What percentage do you give to TSP?

What percentage do you give to TSP?

  • less than 10%

    Votes: 13 18.1%
  • 10% or 11%

    Votes: 12 16.7%
  • 12%

    Votes: 4 5.6%
  • 13%

    Votes: 3 4.2%
  • 14%

    Votes: 3 4.2%
  • 15%

    Votes: 11 15.3%
  • I max out the $15,500

    Votes: 26 36.1%

  • Total voters
    72

Pill

Member
I am curious to see what the majority give? I have read several times to cover the basics give 10% and to retire comfortable give 15% and to retire early give 20%. Of course giving $15,500 the max is the goal but most like me can't afford. I currently give 11% but aim for 15%. Circumstances have prevented me from giving 15% but will be back on track by January 1st. Thanks for your input.
 
Obviously everyone should put in 5% to get the matching regardless of one's situations. As one's account grows, an increased return will overshadow the few hundred dollars every two tweeks. Of course, every percentage increase, reduces you adjusted gross income, so it helps there as well.
 
I do the $15,500 plus the $5,000, but then I only have 6 more years theoretically.

I've made the decision not to withdraw from TSP, though, until the mandatory age.

GGAL
 
Of course, every percentage increase, reduces you adjusted gross income, so it helps there as well.

I made a spreadsheet for that exact purpose. It calculates all my deductions - TSP, health, Fed Tax, NY State Tax, NYC Tax, Social Security, Medicare, misc deductions, etc. It also calculates all the pay (Night Dif, Sunday pay, overtime, holiday). I used the spreadsheet to see how much my paycheck would change when I adjusted my TSP allocation (I can put in a dollar amount or a percentage) or if I changed my marital status or deductions. It's become a little popular spreadsheet at work. It gets our paycheck almost perfectly correct. It gets screwed up by a few cents or dollars when we get overtime. For some reason, overtime pay is at least time and a half, but always a little more.

I made the spreadsheet for New York residents, but I guess it could easily be adjusted for any state. I'll have to upload it and share it here if anybody cares.
 
Well my check is sad in comparison. I'm was putting 9 percent but do to a decent raise i'm putting all of it in there so that bumped up my percentage to 18% But unfortunately it doesn't get me the 15,500 a year. Maybe one day.
 
Earlier this year I was contributing $15,500. But when my wife lost her job and we found out she is pregnant with our first, I rolled it back to 5%. This upcoming paycheck is my first at GS13 and Im looking to increase my contributions again, although Im leaning towards going to a Roth instead of TSP. Ive run the numbers and the Roth makes more sense to me since Ive got 30 years until retirement.
 
You can't control the amount each fund will go up or down per year. You can't know which fund will do the best on any given year. The only thing you can control for sure is the amount you put in.

I've always put in the max but due to life circumstances have sometimes had to lower it for a few years. Then with each raise I'll bump it up a percentage or two until I get back to the max.
 
I agree that one should put at least 10% away for retirement. I used to put 10% in TSP when that was the limit. I currently put 5% in TSP, 5% in other accounts and about 10% in real estate.
 
Thanks for answering the poll and your responses.

My goal has always been to give more than 10% and max out a ROTH IRA each year. However married life and all the doodads (stuff) I haven’t been able to max out mine or my wife’s ROTH IRA this past year. Hopefully within a few years I will be able to get back to maxing out the Roth's. I believe that will be enough for me at retirement. I sure would like to max out TSP however I would have to give 30+%. I am a GS6 firefighter making 56K. Its saddens me seeing how little it is that I contribute compared to the bunch. However finding this site has been a huge blessing and great way to search information and measure my plans with others.

Thanks guys!
 
I agree that one should put at least 10% away for retirement.

Does this rule include the government match? Does my contributing 5% plus the government's 5% match equate to putting "at least 10% away for retirement"?

Or is it just a truism to remind people to save.

(Obv the % contribution that the poll is asking is a stronger function of your pay grade than it is the amount of your contribution. Perhaps the question should be what is your yearly TSP contribution amount for more a more "true" measure.)
 
Does this rule include the government match? Does my contributing 5% plus the government's 5% match equate to putting "at least 10% away for retirement"?
Or is it just a truism to remind people to save.

I am assuming that the percentage which the others have stated would be the actual amount of the deduction from their pay which they are personally contributing. I know that if I contribute 5%, I get another matching 5% added to that, totalling 10% per contribution. Any percentage points above the first 5% receive no matching.
 
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Does this rule include the government match? Does my contributing 5% plus the government's 5% match equate to putting "at least 10% away for retirement"?
Or is it just a truism to remind people to save.

I am assuming that the percentage which the others have stated would be the actual amount of the deduction from their pay which they are personally contributing. I know that if I contribute 5%, I get another matching 5% added to that, totalling 10% per contribution. Any percentage points above the first 5% receive no matching.

budnipper,

I was asking specifically about the adage that you should save 10% for retirement. Is that recommending you make a 10% contribution every pay period (which would then add another 5% in government match) or would contributing 5% plus the 5% government match suffice that adage.

Probably way too much thought for an old saying... :)
 
budnipper,

I was asking specifically about the adage that you should save 10% for retirement. Is that recommending you make a 10% contribution every pay period (which would then add another 5% in government match) or would contributing 5% plus the 5% government match suffice that adage.

Probably way too much thought for an old saying... :)

Sorry that I misunderstood your question. I really don't know who first decided that 10% was the magic number. I just googled that phrase and came up with this article:
http://money.cnn.com/2007/04/24/pf/retirement/longview_may.moneymag/index.htm
 
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