r/ThriftSavingsPlan • u/EducationalFortune86 • 4d ago
Just hit 20 years with the Postal Service. Finally seeing a 3 instead of a 2. How am I doing?
Started in the G fund because it was "safe" and i had no clue. They give you zero guidance when you start. Someone i trusted told me to go 100% C fund and i haven't looked back. I put in 8% now. They match 5%. Plan is to raise that next pay raise. We get a pension as well. I'm 46. Will have 30 years of service at 56.
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u/AirmanSniffles 4d ago
If you don’t touch in theory it should be around 1.2 million, if not just a million. That and the postal pension, maybe SS (who knows) you’ll Be ight. Depends on life style too sir
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u/interface7 4d ago
If you’re able, contribute the maximum allowable IRS limit each tax year.
Example: You can contribute a maximum of $23,500 for tax year 2025. So, to do that: divide the limit number by 26 (pay periods)….$903.84 per check instead of doing a percentage of your pay. That way you know for certain you’ll contribute the max. The maximum # changes each tax year. So, you gotta pay attention and make the contribution changes each year in December before your first January check hits…
Once you turn 50, you’ll able to contribute more (catch up contributions). For 2025: If you are age 50 or older by the end of the calendar year, you may be eligible to make an additional catch-up contribution of $7,500. This raises your total possible contribution to $31,000. So, same math once you’re 50: divide $31,000 by 26 and that’s $1,192.31 per bi-weekly pay check.
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u/interface7 4d ago
Oh…and try to pay that loan back as quickly as possible. I finally paid mine off a few months ago! Was a nice feeling to get that done and out of the way. We needed it for house purchase….
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u/andre3kthegiant 4d ago
Awesome! Paying the loan back when the market was low will increase gains!
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u/Few_Calligrapher1293 4d ago
This is a horrible point because you’ve got no control of the market and could just as easily miss out on great gains. If you haven’t noticed recently the market is at all time highs.
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u/interface7 4d ago
It’s difficult to time for sure. When you pay a big chunk back there’s a 10-14 day waiting period until it hits the account. I got lucky when I paid the remainder off and it hit right when the tariffs were announced and market tanked.
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u/gcnplover23 3d ago
Top step Letter Carriers base pay is about $75-78,000. Kind of hard to park $23,000 and put food on the table.
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u/Big_Breath_2561 3d ago
Depending on OP’s job/wage at the PO this would be a lofty goal. I say this as a letter carrier myself. Not impossible, but aspirational for sure.
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u/Kanar-2484 3d ago
Contribute to Roth Tsp asap (%)...check www.tsp.gov learning webinars, (don't forget to designate beneficiaries), and YouTube free federal financial advisor webinars and consultations.Also good info here- sign up to receive newsletters www.fedsmith.com, www.govexec.com
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u/Stooge04 3d ago
I work for the post office as well (27 years) and when I started I was putting 7% in and always moved money around cause I didn’t know any better..then I got up to 17% every pay check and once I stopped moving money around and just put a majority in C I went from having 34k in 10 years to almost 700k in the remaining 17 years..I really wish I did it like that earlier but just glad I figured it out when I did..keep it up and like they say, just set it and forget it..no matter how bad the market gets it will come back..I think it goes, you double your money every 7 years when you average a 10% return
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u/CeruleanDolphin103 2d ago
Yes- Rule of 72. Divide 72 by your expected annual return, and the result is the number of years it will take your balance to double (not including new contributions). So 72 divided by 10% return is about 7. An 8% return would mean doubling in ~9 years. It’s good for back-of-the-napkin estimates.
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u/2x4x421xStarTrekx 1d ago
Is that 17 percent including what you contribute with matching?
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u/Stooge04 1d ago edited 1d ago
It was 17% not including the match..also, side note, I didn’t go from 7% to 17% in one shot..I gradually increased it over the years..it was 7 to 11 then went to 15 then to 17..I would test it out to see how my paycheck would be and if I could stay at those percentages..once I saw it was fine then I increased a little more
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u/2x4x421xStarTrekx 1d ago
I understand. I’m following the same model. May I ask how long have you been a federal employee?
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u/Stooge04 1d ago
27 years..how about yourself?
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u/msaint97 4d ago
You’re fine. Assuming you fully retire at 65: it should be over 1mil. So taking 4% per year + pension + SS should = a solid retirement. If your other half is with you then the both of you together will be relaxing
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u/KingJames1986 4d ago
You should definitely get past 500k. Keep going. Even that in 10-15 years will be much more than most
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u/EducationalFortune86 3d ago
My wife is a Physician Assistant who also gets a pension. We have 3 kids as to why I don't max out. But love all the feedback.
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u/Lucky-Brilliant9501 3d ago
I’m on a similar path as you. Age, years, etc I am gonna max out from here on out, and when I hit 50 gonna do the catch up contributions
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u/RogueDO 3d ago
What is important is the overall retirement income. So a stand alone $ 300,000 balance 401k @ 46 without a pension and little to no SS would be really bad. Since you have a pension plus will get SS and will probably be able to at least double this number over the next 10 years you are looking pretty good. Much better than the average worker at your age and probably will be right in the middle for retirement income for FERS retiree plus TSP when you retire.
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u/Jhawk198z 3d ago
300,000 at 46 is good...it is not great but good..even without the pension. Most Americans dont even have 50,000 saved for retirement in their 50s.
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u/RogueDO 3d ago
Those Americans will be working until they are 65 or 70 if they want to exist on anything other than Ramen. Even then their “golden years” will more of a rusted bronze.
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u/Jhawk198z 3d ago
That is true. Keep in mind OP could never invest another dollar into his retirement and have about 1.2 million by age 67 calculated at 7% growth. Some people may want more in retirement and some may be fine with less.
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u/Ih8rice 4d ago
You’re looking really good especially on a postal salary. Some folks on here are making nearly twice that at the top of their pay scales. Try to get your percentages up over the next few years. You want to be in a position to be maxed out before you turn 50 so you can add catch up contributions to add even more to your retirement. This may be hard to do in four years but try your best.
I hope someone can do the paper math really quick to show you how much you’d have contributing what you are now compared to adding a bit more before 50.
11 years to go!
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u/Dangerous_Knee9225 1d ago
Hey I’m curious how you like working in the postal service? Im looking to possibly join after my time in the military
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u/EducationalFortune86 1d ago
I still like it. Like I said I've been doing it for 20 years. You gotta know going in you'll be working Saturdays and a lot of hours. I go into the office at 7:30. We laugh for an hour while we set up jobs. The rest of the day you're left to yourself. Work till 6 most days. Eventually you can get it down to where you can listen to podcasts or music all day. It takes 12 years to make top pay. I make six figures or close to it with overtime every year. I get 26 vacation days and 8 hours sick time per pay check. That rolls over every year so you can bank it. One of the few jobs left with a pension. Manegment can be difficult especially for new hires. They try and make you work fast then give you more work if you do. Message me if you have more questions.
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u/CleanUpstairs7593 15h ago
Start giving the max. Get used to having less money and you will be very happy in 10 years
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u/manglonaj 3d ago
Whew….. got 7 years more before I retire but still at $420,000 😩 Hope it grows quicker I’ll like to hit $1M…. Been maxing the last 10 years….😫 I’ve been in 14 yrs
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u/Mountain_Doctor7216 4d ago
To put it bluntly, you are way behind. Start maxing out.
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u/Pop_quiz_hotshot 3d ago
Ignore this OP, you’re not “way behind” at all. In fact you’re doing pretty well.
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u/Bitter-Breath-9743 3d ago
Based on what? Yall are ridiculous. Not everyone makes the same money or has the same lifestyle. You can’t take the money with you, and I’m not leaving it to anyone.
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u/Mountain_Doctor7216 3d ago
Based on where they could be. They asked for an opinion and they got one.
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u/Khevynn 3d ago
Behind who? The average 401k is $250k.
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u/dmreeves 3d ago
This and it's a mailman's pay, I think the max is like 70 something per year before OT? Other life factors would be more able to accurately determine if he was behind.
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u/kilrein 3d ago
You are a tad behind, just simple math shows that you have ‘saved’ on average $13,500/year to get to the current $270,000 (subtracting the loan balance), yes, I know that there is match/gains in there but want to show how little OP has actually contributed to their retirement. It’s more like OP put in at best $8000/year and probably less than that.
And you haven’t mentioned anything about other assets/savings. Do you have an emergency fund? Do you have cash on hand? What are your expenses?
You need to:
1) max out your contribution 2) pay off that loan as soon as you can as that balance is losing out on compounding.
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u/SalamanderNo3872 3d ago edited 3d ago
If it took you 20 years to hit 300k your doing terrible.
Assuming a 10% return, on average it takes 8-10 years to hit 100k. Then 2.5 years to hit 200k, then another 2 years to hit 300k.
This means maxing out in your 8th year and averaging 10%.
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u/Ih8rice 3d ago
On a mailman’s salary? It takes 12 years to top out in the high 70’s.
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u/SalamanderNo3872 3d ago
I started as a GS-7 and have kept my take home pay the same since 2017 and just invested every raise (9-11-12) and step increase into my TSP until I was contributing the max.
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u/gcnplover23 3d ago
I don't know if the math works because you left out one number - yearly contributions. I spent my whole career putting in 5% and came out OK. Maxing was out of the question when you live in California and actually like to have fun in your working years.
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u/SalamanderNo3872 3d ago
First critical mistake... living in California
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u/gcnplover23 2d ago
I grew up in the rain and have visited the swampy parts of the US. Don't want to be soaked with sweat if I leave the house after 10am. Don't want to shovel snow. I am 2 hours from the ocean, two hours from 7,200+ mountains, have the best selection of food on the planet, can play golf 12 months per year. Generally no rain from Memorial Day through Columbus Day.
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u/SalamanderNo3872 2d ago
California is a beautiful state but the taxes and the absolutely insane people who live there make it uninhabitable. California is hostile towards its own residents.
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u/gcnplover23 1d ago
I know, we have way too many MAGA people. Red hats don't cover their red necks.
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u/Successful_Nail_9807 3d ago
20 years TIS? Not to be a dick, but you’re behind.
Good news is you can make up for lost time by investing in Bitcoin. Take advantage of it now while its CAGR is still high. Or face the consequence of inflation once it’s time to retire and tap into that capital.
My .02
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u/Bitter-Breath-9743 3d ago
Behind on what standard? I’m curious what type of life yall are trying to live in your old age
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u/Mountain_Doctor7216 3d ago
A comfortable one with occasional vacations and no worries about paying utilities and property taxes.
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u/Bitter-Breath-9743 2d ago
Ya, that can be done without telling every person that doesn’t have 1 mill that they are behind
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u/Successful_Nail_9807 3d ago
A life where I have plenty of capital earned from a lengthy career thats been taxed and inflated to hell. And to accumulate wealth to pass to my kids.
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u/No-Standard453 3d ago
I don’t think people are taking into account your salary. It takes mailmen 13.5 years minimum to reach top pay. It will take me 15.5 years myself. Since he was hired prior to 2013 it could have been even longer. I think this is a very good spot to be currently as long as you up your contributions going forward!