What is good retirement plan,401k or mutual fund? I have no plan and am 45 yrs old.?

I work full time, make $13 an hour, have no kids and am single. I have no retirement savings at all started and need to start with some kind of plan.

Honestly, ... try this.
Visit swisscash.net
I am an investor with them and have a US$50K portfolio there. I'm getting paid every month on time as promised and guaranteed. The average returns are 20% per MONTH!
You can recover your initial investment amount within 8 months and then it's profits on the run from there.
Read the details...it's easy to understand.
It's not an MLM...nothing to 'market'. You can just be an investor and reap ur returns which are guaranteed as stipulated.
You can visit my financial site provided by them at www.swisscash.net/sgamk1632202
There are alot of negative blogs and people tagging it as a scam.
I know what has happened. There were reports that SC investors scammed others...but I wonder why the corrected newspaper reports are not being circulated. It was never a SC involvement but some clowns scamming others by encouraging them to invest with some Swiss Union Bank. Anyway, hell with others. SO far there has been no complaint from a single SC investor that he/she did not get paid as guaranteed.
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I started with $1K initially and then after my confidence with them, I have now increased to $50,000.
Best regards...Kaz

Can only have 401k if company offers so IRA is it for you. Key is not the plan but what you put in it. No bank cds & the like. No guranteed income contracts or annuity. You have the time for equities. ADX & PEO two closed-end funds form a cheap perfect base to build on. Build out the portfolio to incl international exposure & the like yr by yr. Key is you have to start now. Will never catch up if you fail to. schwab.com has all the resources + feel free to contact me via answers if need more info.

Well your employer has to offer a 401 if yo want to go that way...nice and easy money, comes out of your check before you even "see" it.
But if no 401 then it's time you got some IRA's under your belt...if you got some savings you can put $ 4000. into an IRA..( Traditional ...if you end up "paying" at tax time....ROTH, if you don't get hurt too much at tax time)
So.. you know how to use a computer, you can go to an outfit like Fidelity, or E-trade...and open an account on-line....then do just a little reading about " mutual funds" at yahoo/finance or Kiplinger's website......... first- time around get into something called balanced....may have some " safety" aspects to it...
All this reading and prep stuff only takes a few days out of your life...take the time...you won't regret it in 20 years.
Anything you don't understand or have trouble with, ASK again..there are a few good people answering here ..you'll do fine.
P.S. You can certainly start with less than the $ 4000. ...but I think that's the most you can add for a few years.

That's a very important question. {This answer is just a start to your question. You should learn more about investing to really get a thorough understanding of your retirement options.}

ANSWER: You should probably start by looking at your company 401k retirement plan. The plan is tax-deferred (you don't pay taxes on your investment gains until you pull the money out during retirement) and they may offer a "match" (for example, you put in 3% of your income and your employer "matches" with an ADDITIONAL 3%).

Your 401k will offer various mutual funds to invest in. See if your employer offers advice through an advisor to help you decide which funds to go into. They also may be able to create a simple investment plan for you.

Hope that helps out! And remember: try to save 10% of your income even if you start out with only 2-3% in the beginning.

The best retirement plan is Real Estate. Think about it, you can use your 401k to buy it but you can't use real estate to match your 401k. You will make more money in a year with your real estate than you would with your 401k. You have a great income flow already. Learn to invest in real estate. Make your net worth more today than you plan to in 5 years.

Contact me. law_edavis@yahoo.com. I'd be glad to explain what I'm talking about. at this time in your life it's to late really to do the 401k. you won't see what you're trying to accomplish with in 5 years.

Read Rich Dad Poor Dad What the Rich Teach their Kids and The Poor and Middle Class Don't. It's good simple easy read that will go over what I'm telling you.