Many farriers have often told me they plan to save little to nothing for retirement. The sad thing is that while we all wish we could shoe forever, one day we will all have to hang up our aprons for good. When retirement comes, don’t be left scraping by on a meager social security check. Besides, in a decade or two the money pot may all be gone anyway!
My prime investment choice currently is an IRA. This is a tax-free investment that you can cash out at age 65 tax free. The annual allowance for investing in your IRA is typically $5,500. If we look at retirement as a deposit on an annual per horse basis, it may surprise you how little it takes to save:
Annual Contribution Estimate
Monthly Contribution
Estimate
Average Horses Per Month Estimate
Estimated Daily Investment Per Horse
$5,500
$460 (x 12 months)
120
(6 head per day x 5 working days a week)
$4.00
Think about this as well, an age 35 farrier who starts investing $5,500 a month until he is 65 will have over half a million dollars for retirement (see figure below, courtesy of LPL Financial). While it may not be enough to cover every expense, it is certainly better than not having anything at all.
$4.00 a horse. . . If you feel like that is too much to invest, then maybe think about quitting the $5 Starbucks drive through habit or the $5 Big Mac lunch on the go. Investing in your future is a great way to keep you motivated. I hope that if you are not already saving for retirement, this short article will help get you started.
