Now or Later!

Later starts now

It is the classic dilemma - now or later! Should you spend now or later? Should you buy now or later? Should you save now or later? The now is here and later is after all, later.

There is no dearth of temptations that entice you to indulge now. Buy now and pay later is a common strategy. Buy now and only pay $$/month is another strategy. Defer your payments. Pay only the minimum. In other words - don't worry about the money, just buy it - now!

Instant gratification is high on the list, spending responsibly is often ignored. The consequences of such behavior can be truly devastating. Consider the following trend

"Some of the nation's largest retirement plan administrators, such as Great-West Retirement Services and Fidelity Investments, are seeing double-digit spikes in hardship withdrawals and increases in loan requests, a sharp departure from levels that traditionally varied little.

Administrators say consumers are using retirement savings to pay for unmanageable mortgages, maxed-out credit cards, and costly utilities and groceries."
More People Tap 401(k) Accounts for Cash

Tapping your 401(K) account in case of an emergency is understandable but when you dip into your retirement savings to pay for today's living expenses - that indicates a different problem. The problem of living beyond your means. Downsizing is always hard to do but it is doable. And it is probably the responsible thing to do - for your family, for your spouse and for your future.

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