramsey technique, or the avalanche strategy, which is the Suze Orman technique. And those 2 both build momentum. And then ultimately, very soon you will be out of credit card debt.

About a minute left. Guard against lifestyle creep. What do we mean by that, Mike?

Very simple. As your income grows, so do your expenses unless you fight it, right? Lifestyle inflation quietly eats up future earnings. So try this, uh, try to create a zero budget, a zero-based budget where every dollar is assigned a job. Uh, it goes to your bills, your debt, your savings, and even some guilt-free spending. And then control your— because if you don't control your income, it will control you.

Tell us about the One of a Kind Financial Plan, Mike. We got like 2 minutes left.

Gladly, Gary. Uh, I could— I would love to sit here and read the 176-page of the One of a Kind Financial Plan you guys chapter by chapter by chapter. But here's the thing, folks. Uh, uh, I've been doing this now for over 25 years. When you include academics, it's more than 30. And I have consistently seen over and over again, the one-size-fits-all world of Wall Street banks, insurance companies take advantage of people like you. They don't give you advice when it comes to taxes to reduce that lifetime expenses. They don't build retirement income streams. That, uh, that you will not outlive. They tell you that investments have to be managed at a certain annual fee per year. They neglect long-term care insurance by telling you it's too expensive. And they tell you to go see an attorney to build a legacy plan. Guys, that one-size-fits-all does not work in 2025 going future. You deserve to be the center of the financial plan. You deserve a one-of-a-kind financial plan. Because you live a one-of-a-kind life. Call us and we will sit down with you and you will leave our office or leave our Zoom meeting with a clear written plan for how you achieve a one-of-a-kind life.

This is your chance to benefit from the one-of-a-kind financial plan. Call right now. We have a limited number of availabilities on our calendar this week. And remember, the consultation is offered at no cost or no obligation.

That phone number is 800-748-1838, 800-748-1838, or text the word ideas to Thank you again for listening to the One of a Kind Financial Show Daily. I've been your host, Mike Milligan. If you enjoyed the segment that you just listened to, I invite you to connect with us on Amazon. Google The One of a Kind Financial Plan. It's a bestselling book in the personal tax category, and I invite you to do that. Number 2, if you feel like you need more education when it comes to your own personal financial planning, we have a course that's offered through Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia. It's offered virtually, and it's a self-paced course called Personal Financial Planning that I helped develop. And I teach. It is 6 sessions, 90 minutes each, and full of recordings for you that you can start and stop based on what you need. It goes through the psychology and philosophy of money, the cash management, budgeting, and debt management. We talk about insurance, whether it's property and casualty like your homeowners, autos, renters, to the type of insurances you work on at, or you need to replace the biggest asset you have, which is your income. Then we move over and talk about, do a real big investment dive into the difference between mutual funds and ETFs. We go all the way from crypto down to individual stocks and bonds from an academic standpoint. Then we look at retirement planning, tax planning, long-term care, and legacy. Ultimately, with the idea that you can build a one-of-a-kind financial plan for yourself. Ultimately though, what it does is it equips you with knowledge that if you're ever in a conversation with a financial advisor or a financial planner, you know the questions to ask. So I invite you to reach out to us. You can go to MikeMilligan.com under the Educate tab and see how to register for that. We also put some resources behind that on Skool.com in our private closed group where you can ask questions and learn more. As always, just remember that I am an investment advisory rep, not only with One Oak Financial, but also Advisory Alpha LLC. Ideas by Mike doing business as One Oak Financial, Mike Milligan LLC, and Advisory Alpha LLC are unaffiliated entities. And thus all opinions expressed by me and Gary On the One of a Kind Financial Show and me on the One of a Kind Financial Show Daily are purely my opinions and does not reflect investment advice. Please consult with a licensed financial professional before making any decisions. Till next time, this has been Mike Milligan.

Be one of a kind with Mike's plan. Innovation, growth, take a stand. Visibility, strategy, take the lead. Transformation's yours, fulfill the need. Mike's got the way. To help you rise and stay. Leadership impact you'll find in your one-of-a-kind mind. Be one of a kind. Take the flight. Mike's the guide, you'll shine bright.