Many Iowans likely made New Year’s resolutions that involve doing a better job of saving money. The head of a financial services organization says everyone, regardless of age, needs to invest for retirement. Steve Bartlett is president & CEO of The Financial Services Roundtable, which has several Iowa members. Bartlett says even young people just starting their careers need to save for their golden years.
Bartlett says, “If you’re 18 years old and you have a 401K and if all you do is have that 401K for the next four years, you’ll have a significant investment account by the time you retire.” Iowa members in the Roundtable include: Aviva U.S.A. in Des Moines, John Deere Financial Services of Johnston and Principal Financial Group in Des Moines.
For those who want to do more investing, Bartlett says it’s important to identify your risk tolerance. “Talk with a financial advisor about it,” he says. “Literally, all of these companies will help you categorize whether you’re an aggressive investor or a conservative investor, and then put you into the appropriate investments based on that.”
Before starting to invest, Bartlett says it would help to have a financial goal in mind regarding investments. “Start small if you want to,” he says. “Start at $25 a month or $50 a month and it will pay big dividends when you do retire if you invest it.” If you do start small, he says, try to increase the amount invested every year.