Retirement Investing Decisions

[Keegan Mulholland]

Hello, 

My name is Keegan and I'm a newbie investor from the Syracuse, NY area. I currently do not own any properties, although I plan to purchase a duplex and house-hack for my first investment by this time next year. 

I am a young professional - employed as an engineer for the last 1.5 years. The company I work for offers a 401(k) program that makes a safe harbor nonelective contribution of 3% every year (i.e. I will receive a 3% deposit each year from my employer regardless of how much I elect to contribute). My question is does it make sense to contribute to this fund on my own? If so, how much?

To summarize my goals, I am more interested in the passive income possibilities offered through real estate investing than entering the rat race and settling for mediocrity. Ideally, I would like to be able to resign from my day job before the 59 1/2 age required for penalty free withdrawal in the 401(k). With that being said, I also like the idea of having a retirement account for a "fall-back option" if things don't quite work out as intended in the real estate space.  

Given the above, I am looking for advice on my retirement investing options. Does it make sense to contribute so a "safe" retirement account of some sort? Would it be more advantageous to invest in my company's 401(k) plan or a self-funded IRA? Approximately what percentage of my salary (I make a good salary for a person of my age) would you invest in retirement outside of real estate?

This is an awesome site, thanks in advance for the help!

Keegan