Please click on the above chart to enlarge. From Fidelity's press release:
- IRA and 401(k) accounts continue to hit record levels. Increasing contributions and a strong stock market drove both the average 401(k) and IRA balances over six figures. The average 401(k) balance rose to $104,300, 13 percent higher than Q4 2016. The average IRA balance climbed to $106,000, which is also a 13 percent year-over-year increase.
- In addition, long-term 401(k) savers saw significant increases to their average account balance. For workers who have been contributing to their 401(k) for 10 consecutive years, the average 401(k) account balance increased to $286,700, up from $233,900 a year earlier. For individuals who have been in their 401(k) plan for 15-straight years, the average balance rose to $387,100, up from $318,500 in Q4 2016.
- Individuals continue to increase their contributions to retirement accounts. In addition to the stock market's performance, retirement account balances were buoyed by increasing contribution rates. Nearly one third (30 percent) of 401(k) savers increased their savings rate in 2017, which rose to 8.6 percent in Q4 2017, an increase from 8.4 percent a year ago. The average IRA contribution rate increased to $1,730 in Q4 2017, up from $1,590 a year ago.
- A growing number of retirement accounts reach $1 million. The number of 401(k) savers with at least $1 million in their 401(k) increased to 150,000 at the end of 2017, up from 93,000 a year ago. The number of investors with $1 million in their IRA account rose to 152,000, an increase from 109,000 at the end of 2016.
Let's end with one of my favorite John Wooden quotes:
"Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are."
