'Start As Soon As You Possibly Can:' Tips To Make Sure You're Saving For Retirement

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - It's the last thing most of us think about - but it should be a priority.

That's what CBS News Senior Business Analyst Jill Schlesinger says about saving for retirement.

It's really hard to think about when you're under 45-years-old but she said it should be on the list when you get your first paycheck.

"The easiest way to reach your retirement goals is to start as soon as you possibly can," she said. "Fund retirement to the maximum of your ability."

One of her biggest suggestions is as you pay off debts such as student loans, credit cards, and more, is to also put money aside for retirement.

"Putting into your retirement plan to the whatever your employer matches, or maybe you put in five or 6-percent, whatever you can do," she explained.

If you can do that from a young age, you'll find you can accumulate retirement saving faster than you'd imagine, and if you're already over 40, it isn't too late.

"You really want to try to take advantage of everything that's available to you what we know from lots and lots of research is that people who have retirement plans through work are more apt to save for retirement than those who don't," Schlesinger said.

But what if your job doesn't have that option?

"It can be daunting if you don't have the retirement plan, but it's easier than ever to invest on your own," she said. "You go to a big investment house, you go to Vanguard or fidelity or Schwab, and you say take $100 200 $300 every single month out of my account and put it into that IRA account."

She said to try to keep your hands off the retirement fund, and some plans let you borrow against the money, but she said that's a bad idea because withdrawing it early has serious tax consequences.

So, how much do you need for your retirement fund?

Some places say 10 times your annual income, but according to Schlesinger, that's an arbitrary answer.

She said that everyone is different, factors such as how much money do you spend in a year and when you plan to retire, so she said to try to time your retirement to the Social Security retirement age.

That is unless you're saving a bunch of money and can go earlier.