Financial News: Not saving enough? Join the club

Mortgage payments, car loans, college tuitions, credit card bills. For nearly seven out of 10 Americans, these and other financial responsibilities undermine efforts to save for retirement, according to a recent poll from Bankrate.com. Only 28 percent of respondents were meeting their monthly goals for retirement savings. Another 36 percent said they were able to save some but not enough, and 32 percent admitted that expenses were preventing them from contributing anything to their retirement kitty. (Four percent of those polled refused to answer.)

As savvy savers know, it's easier to amass wealth if you begin socking away money as soon as possible. And on that front, the results of Bankrate's poll were more encouraging: Two-thirds of Americans have at least started saving for retirement, with one-third of those saying they began doing so in their 20s. If you're among those who haven't begun saving yet, get started now! It's never too late, and IRS rules permit those over age 50 to contribute up to an additional $5,000 in "catch-up" savings to a 401(k) plan.