15 Ways to Get Your Retirement Savings Back on Track

You'll need money in an IRA or 401(k) plan to help ensure that you're able to pay your bills during retirement. If you've fallen behind on the savings front, here are some tips for ramping back up.

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You may be a touch behind on your retirement savings. Or maybe you're really far behind and need to ramp up in a serious way. Figure out how much you've saved to date and where you should be. That will help you determine whether you'll need to resort to more drastic changes to catch up versus more low-key changes.

Having a good sense of where your money goes every month and how much you spend will make it easier to carve out room for your savings. Set up a budget and make sure there's a line item in there for IRA or 401(k) contributions. You may need to adjust your spending in other categories to make that happen.

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If you have some work to do on the retirement savings front, you may need to make some temporary lifestyle changes that have a big impact. Those could include moving to a less expensive home or downsizing from a two-vehicle household to a single car.

Reducing your spending in smaller categories can have a big impact, too. If you're unable to cut back on a major expense in your budget, look at slashing a series of minor bills, whether it's cable, streaming services, dining out, or rideshares.

If you have a balance on your credit cards, you're probably losing a lot of money to interest. And that's money that could be going into your IRA or 401(k) instead. Consolidating your debt via a balance transfer or personal loan could make it less costly to repay, thereby freeing up cash for your savings.

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If you're able to lower your mortgage's interest rate, you might slash your monthly payments, thereby leaving yourself with more money for your retirement plan. It pays to refinance if you're able to shave about 1% or more off of your existing loan's interest rate.

ALSO READ: Should You Refinance Your Mortgage in 2022?

These days, the U.S. labor market is loaded with job openings, and some companies are so desperate to hire that they're luring in candidates with higher wages. If you're unable to snag a raise at your current job, look into applying for one that comes with a higher paycheck.

Boosting your income with a second job could make it possible to ramp up your IRA or 401(k) contributions in a very meaningful way. Since that income won't be earmarked for recurring bills, you should have the option to stick all of it into savings.

You may come into extra money during the year, like a tax refund or gift. Sticking that money directly into your retirement plan could help you get closer to your savings goals.

If you have access to a 401(k) through work, you may also be eligible for matching dollars from your employer. Be sure to put in enough money from your salary to snag that match in full. Not only will that cash help boost your balance, but you’ll also have the option to invest it and grow it into a larger sum.

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Once you reach the age of 50, you're eligible to make catch-up contributions in your retirement plan. These are worth up to $1,000 for an IRA and $6,500 for a 401(k). These amounts can also change from year to year, so if you’re old enough to make them, keep tabs on how they evolve.

If you're not happy with your IRA or 401(k) balance, getting more aggressive in your portfolio could help you make better headway. While it's a good idea to shift away from stocks right before retirement, if that milestone is many years away, you should aim to load up on stocks for higher returns, despite the risk that comes with them.

The investments you put your money into could come with fees that eat away at your returns. This is especially likely to happen if you're saving for retirement in a 401(k). Take a look at how your money is invested, and if you're loaded up on actively managed mutual funds, consider a switch to lower-cost index funds.

You may, despite your best efforts, end up with less money than you'd like in your IRA or 401(k) as retirement nears. If that's the case, staying in the workforce a few extra years could make it possible to meet your goals, all the while leaving your existing balance untouched.

ALSO READ: What to Do if You Want to Delay Retirement -- but Can't

When we think about retirement savings, it's natural to land on plan choices like IRAs and 401(k)s. But there are other accounts you can take advantage of, too. A health savings account, for example, allows you to set money aside for medical expenses, and you can carry that balance all the way into retirement. You can also access that money penalty free for any purpose come age 65, making it a backup source of retirement income.

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Saving for retirement is a tough thing to do, and it's easy enough to fall behind. If that's the situation you've landed in, these tips could get you back to where you need to be -- and spare you a world of stress in the process.

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