What A Comfortable Retirement Will Cost You in Montana

One of the most important lessons my grandfather ever taught me was to set aside money for retirement. After all, you want to be able to enjoy your golden years.

One of the best ways to save money for retirement is with IRAs or 401(k)s. These accounts are retirement specific and offer special tax benefits and many employers with often match your contribution.

If you want to have a comfortable retirement and stop working at a reasonable age, it's a good idea to take advantage of the options listed above, or you may find yourself working past the age of 65 in order to get by.

According to msn.com, the cost of retirement varies by state since cost of living and life expectancy is different depending on where you live. In a recent study, they determined what a comfortable retirement would cost in each state. All data used came from the Bureau of Economic Analysis, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, an independent global health research center at the University of Washington.

If you plan on spending your golden years in the Treasure State, you better plan in advance and start saving now. In Montana, the cost of a comfortable retirement annually is $68,588. That includes $54,870 for annual expenses and a 20% comfort buffer of $13,718. Retirement in Montana won't be easy according to the study, especially since the annual income of most working Montanans is just shy of $55,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

It's important to start saving for retirement, unless you want to end up living in a van down by the Yellowstone River. Honestly, that doesn't sound too bad.