by Nigel Hilton

Retirement can sneak up on you if you’re not paying attention. One moment you’re on a lark and the next thing you know, you’re scraping by on pension and Hungry Man dinners. Fortunately, this doesn’t have to be you--if you start yesterday, that is.

But seeing as the laws of time are not ours to control, today will have to do. But what if you’re completely in the dark about this stuff? It’s not exactly mood-setting conversation, and quite frankly, retirement is still abstract enough to dismiss, right?. Well then, allow us to give you a simple breakdown on the two most popular IRAs, or Individual Retirement Accounts for the uninitiated.

There are traditional IRAs and Roth IRAs. Taxes on traditional IRAs are deferred until retirement, while money put into Roth IRAs has already been taxed. Your taxes on withdrawals from traditional IRAs might be lower if you’re in a lower income bracket come retirement. Withdrawals on Roth IRAs, on the other hand, are always tax-free. The only kicker is you have to meet certain income requirements in order to open an IRA. Boom.

Got it? Good. Read on to learn more about these IRAs and how you could benefit from opening one. Oh, and that $20 you were about to blow on takeout? Save it. You’re gonna need it to christen your new retirement account.