This 66-year-old works 11-hour days, has no money and has roommates — here's how to build a nest egg ASAP

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Jing PanMon, Jun 23, 2025, 10:07 AM 6 min readIn This Article:Photo: CBS NewsMoneywise and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue through links in the content below.Maryann O'Connor, a single mom who adopted and raised three kids, envisioned a comfortable retirement. However, her reality tells a different story.Thanks to Jeff Bezos, you can now become a landlord for as little as $100 — and no, you don't have to deal with tenants or fix freezers. Here's howBlackRock CEO Larry Fink has an important message for the next wave of American retirees — here's how he says you can best weather the US retirement crisisNervous about the stock market in 2025? Find out how you can access this $1B private real estate fund (with as little as $10)High Yield Savings Offers“I’m working my butt off,” the 66-year-old told CBS News.O'Connor has no savings, 401(k) or even an emergency fund. She works two jobs, sometimes up to 11 hours a day.“It's been a matter of life and death,” she said, reflecting on her financial struggles. “I [had hoped] to be retired, playing the piano again, just enjoying my life.”Instead, O’Connor sold her home and purchased a smaller one, which she shares with two other women.It's increasingly common for Americans to continue working into their golden years. According to the Pew Research Center, approximately one-in-five Americans aged 65 and over were employed in 2023, a figure that has nearly doubled compared to 35 years ago.Saving for retirement isn't just a good idea — it's essential. And it’s never too late to start. Here’s how to begin building your nest egg.Data from the U.S. Census Bureau reveals a troubling trend: Nearly half of U.S. women aged 55 to 66 have no personal retirement savings. For men in the same age group the figure is only slightly lower at 47%.Smart financial planning — particularly for retirement — begins with knowing where your money goes. Track your spending for a full month and sort each expense into two categories: essential needs or discretionary purchases.However, budgeting can be challenging, especially when trying to track multiple accounts, food shopping and daily expenses simultaneously. With YNAB, you can track spending and saving all in one place. Link your accounts so you can see a big-picture look of your expenses and net worth growth. You can prioritize saving for short or long term goals — like a vacation or a down payment for a house — with the app’s goal tracking feature.If you want to pay debts faster, you can create personalized paydown plans to calculate how much interest you’d save if you topped up your monthly payments with a little extra.Terms and Privacy PolicyPrivacy & Cookie SettingsMore InfoS&P Futures6,031.00 +13.00 (+0.22%)Dow Futures42,558.00 +43.00 (+0.10%)Nasdaq Futures21,898.00 +53.25 (+0.24%)Russell 2000 Futures2,123.20 -1.70 (-0.08%)VIX20.81 +0.19 (+0.92%)Gold3,380.40 -5.30 (-0.16%)PortfolioSign in to access your portfolioSign inTop gainersGMS GMS Inc. 100.27 +19.26 (+23.77%)UAA Under Armour, Inc. 7.03 +0.86 (+13.94%)OSCR Oscar Health, Inc. 21.22 +2.45 (+13.05%)WLYB John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 45.41 +5.16 (+12.82%)ZETA Zeta Global Holdings Corp. 14.18 +1.59 (+12.63%)Top losersPEGA Pegasystems Inc. 49.61 -51.47 (-50.92%)LYEL Lyell Immunopharma, Inc. 8.69 -0.89 (-9.29%)CSAN Cosan S.A. 5.28 -0.50 (-8.65%)HCC Warrior Met Coal, Inc. 43.18 -3.83 (-8.15%)KBR KBR, Inc. 48.93 -3.85 (-7.29%)Most activeNVDA NVIDIA Corporation 143.85 -1.63 (-1.12%)INTC Intel Corporation 21.08 -0.41 (-1.91%)AMCR Amcor plc 8.97 -0.08 (-0.88%)LCID Lucid Group, Inc. 2.1900 -0.0300 (-1.35%)F Ford Motor Company 10.59 +0.16 (+1.53%)Earnings eventsTrending tickersCL=F Crude Oil Aug 25 74.10 +0.26 (+0.35%)ZETA Zeta Global Holdings Corp. 14.18 +1.59 (+12.63%)PEGA Pegasystems Inc. 49.61 -51.47 (-50.92%)XOM Exxon Mobil Corporation 114.70 +1.51 (+1.33%)NVO Novo Nordisk A/S 73.77 -0.24 (-0.32%)Top economic eventsPowered by Money.com - Yahoo may earn commission from the links above.