Making the wrong financial choices can be costly – as much as $1 million, says Consumer Reports. CR recently calculated the price tag for 12 of the biggest personal money mistakes consumers can make.

1. Investing too conservatively during retirement (CR estimated cost: $360,000 to $750,000). Conventional wisdom suggests that as retirees age, they should shift money out of stocks and into more stable investments, such as bonds. But annual returns on bonds may barely keep pace with inflation, while stocks, over time, typically provide returns significantly above inflation. And inflation can be a retiree’s worst enemy.

2. Retiring before it’s necessary (CR estimated cost: $237,000 to $309,000). Early retirees give up income they would have earned during what might be the best-paid years of their career. Medicare doesn’t cover them until age 65, so they might have to buy individual health insurance at an age when costs are apt to be at their highest. Retiring early also results in reduced Social Security benefits.

3. Launching a divorce war (CR estimated cost: $49,000 to $188,000). Divorce may be unavoidable, but the more issues spouses want to slug out, the more billable hours attorneys can charge.

4. Underinsuring a home (CR estimated cost: $16,000 to $194,000). Even with the recent retreat in home prices, a house in which someone has lived for 10 years is likely to be worth 54 percent to 104 percent more than it cost. But those people who haven’t updated their homeowners insurance could lose those gains if disaster strikes.

5. Overpaying for a mortgage (CR estimated cost: $27,000). The annual percentage rates on mortgages in a given area can vary by close to a percentage point. Over a 30-year term, that adds up to a bundle.

6. Carrying a credit-card balance (CR estimated cost: $5,000 to $23,000). Owing money on a credit card is a costly mistake. For someone who has a card with an interest rate of 15 percent and pays only the minimum due each month, it will take 22 years and two months to retire a $5,000 debit. The interest will have been $5,729.

7. Maintaining an unhealthy lifestyle (CR estimated cost: $4,600 to $42,000). Unhealthy habits not only tend to catch up with people as they age, but they also can hit bank balances in the form of higher life-insurance premiums.

8. Ignoring Roth accounts (CR estimated cost: $9,000 to $26,000). Roth IRAs and Roth 401(k) plans can protect individuals from likely future tax hikes, because taxes are paid on contributions today rather than when they’re withdrawn. Earnings on the account also are tax-free.

9. Cashing out a 401(k) (CR estimated cost: $6,000 to $17,000). Almost 45 percent of workers cash out their 401(k) accounts when they change jobs, according to a recent survey. Not only do they have to pay income tax on their withdrawals but in many cases the IRS also imposes a 10 percent penalty. More important, they lose the tax-deferral they could have maintained by rolling the money into an IRA or other retirement account.

10. Underfunding a 401(k) (CR estimated cost: $36,000). This year, workers younger than 50 can put up to $15,500 into a 401(k); those over 50 can make an additional “catch up” contribution of up to $5,000. CR advises contributing as much as possible to a 401(k) and making sure not to miss out on catch-up provisions.

11. Paying needless fund fees (CR estimated cost: $4,000). Investors who buy mutual funds from a broker, investment adviser or other salesperson could pay commissions, or “loads,” of up to 5.75 percent. Buying no-load funds saves sales charges, putting investors that much ahead.

12. Falling for a scam (CR estimated cost: $100 to you-name-it). People who are financially smart otherwise can be no match for professional con artists, who are virtuosos at playing on people’s vulnerabilities. Scams range from fake magazine subscriptions to phony lottery winnings.