<prompt> Human: I made over 150k and will get back over 20k tax refund. I know Im technicically giving Uncle Sam an interest free loan, but how much money am I missing out on for not getting more money on my paycheck and investing myself?  <response>: Today youve learned something very, very, very important. You were able to make it through all of 2016 with 20k extra being taken out of your paycheck. Heres some things you should consider doing immediately. Max out your employer provider retirement savings, assuming youre not near retirement you can invest 18,000 a year in your 401k and you should that immediately. If your spouse is employed, have her max out theirs as well. If you need to reduce the amount because of any cash flow issues, you can do that later. Remember that there is a discount on a 401k contribution because it will reduce your income tax withholding so a 1,500 monthly contribution may only reduce your pay check by 1,000 1,100 because the 401k contribution is untaxed.You might have goofed in 2016, but youve trained your budget to allow you to effectively save 20k a year.If you did not make an IRA contribution or did not max out an IRA contribution, you should take part of that 20k tax refund and use it to max out your IRA contribution and one for your spouse. If you elect a traditional IRA you can then amend your 2016 return and get an even bigger refund. 