Posted March 27, 2009By Paul Katzeff
Mayhem in the stock and housing markets is painfully real to Paula Bostick. She’s lost a lot of money. At least she hasn’t lost her sense of humor.
“My husband, John, will not make a nice greeter at Wal-Mart,” she said.
Working for a firm that supplies plastic parts to carmakers and building firms, he’s vulnerable to a layoff. But neither he nor Paula, both in their 50s, can afford to retire.
John’s 401(k) account balance has been slashed by nearly 50%. Paula’s IRA is down nearly 60%. She is a continuing-education teacher in California. But her 403(b) account — the teaching world’s version of a 401(k) — is off 50% from its peak.
