I currently have $500 in my Roth IRA. I'm also twenty four years old at the moment. I think I'm a bit ahead of my age group for retirement savings, which is a pretty sad thing. The fact that I'm twenty four, and have a positive net worth is also extremely unusual. My generation has more debt, than any previous generation. I do think I would be better off with a little more in my retirement account at the moment, but it would be counter to my goals.

I detest the way people carry so much of their money in an account they cannot touch till they are 59.5. While I only have $500 in my retirement account I have more than twenty thousand in my discretionary investing account. I would rather pay more in taxes, and have direct control over my money. The tax free money I will get when I retire is just going to end up being a nice little surprise for me.

By my own admission I don't think I am behind in my retirement savings. I mostly plan to not save much for retirement, because I plan on being financially independent within the next few years.

What are retirement savings?