Before consulting retirement planning professionals at Miramontes Capital, it is a smart idea to take advantage of one the many online retirement calculators available. We have highlighted three effective retirement calculators to help you obtain a rough estimate for entering your new beginning.
The process of reviewing your finances with a professional is a personal and intimate one. That is why, here at Miramontes Capital, we recommend using a retirement calculator so you can better plan ahead for your “New Beginning” with an advisor.
Retirement calculator components
A handful of factors need to be taken into account when searching for the right retirement calculator. Some are free; others come at a price, usually based on the strength level. If you are seeking a calculator with general components and an estimate of if you are on the right track heading into retirement, you can find a lower accuracy calculator. For more precise strategies, often ones that include specific comparisons of situations, use a high-accuracy tool. You can even run more than one calculator to confirm the conclusions and pinpoint what needs to change on your road to retirement.
Calculators can include any elements from college saving and Social Security estimates to real estate and spouse information. On some calculators, you can include your budget plans as well as goals during retirement. That way, if you plan on traveling, making home renovations or making other large purchases before or during retirement, you are able to plan ahead.
The 3 retirement calculators
Money Guide Pro
Money Guide Pro comprises a simple interface with an all-in one retirement calculation program. You have the option of including multiple individuals, creating savings plans and goals, viewing Monte Carlo and historical analyses, and tracking your history. You can also set a custom income, expenses, savings and investments. Money Guide Pro features an overall easy-to- use program after you create an account.
Plotting out the steps you need to take before you retire means several things. Sketch out your ideal, worry-free retirement life and daily schedule. Write out your budget and expenses and how they might fluctuate during retirement. Utilize some of the best retirement calculators to solidify the blueprints of your financial status during retirement. Run through a simple scenario of savings based on your income. If you regularly put aside a certain percent, see how much more you could end up with by increasing it a few percentage points. If you would like a complimentary login, please call our office at 800-460-1595 or email info@miramontescapital.com.
Charles Schwab
Charles Schwab offers a comprehensive, three-tiered calculator to help you arrive at a more solid idea of when you can retire. The first section, “Tell Us About Yourself,” presents three questions: What is your retirement age? What age do you plan to retire? What is your investment style? (Select one of five options on a spectrum from low risk to high risk.)
The second step comprises “Your Retirement Plan,” asking you to fill in your current household income, how much you have saved for retirement so far, how much you plan on saving each year for retirement, several Social Security questions, how much supplemental income you plan to receive each year during retirement (excluding Social Security and investment portfolio income), and how much money you plan to spend annually during retirement. The third and final section displays your “Retirement Analysis,” where you can view whether your savings plan needs adjustments. To see how you would need to shift your spending, saving or investing habits for an ideal retirement scenario, the Charles Schwab analysis section allows you to move sliders up or down to recalculate it with the necessary changes made.
Monte Carlo Planner
Another one of the best retirement planners out there is the Flexible Retirement Planner by Monte Carlo Simulation. It offers several planning benefits at no cost—including the chance to input “what if” scenarios and perform sensitivity analysis to see which areas most affect your retirement planning. This will calculate your probability of success, factoring in your portfolio value, withdrawal data, expenses and more.
Think about your level of preparedness and decide what the next step for you might be. Think of small steps that might improve your situation over time, whether that may be ramping up your contributions to an employer-sponsored plan, or looking into options outside that if you are maxing out your contributions, or if a 401(k) is not an option for you.
Schedule an in-office or over the phone consultation to discuss how Miramontes Capital can help you with your new beginning through retirement planning.