I agree with the numbers reflected in your question. Here is to expand on them a little:

1. The maximum IRA contribution this year for someone under the age of 50 are $4,000. If you're married, you and your spouse can each contribute $4k into an IRA, even if your spouse has no earned income. You have until 4/15/08 to contribute to your IRAs for 2007, and you can even direct your federal tax refund to go into your IRA on a Form 8888.

2. The maximum total salary deferrals for someone under the age of 50 for 2007 is $15,500. If you work for multiple employers, or are self-employed and have a Solo 401k, you're still limited to a total of $15,500 in deferrals from all of your employers.

3. The maximum that can be contributed into most retirement plans by any employer (including yourself if you're self-employed), and including your salary deferrals, is $45k this year. So if you work for multiple employers, and work enough hours at each to qualify to participate in the plan, each employer can contribute up to $45k on your behalf. Your salary deferrals are included in the $45k. The only catch is that the different employers can not have common ownership. So if you own 100% of a business, and are also a self-employed consultant, you would not be able to put away $45k on your behalf from both businesses into a defined contribution plan since both businesses have common ownership.

4. And yes, certain pension plans (called defined benefit plans) have a contribution ceiling much higher than the $45k allowed for defined contribution plans.

I hope this helps answer some of your questions. Seems like you've given a lot of thought to maxing out your retirement savings.

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Thank you for the very fast and thorough reply!!!

This message board is a great resource!

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