Supercharge Your IRA With These 3 Moves

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The median retirement savings balance of Americans aged 65 to 74 is $200,000, according to the Federal Reserve. That's not a small sum by any means. But a recent Northwestern Mutual survey found that Americans think it will take $1.46 million, on average, to retire comfortably.

So clearly, there's a big disconnect between that number and the typical amount older Americans are retiring with. The good news is that with the right strategy, you can set yourself up with an individual retirement account (IRA) balance that's way closer to $1.46 million than $200,000. Here's how to supercharge your savings for the dream retirement you deserve.

1. Set up automatic contributions

One of the nice things about 401(k) plans is that they get funded automatically. When you sign up with your employer, you choose how much you want to contribute out of your earnings, and that sum is deducted from your paycheck before it hits your bank account. It's this system that helps many 401(k) savers stay on track.

But you can actually set up your IRA for automatic transfers, too. All you have to do is figure out how much you can afford to contribute each month and then set up that transfer out of your checking account each time your paycheck hits. It's a great way to make sure IRA contributions don't accidentally fall by the wayside.

2. Make savvy investments

You have numerous choices for investments in your IRA. But if you want that money to grow, stocks are a good bet.

Unlike 401(k) plans, which typically limit you to a bunch of different funds to choose from, IRAs make it possible to hold individual stocks. This allows you to customize your portfolio and pick a group of winners that might outperform the broad stock market .

However, if investing is not in your comfort zone, you don't have to buy stocks individually. You could instead invest your IRA in an S&P 500 ETF, which means you're investing in an index that consists of the 500 largest publicly traded companies today.

What might that do for your savings? Let's say you save $300 a month in your IRA between ages 30 and 65. The stock market's average annual return over the past 50 years is 10%. If you're able to score a similar return, you're looking at a balance of about $976,000.

3. Give yourself as many years to grow your savings as possible

It's not easy to start funding an IRA when you're young. You may be limited to an entry-level salary, and you may have a host of bills to cover on with those earnings. But the more time you give your IRA to grow, the higher your balance is likely to be by the time your retirement arrives.

In the example above, we saw that saving $300 a month over 35 years at a 10% return resulted in $976,000. If we extend that savings window by five years, your ending balance becomes almost $1.6 million.

And that doesn't even require you to start contributing to an IRA the minute you start working. Saving $300 a month from ages 25 through 65 gives you a little leeway at the start of your career to focus on your near-term bills only.

You deserve a retirement that rocks from start to finish. But it's going to take money to pull off a comfortable lifestyle. Make these moves in your IRA, and you may be shocked -- in a good way -- at how much wealth you're able to accumulate in time for your golden years.

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