l have been contributing up to 20% in my 401K for two years. l started the year with $18 and was up to $28K two months ago. Today l checked and it was down to about 20K. l technically lost about 10K.

My bookkeeper said to reduce my contributions from 20 to 5% instead. Will l ever see the 10K l lost again?

Yes, if your investment timeframe is long term. You have not ''lost'' it unless you panic and cash out now.

If you are 20+ years from retirement..do nothing.

l am no expert, but the motto is:

Buy low, sell high

Right now stocks r low. So u should be buying. l would not drop ur contribution. If u could, I'd even increase it. 20% is already a big contribution though in my opinion. You have not really lost any shares of stock, they r just worth less right now. Contributing the same amount of money towards ur 401k while stocks r cheap means u get more shares per dollar that u contribute. So, you're getting more shares for ur money right now. That is good news. When the market recovers in the long term, ur shares will increase in value back to where they were before all of this mess (hopefully) & u will come up better off than u were to start with.

At least that is my strategy/opinion/understanding of it all.

Do not forget though. l am no expert at all.

Your loss is on paper...just like your gain.

If you do not plan to retire anytime soon.just ride it out. The market will eventually go back up again.

It is not wise to sell in a down market.

The others are right. You have not actually lost any money unless you sell, or cash in at a loss. Your fund has lost ''value'' perhaps. If you're fairly young, and not near retirement, you will most likely see your 10k plus that amount in the future. l am wondering why your bookkeeper suggested reducing contributions. Unless you need the extra $$, I'd keep on investing as much as possible, unless you're nearing retirement age.