Suze Orman's Advice for One Couple With No Real Retirement Savings Will Haunt Late Starters
Despite what the old song tells you, time isn’t always on your side — especially when it comes to retirement. That’s the lesson finance expert Suze Orman had for Tony and Joanna, a couple who appeared on her show with one ambitious goal: to retire in 12 years, at age 60. So, what was the problem?
When Orman tallied up their net worth, she delivered a brutal yet fair assessment:
“You have a net worth that is less than your age,” she said. “If you two do not wake up, you’re about to start living in your 50s and 60s and 70s in a financial nightmare.”
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So yes, they’re definitely too late. Orman’s stern words for this couple and other retirement late starters aren’t meant purely to scold — OK, maybe a little — but to shake people awake before they find themselves in a financial nightmare.
You Don’t Have a Plan — You Have a Dream
Though the couple works hard in their careers — Tony as a contractor for Lockheed Martin and Joanna as a night-shift pediatric nurse — they told Orman they make major decisions by “flipping a coin.”
One such coin flip led them to buy a $6,500 bed, which Tony described as “quite nice.” For that price, it had better be.
Orman was not impressed.
She asked the couple how much they were currently saving to make their dream of retirement a reality. Joanna wasn’t saving anything at all, and Tony’s answer wasn’t much better: He was contributing just $300 a month toward retirement.
Orman had to break it to them: Their spirits may have been willing to retire early, but their finances were nowhere close to supporting it.
“You have a net worth of about $45,000 and you are 46 and 48 [years old]. I need to see a net worth at these ages of around $500,000 for retirement to really be a reality,” Orman said.
Time To Wake Up and Create a Better Plan
Despite being on the more extreme end of financial decision-making — $6,500 bed, anyone? — Tony and Joanna’s story can give other late bloomers the retirement kick-start they need.
Orman spelled out the immediate risk. If Tony were to die suddenly, Joanna would be left living on about $1,200 a month after taxes, a figure Orman said reflected what her long‑term retirement reality would look like if nothing changed.
“Why aren’t we doing something about it right now?” Orman asked.
Though it was too late for this dynamic duo to retire at age 60, they needed to triage their financial situation to be able to retire at all.
One of Orman’s first recommendations was to adopt a mindset sometimes described as “loud budgeting.” That meant being honest with the people in their lives about financial boundaries — including telling Joanna’s mother they could not afford to take a planned trip to the Dominican Republic.
Orman also pushed the couple to get realistic about how they used their money. That $6,500 bed? She quipped that the couple was essentially sleeping on money that should have been sitting in their emergency fund.
How Late Starters Can Get on Track
True to form, Orman didn’t sugarcoat the reality for Tony, Joanna and other late starters. Getting serious about retirement savings was gonna hurt a little.
No more vacations. No more going out to eat. No more buying things that weren’t necessities.
When Tony mentioned that his company offered a 4% match on his 401(k), Orman informed him he was going to increase his contributions immediately to qualify for that free money. Both Tony and Joanna also needed to start funding Roth IRAs, aiming for the annual maximum — roughly $500 per month each.
“Between the two of you, I need you to put about $1,000 into the Roth IRAs,” Orman said.
She also instructed the couple to redo Tony's term life insurance and establish a smaller policy for Joanna, ensuring they were properly protected if the worst happened.
When Joanna asked Orman whether she thought they could possibly recover from what Orman had labeled a retirement nightmare, the answer was honest but hopeful:
“Yes," Orman said. "But only if you start right here, right now."
The Bottom Line
Orman compared the couple’s current retirement finances to a sinking ship. The damage was serious, but not beyond repair.
Fortunately, curbing their spending and embracing better habits can help Tony and Joanna right that ship and sail into retirement — maybe just a little later than planned.
This article was provided by MoneyLion.com for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial, legal, or tax advice.
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