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There are plenty of companies offering a wide variety of funds to choose from. Some examples are: T. Rowe Price, Franklin Templeton, Kemper, Fidelity, Vanguard, Oppenheimer, Aim, and Janus. Mutual funds are regulated by the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission).

Retirement

If we all could be (or wanted to be) productive workers right up to the end of our lives, most of us would not worry about saving for retirement. If we didn't have children, most of us would not worry about their college education. And if didn't have parents who may require care in their older years (and possibly did not plan solidly for their retirement), we would not worry about providing them with financial assistance. But that is not the case for most of us. The reality is that many of us at some point in our golden years (by force or by choice) slow down and require supplemental income to carry us through. And some of us may want to assist our children with their college education, help provide care for our parents, and even leave something for our loved ones when we are gone. But before we can help our children or our parents, we must help ourselves.

With average life expectancy increasing, saving for retirement is not an option but a necessity. Considering the bevy of investment vehicles available today and the many plans available to encourage us to save for retirement, having a solid retirement plan is not as difficult as you may imagine. The key to a good retirement plan however is discipline and an early start. If you have been putting this off, today is a great time to start investing for your future. With that in mind, let's look at some of the vehicles available for retirement and beyond:

Social Security - Despite all the doom and gloom predictions we hear about social security, chances are that it will be around for a long …