Being divorced at 51 years after being a lifelong stay at home, Mom would make almost any person feel overwhelmed discovering how to take the financial control of his life. That is what happened to Trisha, who called Ramsey’s show when her husband left after 22 years in 2022, (1) taking her $ 130,000 in annual income with him, but leaving behind the new car that had bought her the previous month, which arrived with a monthly payment of $ 596.
Now that he has had a few years to resolve, he is looking to find a way to follow. In addition to having to keep herself, she is afraid of retirement. She told the hosts Ramsey and Jade Warshaw: “I spent my life raising children, educating at home. I basically have no retirement.”
But Ramsey says he can return to the track, even if he starts saving late. This is what you should do if you are struggling to compensate for the lost time when it comes to retirement savings.
Despite Trisha’s fear for his future, Ramsey was at ease, saying: “Your mathematics will be fine. You will get there.”
Trisha told the hosts that he had refinanced his car loan to save his money, began a second job and had $ 38,000 saved in a monetary market fund, along with $ 3,000 in another account. With this quite solid base, Ramsey recommended its 7 Baby Steps program, (2) its approach to build wealth.
These steps are:
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Save an initial emergency fund of $ 1,000
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Paying all the debt (except the mortgage)
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Saving three to six months of life expenses in an emergency fund
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Invest 15% of your home’s income
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Save for the university for your children
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Paying your home early
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Build wealth and give
Ramsey took the steps with Trisha, advising him to first pay the remaining balance in the car, which was around $ 25,000.
“Write a check today and pay the car,” he said. Although he acknowledged that this would be “very scary,” he also said that he was still $ 16,000 in savings, which was a good start to the emergency fund.
As he already has an emergency fund, his children have finished the university and rent his home instead of being the owner, Ramsey concluded that the only big thing he had left Trisha was step 4, investing 15% of his income.
She is winning $ 52,400 and has a second job that won $ 14,000 last year. It is also eligible for an employer match in its 401 (K). When executing the numbers, Ramsey felt sure that if Trisha invested 15% of his income from 51 to 70 years, he would end up with $ 600,000 to $ 800,000, even if he never received another increase.
He left it with a key advice: “You have to remain very driven by the process, motivated by mathematics and let the facts talk to you,” he advised. “You can fight against this. You can do it.”
Trisha’s fear about retirement is not unique. While 59% of Americans have a retirement account such as 401 (K) or anger, only half of them believe that their savings will be enough to live comfortably, according to a Gallup survey. (3)
And balances do not inspire much confidence. The Vanguard 2025 How America Save Saves report shows that the average retirement account for Vanguard participants was $ 148,153, but the average balance, a better reflection of typical savings, was $ 38,176. And even for those closest to retirement, the average balance was $ 95,642. (4)
That number may sound large, but under the “4%rule” “would generate less than $ 4,000 a year in retirement income. For someone like Trisha, the conclusion is clear: taking seriously the consistent investment can now be the difference between scraping and withdrawing safely.
Read more: Here are 5 simple ways to enrich themselves with real estate, whether you have $ 10 or $ 100,000 to invest
If you are late in saving for retirement, or starting from scratch as a trisha, there are concrete steps that you can take to catch up:
Determine your retirement number: a general rule is to point 10 times its final salary saved by retirement. For example, if you plan to retire, winning $ 60,000 a year, you would need about $ 600,000. Use the calculator at Investor.gov to plug your current age, expected contributions and time horizon to see what it will take.
Maximum update contributions: workers 50 years or more can contribute to $ 7,500 to 401 (K) in 2025, in addition to the standard limit of $ 23,000. IRA holders can add $ 1,000 to the annual limit of $ 7,000. These provisions are specifically designed to start late.
Investing for growth: a diversified portfolio of funds from the actions index is key to building wealth for two decades. While bonds offer security, actions provide the long -term growth that you need if it starts late.
Delaying retirement if possible: working an additional years can drastically increase your nest egg by giving your investments more time to grow, while reducing the amount of years you will need to reduce your savings.
From 51 you can feel intimidating, but as the example of Trisha shows, it is not too late. With a focused savings, intelligent investment and constant discipline, you can still build a significant retirement fund and recover control of your financial future.
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Ramsey’s show (1); Ramsey Solutions (2); Gallup (3); Vanguard (4)
This article provides only information and should not be interpreted as advice. It is provided without guarantee of any kind.
