![]() |
![]() |
||
So you're fresh out of school and saddled with school debt. You found a decent job. You think you can save some money to invest but it may only be $75 a month. Should you bother investing it, or wait until you can invest more?
You say to yourself, "Yeah, but we're only talking about $75 a month. That's not going to make a big difference." Answer: Check out the chart.
Since the turn of the century, stocks have returned an average of 11% return a year. The chart assumes you're investing $75 a month and getting an 8% annual return. The red bars show what that will turn into over 40 years. If you wait just 10 years and start investing with $100 a month, the blue bars show what you will have. In fact, if you wait 10 years before investing, you would have to contribute $175 a month to catch up to the amount you would have if you invested today with just $75 a month.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]