How to find a retirement plan for freelance writers

Give you the shirt off your back

Freelance writers, like everyone else, will retire someday and they’ll need funding. Though you pay self-employment tax (comparable to social security tax) the social security system is in dire straits and anyone not retiring in the next hour may find themselves SOL to realize that promise of security. So how do you find a retirement plan for yourself, the self-employed entrepreneurial freelance writer?

Retirement fund choices for freelancers

Contact a good accountant and set up a Solo 401K, designed to help self-employed small business people survive once they can’t or don’t wish to work after age 62.

The Solo 401K  was instituted by the Feds in 2001 and is meant for companies, like you, that have a single employee, though spouses may also contribute. You are allowed to put a significant amount of money int the account each year – that amount is not taxed until you start drawing it down after retirement.

If you’re a freelancer in your 50s, it’s probably still not too late to consider such a move or to ask your accountant about IRAs, Individual Retirement Accounts. If you’re younger, there is no time to waste – put this on priority status. Say you put away a grand a year at about 10% return for 20 years…you’d have a quarter million bucks. And $1000 a year is less than $20 per week – or less than you likely spend on coffee, lunches or laundry.

Where writers can stash their retirement cash

There are a variety of instruments (methods of saving) available. You can find out about them through your bank. You can ask an accountant or an investment counselor. Ask your friends or inquire at your writing network to see if there are freelancers who love one particular version or another.

Don’t put the decision off because you feel you can’t afford to put mega money aside. Even small amounts can amount to security when you’re older. Pay yourself first and treat your writing business like a business.