She maxed out an IRA and a 403(b) from her twenties and retired a millionaire at 55
3 min read · RealCase summary
Jackie Borja opened an IRA at 22 on her mother's advice, and at 26 took a high school counselor job that gave her access to a 403(b) — from then on maxing out both accounts simultaneously on a single counselor's salary, without ever earning six figures.
She treated her retirement savings as money belonging to her "future self" rather than funds available for current spending, a habit reinforced by parents who modeled frugality, keeping cars for 20 years and never buying a new TV.
Over about 20 years, Borja built her accounts to $1 million and retired at 55; she's now 56, waiting on a school pension that kicks in at 62 and qualifying for full Social Security under a recent law change. "You need to start early," she said.
Key takeaways
- ›Opened an IRA at age 22, then gained access to a 403(b) retirement plan at 26 as a school counselor
- ›Maxed out contributions to both tax-advantaged accounts consistently for around 20 years
- ›Reached $1 million and retired at age 55 — faster than most of her 401(k)-millionaire peers
Original source
Read the original (Yahoo Finance)
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