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How to Invest for Retirement
- Thread starter Piecake
- Start date
Wellington
BAAAALLLINNN'
I am a huge fan of both of these guys, Tim Ferriss' latest podcast is an interview with Mister Money Mustache. Not Tim's best work but it was a good episode. As with MMMs writing, it starts with talking about money but moves quickly into overall happiness and life optimization.
http://tim.blog/2017/02/13/mr-money-mustache/
I always struggle with FI stuff and this topic, but I guess it's the best place for it.
http://tim.blog/2017/02/13/mr-money-mustache/
I always struggle with FI stuff and this topic, but I guess it's the best place for it.
I was looking at Goldman Sachs online bank. They seem to have relatively few restrictions, and no fees. Negligible interest rate difference, but it's there.
SonicXtreme
Member
i know it's vague, but honestly, i'm working a ton of overtime and am making a lot more money than i have previously. currently i have few expenses outside of rent/insurance etc, so i'm going to be sitting on that versus just blowing it. But, i'm 31, so purchasing a house or 'new' car in the near future would be a smart move, although i have no immediate plans to. so basically in the meantime i'd like that cash to be doing something until one of those two make sense (or i'm forced into a new car, i drive a 2002 alero so i know that's a ticking time bomb). a little risk is ok
This index actually looks quite nice. i know the minimum amount you can invest is 2500, how does that work? Like lets say i buy $3000 worth. can i sell half of that at a future date? or do i always have to be above that threshold? I get that it has management fees, how is that handled? Charged monthly or something or is it built into the price or what? if i purchase from scottrade, i'll only be charged the standard trading fee (i think its $7 (edit: looks like it'd be $17 to purchase)) on purchase, right? sorry for the dumb questions
These guys sound pretty similar to me. I got rid of my car in 2015, rent a small apartment, and generally live far below my means.
I generally don't identify with most FIRE types, though, because I like my job.
fatty
Member
I haven't listened to it yet, but wanted to thank you for posting that link.
I learned about MMM about the same time I read Millionaire Next Door (one of my favorites), and it not only reaffirmed how I lived but made me strive to achieve a different level.
Four things I would recommend to someone wanting financial independence:
Mr. Money Mustache
Millionaire Next Door
Rich Dad, Poor Dad
The 4-hour Work Week
Just bought Tim Ferris' new book, Tools of Titans, and looking forward to getting into that one.
Now to download some podcasts for this week...
http://canadiancouchpotato.com/2017/02/17/a-new-etf-structure-for-accumulators/
It's a neat idea that could be useful for reducing transaction costs if you have to pay for ETF purchases. Like a DRIP, but cleaner. It'd be a nightmare in a taxable account though.
It's a neat idea that could be useful for reducing transaction costs if you have to pay for ETF purchases. Like a DRIP, but cleaner. It'd be a nightmare in a taxable account though.
So I have a general question about setting up an IRA/Mutual Fund/etc account.
I currently have an adviser through Ameriprise, but based on some decisions made, I think I want to set up a new account. I am wondering if I should continue using my Ameriprise IRA account, or open a Fidelity one.
I am just wondering about fee's and things such as that. I plan on using this as a vehicle to supplement my 401K and working towards saving money for my son's college/life expenses. I just do not think I want to be stuck with the Ameriprise account if it is better to look elsewhere for the same type of product.
Bonus Question: if I have money in one IRA account (Ameriprise) and open a new account, can I roll into that or is it stuck in that IRA?
I currently have an adviser through Ameriprise, but based on some decisions made, I think I want to set up a new account. I am wondering if I should continue using my Ameriprise IRA account, or open a Fidelity one.
I am just wondering about fee's and things such as that. I plan on using this as a vehicle to supplement my 401K and working towards saving money for my son's college/life expenses. I just do not think I want to be stuck with the Ameriprise account if it is better to look elsewhere for the same type of product.
Bonus Question: if I have money in one IRA account (Ameriprise) and open a new account, can I roll into that or is it stuck in that IRA?
ClayKavalier
Banned
I just got my first "real" job (finished grad school a few months ago and worked at a non-profit that didn't offer benefits until now). I literally just accepted the offer so I'm looking through a pamphlet that was provided about benefits but I haven't talked to someone from HR about anything and haven't made any decisions.
If I understand the advice here correctly I should:
Contribute to a 401k to the maximum amount that my employer with match. Since I'm relatively young (28) and just starting my career, I should choose a Roth 401k since the taxes I pay now will be less than in a few decades when I withdraw money. If I have a choice as to where the funds are invested (I still don't know exactly how this works, I guess I'll have a choice between a few "plans"?) I should choose index funds that cover a diverse selection of industries.
Max out contributions in an IRA. I open one of these at a place like Vanguard. Again I should prioritize index funds.
And that's it in a nutshell? Do many people make additional investments? I'm not interested whatsoever in spending a ton of time researching individual stocks, but I'm guessing I'll be offered a selection of index funds with varying levels of risk?
I understand the importance of balancing stocks and bonds but at my age I'm not very concerned with it.
If I understand the advice here correctly I should:
Contribute to a 401k to the maximum amount that my employer with match. Since I'm relatively young (28) and just starting my career, I should choose a Roth 401k since the taxes I pay now will be less than in a few decades when I withdraw money. If I have a choice as to where the funds are invested (I still don't know exactly how this works, I guess I'll have a choice between a few "plans"?) I should choose index funds that cover a diverse selection of industries.
Max out contributions in an IRA. I open one of these at a place like Vanguard. Again I should prioritize index funds.
And that's it in a nutshell? Do many people make additional investments? I'm not interested whatsoever in spending a ton of time researching individual stocks, but I'm guessing I'll be offered a selection of index funds with varying levels of risk?
I understand the importance of balancing stocks and bonds but at my age I'm not very concerned with it.
Fidelity (and Vanguard) don't have IRA fees, for normal transactions. It's worth it to get away from any kind of fees, whether on the front end or via high expense ratios. It's also convenient to have all your retirement funds in one place.
You can take assets from one IRA and transfer them over to the other, without cost. Note, Fidelity and Vanguard won't charge you to open the IRA, or to roll funds into it from another IRA, but Ameriprise may charge you a fee to close the account there.
Fidelity: https://www.fidelity.com/customer-service/transfer-assets
Vanguard: https://investor.vanguard.com/account-transfer/transfer-ira
In my case, I transferred from American Funds to Fidelity. Once that was done, the funds I was in were sold for cash, which I then used to buy their index funds, all within the IRA. Fund transfers within an IRA do not incur any taxes or fees, so it was all seamless.
Mr Money Mustache really helped me get my shit together, can't recommend him highly enough.
Randolph Freelander
Member
To roughly approximate FFNOX at Vanguard
VTSAX 60%
VTIAX 25%
VBTLX 15%
Or their "Investor Shares" or ETF equivalents.
chaosblade
Unconfirmed Member
The LifeStrategy funds are what you're looking for. Not 100% the same but very similar.
The Income fund is the opposite of the Fidelty fund, it's mostly bonds (totally wrote this wrong before editing).
Conservative Growth, Moderate Growth, and Growth are progressively more stock-heavy portfolios, so you can pick based on your risk tolerance.
That said, the expense ratio is bit lower if you get the individual funds instead, but the highest of these is .15 which isn't terrible, and it has the potential advantage (depending on your personal preference) of automatically re-balancing.
The Income fund is the opposite of the Fidelty fund, it's mostly bonds (totally wrote this wrong before editing).
Conservative Growth, Moderate Growth, and Growth are progressively more stock-heavy portfolios, so you can pick based on your risk tolerance.
That said, the expense ratio is bit lower if you get the individual funds instead, but the highest of these is .15 which isn't terrible, and it has the potential advantage (depending on your personal preference) of automatically re-balancing.
This is probably the way to go over the LifeStrategy Funds for tax efficiency reasons right?
Also, probably prefer the ETF versions of these instead of the funds.
Hard to beat the buy and forget of LifeStrategy though and would be simpler to move money out in case there is an emergency.
Moving past Vanguard.. what about something like Schwab Intelligent for emergency fund? The robo advising part is free - they earn their money on the ETF side since they sell you only ETFs they manage.
Walter White Walker
Member
The thing to be aware of with the Schwab Intelligent Portfolios is that they keep a big chunk in cash doing essentially nothing - anywhere from 6-30%. That's the other way they make money with this - they pay you essentially nothing in interest, I think .1%, and use your money to lend or invest elsewhere generating revenue for them.
Here's more on this - https://investorjunkie.com/39634/schwab-intelligent-portfolios-review/
And here is Schwab's response, which I personally don't buy - https://intelligent.schwab.com/public/intelligent/insights/blog/benefits-of-including-cash.html
When they first rolled this out they kept pestering me about it (I have a couple of Schwab accounts) but I took a pass after looking at it. For one I don't want an advisor, robo or human (especially human), and two I already have sufficient cash so the money I'm putting with Schwab is strictly for investing.
"You can see this benefit of cash by looking at the risk and return of two portfoliosone that consists of multiple asset classes including cash and one that consists of just one asset class, large-cap stocks as represented by the S&P 500® index. As shown in Figure 1, both the diversified portfolio and the concentrated portfolio had returns of about 5.5% per year between Jan. 1, 1999 and Aug. 31, 2016."
lol what the fuck kind of disingenuous crap is this. Give me the comparison for a large cap-stocks vs. large cap-stocks + cash, don't try and slide in "other asset classes" to justify your bullshit.
need some advice here. met with my financial advisor yesterday, he wants me to switch to a new platform they use, he was very up front about how under my current active management with American Funds, i've been doing well with a 13.5% return almost every year for the past 5 years and they're at a .7% expense ratio.
he wants me to switch to the new platform where he will be the one actively managing my money but at an increase to 1.5% expense ratio, he rationale is that with him, he can likely better mitigate loses if we see the market take a down turn under trump, and conversely, help maintain or maybe only SLIGHTLY get me better than the 13.5% in a good year if the markets stay healthy under trump. these are just examples of him saying with all my money in stocks, it's time to diversify and with him managing that diversification, it will be good.
now there's about $85k in the current account he wants to switch over, then I have another $40k in an old 401k account from an old job that has an 0.01% expense ratio with a 75/25 split in large cap and mid cap index funds. I've done nothing with that account for the past couple years, it just sits there, he wants this money rolled into his management.
what are the money sages advice here?
he wants me to switch to the new platform where he will be the one actively managing my money but at an increase to 1.5% expense ratio, he rationale is that with him, he can likely better mitigate loses if we see the market take a down turn under trump, and conversely, help maintain or maybe only SLIGHTLY get me better than the 13.5% in a good year if the markets stay healthy under trump. these are just examples of him saying with all my money in stocks, it's time to diversify and with him managing that diversification, it will be good.
now there's about $85k in the current account he wants to switch over, then I have another $40k in an old 401k account from an old job that has an 0.01% expense ratio with a 75/25 split in large cap and mid cap index funds. I've done nothing with that account for the past couple years, it just sits there, he wants this money rolled into his management.
what are the money sages advice here?
Need some advice on something. So, say you have a "post tax" or unsheltered account. Going by rule of thumb, you should be investing in high risk securities, then slowly move those investments to lower risk investments as you get closer to retirement.
Since this involves a post tax account, wouldn't these movements cause immediate tax repercussions? I could see a strategy whereby you would sell enough stock to move over the principal amount to avoid being taxed on cap gains.. but I'd imagine a $50k principal that has grown to 200k would leave you with too much invested risk.
i am not an expert, but it sounds like he's trying to have your cake and eat it, too.
Since this involves a post tax account, wouldn't these movements cause immediate tax repercussions? I could see a strategy whereby you would sell enough stock to move over the principal amount to avoid being taxed on cap gains.. but I'd imagine a $50k principal that has grown to 200k would leave you with too much invested risk.
i am not an expert, but it sounds like he's trying to have your cake and eat it, too.
Fire this person. Then either hire an advisor who acts as a fiduciary or DIY.
chaosblade
Unconfirmed Member
He's basically matching the returns of a total market fund for 10x the fees (or more). VTSAX has averaged 13.8% over the last 5 years with a 0.05 expense ratio.
I certainly wouldn't agree to more, .7 is already high.
Run away. Index funds can match that or better at a much lower expense ratio. Most decent index funds have been performing at around 13-14% over the past 5 years.
Randolph Freelander
Member
CFMOORE, How did it feel to meet a Nigerian prince?
Also, while you're at it, dump American Funds. Just don't dump them in favor for that guy.
Also, while you're at it, dump American Funds. Just don't dump them in favor for that guy.
1) Do not, under any circumstances, take his advice. 1.5% is highway robbery.
2) You can get all the diversification you need with a couple of low cost index funds. You don't need anyone to manage that for you.
3) DO NOT ROLL YOUR MONEY OVER TO HIM
Going from 0.01% expense ratio to someone who wants to charge 1.5% is literal theft.
Let's take that $40k you have in your 401k, and just park it for 30 years while the market earns 8% per year.
With a .01% expense ratio, you earn 7.99% per year, and you end up with $430k after 30 years.
With a 1.5% expense ratio, you earn 6.5% per year, and you end up with $276k after 30 years.
That added expense ratio just cost you 39% of your growth. Guess who took it?
yeah. i knew where my mind was going on this, i just needed the backup of you guys. there's always tons of great knowledge in a thread like this and fees are the one hammered point that has always stuck with me and i even told him yesterday "dude, my shit at .01 is 100 times less than what you want!" and he actually tried to say "are cheap things good?" i wanted to roll my eyes at him.
These are the funds from the 401k with nearly $40k:
http://profile.morningstar.com/profile/HTMLPage.asp?ClientCode=005&ID=SPUSA05A9T - 75% of my money
http://profile.morningstar.com/profile/HTMLPage.asp?ClientCode=005&ID=SPUSA05A9V&View=snapshot - 25%
should roll this into vanguard, or given their low cost, is it more a safe bet to just leave and play with allocation percentages? or maybe go with funds options within this account that track other things if their fees are also in the .01-.02 range?
These are the funds from the 401k with nearly $40k:
http://profile.morningstar.com/profile/HTMLPage.asp?ClientCode=005&ID=SPUSA05A9T - 75% of my money
http://profile.morningstar.com/profile/HTMLPage.asp?ClientCode=005&ID=SPUSA05A9V&View=snapshot - 25%
should roll this into vanguard, or given their low cost, is it more a safe bet to just leave and play with allocation percentages? or maybe go with funds options within this account that track other things if their fees are also in the .01-.02 range?
Randolph Freelander
Member
Those funds are good, you're just missing a small cap component (and, really, international) for a good balance. Of course, you can achieve that same balance utilizing your other account, those with the funds that the advisor is trying to steal from you.
Speaking of, are those other dollars also from a 401k, IRA, or similarly sheltered retirement vehicle? Those are the funds I'd want to move as soon as possible, and if they are retirement dollars, it might make sense from a ease-of-management position to consolidate the above funds, as well.
the $40k? that's sitting in my Sony 401k (no longer work there). The $85k is a 401k rollover into an IRA, it originated at like $50k a couple years ago at time of rollover
Randolph Freelander
Member
Move the $85K to Vanguard or Fidelity, get it away from American Funds. (Favor Vanguard if you want to follow a target date approach, otherwise, they're quite comparable.) You don't want to pay 0.7% in fees to achieve the same market returns you can get for less.
For simplicity of management, you can move the Sony 401k at the same time or elect to leave it where it is. Its fees are quite low at the moment, but you might just find it easier to stay on top of if it's under the same roof as your other account.
Also, I'd wager your American Funds have a front end load on top of the high expense ratio. So you're losing several % right off the top.
I used to be with American Funds. I calculated how much we paid in those front end fees, and what the funds would be at retirement if I had not paid them, back when I was moving over to index funds. I nearly needed medication after seeing the difference. Get outta there.
I used to be with American Funds. I calculated how much we paid in those front end fees, and what the funds would be at retirement if I had not paid them, back when I was moving over to index funds. I nearly needed medication after seeing the difference. Get outta there.
yeah, at the time it had the one time 4.5% off the top, at least to my recollection
Another way active managed funds rack up fees is the turnover rate (how often an active manager buys and sells stock). 100% turnover rate is estimated to equal about a 1% expense ratio
100% turnover rate is pretty average on an actively managed fund as well
Not a question for retirement investing, but anyone invest in taxable accounts with Wealthfront or other robo advisors? First $15K is free so I want to try it out with some play money. They primarily invest in Vanguard ETFs: https://blog.wealthfront.com/vanguard-etfs-low-cost-portfolio/
I know I can just open a taxable account with vanguard and invest in a target date fund, but I'm curious about Wealthfront's daily tax loss harvesting: https://blog.wealthfront.com/vanguard-versus-wealthfront/
I know I can just open a taxable account with vanguard and invest in a target date fund, but I'm curious about Wealthfront's daily tax loss harvesting: https://blog.wealthfront.com/vanguard-versus-wealthfront/
So I just realized I exceeded the Roth IRA contribution limit for 2016 by $178 while doing my taxes today. I read that I can withdraw the money and earnings before I file to avoid a penalty, but don't know how to calculate the earnings on the excess. I'll call Vanguard on Monday to sort it out but if anyone can explain this to me like I'm five I'd really appreciate it.
Unknown Soldier
Member
I actually ran into this same problem doing my taxes the other day. There's a form I'm supposed to fill out and send to Charles Schwab, they are my broker and they'll withdraw the excess contribution and calculate the earnings for me and prepare the appropriate form 1099-R. I'm assumming Vanguard will do the same for you.
Paying taxes on the excess earnings will also reduce my tax refund >_>
Randolph Freelander
Member
I'm curious how you even make that mistake.
Unknown Soldier
Member
Easy. Contribute enough for 2016 for what you made in 2015, expecting to make the same. Make a ton more in 2016 than expected because of unexpected massive quantities of overtime. Do your taxes. Get smacked around by the IRS. Voila!
rokkerkory
Member
Bought a bunch of amd!
Randolph Freelander
Member
Oh, right. I was thinking you went over $5500, but it sounds like you ran up against the phase-out.
Talk to your broker about recharacterizing your contribution to traditional and then do a Roth conversion. At the very least, do the backdoor Roth this year.
Alright, need some advice guys:
Age 26, 39k in student loan debt, currently deferred and I've been paying what I can. 600$ mo/rent. No car note but pay 80$ a month in car insurance. Making depending on OT, 880$/1200$ a check. make 15.15$ an hour. 2500$ in checking and savings.
After 401k (which my employer contributes 3%, matches up to 6%, i.e i contribute 6% I get 15%) doing 100$ per check into employee stock purchase program with Delta Airlines). Currently the value of said plan is at 720$.
I'm trying ATM to either open a shopify store or take a second job, this wage slave life isn't worth it to me. But This is where i am now and I'm trying to make the most of it. Everything is with Fidelity, just opened an IRA with 50$ with Fidelity.
401k is being managed with Financial Engines. Allocations are as follows, expense ratios aren't high.
S&P 500 INDEX
35.42% $907.30 36.897 $24.59 $0.04 Stock Investments
INTL EQ IDX
29.71% $761.25 49.050 $15.52 -$0.11 Stock Investments
SMALL/MID CAP INDEX
19.95% $511.15 21.245 $24.06 $0.02 Stock Investments
BOND INDEX
9.86% $252.68 20.150 $12.54 $0.05 Bond Investments
EMRG MRKTS EQ IDX
5.05% $129.49 10.800 $11.99 -$0.11 Stock Investments
What should I do from this point?
Age 26, 39k in student loan debt, currently deferred and I've been paying what I can. 600$ mo/rent. No car note but pay 80$ a month in car insurance. Making depending on OT, 880$/1200$ a check. make 15.15$ an hour. 2500$ in checking and savings.
After 401k (which my employer contributes 3%, matches up to 6%, i.e i contribute 6% I get 15%) doing 100$ per check into employee stock purchase program with Delta Airlines). Currently the value of said plan is at 720$.
I'm trying ATM to either open a shopify store or take a second job, this wage slave life isn't worth it to me. But This is where i am now and I'm trying to make the most of it. Everything is with Fidelity, just opened an IRA with 50$ with Fidelity.
401k is being managed with Financial Engines. Allocations are as follows, expense ratios aren't high.
S&P 500 INDEX
35.42% $907.30 36.897 $24.59 $0.04 Stock Investments
INTL EQ IDX
29.71% $761.25 49.050 $15.52 -$0.11 Stock Investments
SMALL/MID CAP INDEX
19.95% $511.15 21.245 $24.06 $0.02 Stock Investments
BOND INDEX
9.86% $252.68 20.150 $12.54 $0.05 Bond Investments
EMRG MRKTS EQ IDX
5.05% $129.49 10.800 $11.99 -$0.11 Stock Investments
What should I do from this point?
My only plan for it was being a sort of rainy day fund. Once i get to 1000$-1500$ just reduce the deduction from 100 to 36$. I.E car breaks down, emergency rent money, that kind of thing. Also its not discounted at all, which is strange. just that there are no brokerage commissions and trading fees except when selling which is $5.95 per trade.
Unknown Soldier
Member
Yeah, I hit the phase out. I forgot about the backdoor but I'll make sure to do it this year!
That allocation is basically the same as Vanguard's Target Date allocation for further out dates, except with some tilts toward higher risk assets in the stock allocations. So if you decide to roll your 401k into your IRA, you could just put it all in Target 2050 without major changes. Then you wouldn't need to worry about rebalancing it yourself.
A couple of questions about Vanguard. I have a tradition IRA with them that I created with a 401K rollover.
1- I have some funds with T Rowe Price, a couple of actively managed funds that are my "experient" funds. I'm fine with paying slightly higher fees as they've seen good returns so far (12%ish, last time I checked). I also have a Target retirement Roth IRA with them. Can I easily transfer funds directly from TRP to Vanguard if I need to, or do I need to cash out and reinvest with Vanguard? I'm guessing that the Roth versus Traditional IRAs wouldn't be able to transfer because of tax stuff. If I want to transfer money from my non-retirement funds to Vanguard, can that be done directly, or do I need to cash out and reinvest myself?
2- My Vanguard funds are all admiral shares. I'm thinking about starting a non-retirement account with them for some index funds, but I'm not sure I want to put in $10,000 off the bat to get Admiral shares. Will my fund automatically convert to admiral shares if it reaches $10K, or do I need to move the funds to the Admiral version?
3- My Vanguard IRA money is currently in VGSLX and VTSAX. Both of these are nearly 100% stocks. I'm 33 years old.. I'm wondering if I should buy shares into something with bonds or just let the stocks go for a while. Can anyone suggest another fund that I may want to put some of my money into that may be a little safer than 97-99% stocks?
I'm thinking that I may want to take $5K from TRP (non-retirement) and $5K from my savings to get admiral shares with an index fund.
1- I have some funds with T Rowe Price, a couple of actively managed funds that are my "experient" funds. I'm fine with paying slightly higher fees as they've seen good returns so far (12%ish, last time I checked). I also have a Target retirement Roth IRA with them. Can I easily transfer funds directly from TRP to Vanguard if I need to, or do I need to cash out and reinvest with Vanguard? I'm guessing that the Roth versus Traditional IRAs wouldn't be able to transfer because of tax stuff. If I want to transfer money from my non-retirement funds to Vanguard, can that be done directly, or do I need to cash out and reinvest myself?
2- My Vanguard funds are all admiral shares. I'm thinking about starting a non-retirement account with them for some index funds, but I'm not sure I want to put in $10,000 off the bat to get Admiral shares. Will my fund automatically convert to admiral shares if it reaches $10K, or do I need to move the funds to the Admiral version?
3- My Vanguard IRA money is currently in VGSLX and VTSAX. Both of these are nearly 100% stocks. I'm 33 years old.. I'm wondering if I should buy shares into something with bonds or just let the stocks go for a while. Can anyone suggest another fund that I may want to put some of my money into that may be a little safer than 97-99% stocks?
I'm thinking that I may want to take $5K from TRP (non-retirement) and $5K from my savings to get admiral shares with an index fund.
SonicXtreme
Member
that is a lot of variety for just $100 a month to split into. diversity is good but do you really need 25 in a guaranteed interest account for instance? how old are you?
Basically just started a 403(b) from work so this is the strategy they're doing for me. I'm putting $100 every month. Is their strategy good or should I make some changes?
This is a crazy amount of funds, and I'd suspect a few have high fees too, which is why you were ushered into them. I'd look into what your choices are. The main thing you'd want to look for is the funds with the lowest fees, almost certainly all index funds. You do have one index fund in there, but you probably should check the fee on that too. Any MER greater 0.2% is ridiculous.
Pretty much everyone here, Warren Buffet, and economists will tell you to just buy index funds. The main things to worry about really are avoiding fees and saving enough, and maybe asset allocation, but not as much as the first two.
I'm 33 and gonna stop until 60. The company that my school district hire is called AXA so This is just extra money on top of my pension. This is their strategy to get a 7% return so I asked if theirs separate fees and was told no. Just a single flat fee of 0.7% because well they're gonna manage it for me but was told I could change the allocations and I have like 3 pages of stocks and funds to choose from.
A common rule of thumb is 80%, but it varies by situation. I used 80% before my last promotion, and less than that now, for example. If you're just starting out it's not a bad idea to leave it at 100%. It also depends on your desired lifestyle in retirement. You will be no longer saving (subtract the % of income you save), but will have higher medical expenses. Things like child care and housing costs are also big variables.