Making Cents: Turning Mowed Lawns Into Big Green

Teenagers seldom worry--or even think--about retirement, but funding even a small individual retirement account early can make things much easier half a century later. Consider this example from Vanguard Funds: Set up a $500 IRA for a 14-year-old who spent the summer mowing lawns. Assume an average return of 8% a year for the next 51 years. That account--from one summer’s work--will have become $25,300.