If your youngster — or grandchild — has a summer job, it's easy to provide a smart start to his or her retirement. Sounds premature? Not really. The kids have time on their side.

Consider a Roth IRA that will grow tax free for a lot of years. Imagine the appreciation on a $500 start for a 15-year-old by the time the account is tapped at 65! Actually, the money can be withdrawn earlier, but let's hope not.

The contribution limit is the lesser of $5,000 or the child's earned income. And if the youngster is not enthusiastic about plunking down his earnings for faraway gain, there's no law forbidding parents or grandparents from supplying the cash to open a Roth IRA. (IRAs are rarely included in financial aid considerations for college.)

If the youngster doesn't need to file a tax return (which would document the contribution), it's smart to save his W-2 or 1099.

For nearly 30 years, Mike Nickerson has owned and managed a small, full-service accounting practice in the Midcoast. He holds a bachelor's degree in accounting from University of Southern Main and a master's degree in financial planning from Bentley University.

He is a past board member and president of the Maine Society of Certified Public Accountants and currently serves on the Maine Board of Accountancy.

An aged rock musician, Nickerson now finds musical enjoyment playing upright and electric bass in a variety of bands spanning folk to jazz music genres. He and his wife have three grown children, and they enjoy their free time hiking, kayaking, golfing, bicycling and motorcycling.

http://www.nickersonpa.com/