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Retirement calculator
Old 08-24-2006, 09:17 AM   #1
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Retirement calculator

Aol has a retirement calculator - filled it out for kicks. I put in all my info (savings/investments), left the future savings rate at zero.
Put in age 50, put in age to start drawing from savings/investments - 50. Pressed submit....it would not accept any withdrawals before age 60!
This is a great example of how people/finacial advisers think of retirement - not possible before sixty!? What a line of cr*p.

I did enter age sixty to start withdrawals - I could take $17,000 per month safely!!! Maybe I'll go live under a bridge for 10 years and THEN live it up!

Maybe not
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Re: Retirement calculator
Old 08-24-2006, 11:33 AM   #2
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Re: Retirement calculator

Quote:
Originally Posted by Donzo
Put in age 50, put in age to start drawing from savings/investments - 50.* Pressed submit....it would not accept any withdrawals before age 60!
I have seen retirement calculators that imposed other fairly arbitrary limitations, for example one wouldn't let me put 20% of my current gross income as the amount of money that I would need to live on in retirement. For the most part, these little applications are just afterthoughts and of little to no value to more advanced users.
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Re: Retirement calculator
Old 08-24-2006, 01:25 PM   #3
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Re: Retirement calculator

The current AARP mag points to a site they have for calculating the amount you need for retirement (sort of a poor man's firecalc)....

but it barks and won't work if you try to put in more than $1mm as your investment total.* Says that's too much.

go figger....or not....

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Re: Retirement calculator
Old 08-24-2006, 07:54 PM   #4
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Re: Retirement calculator

It's sad that solid info on how you can get out early is not more available. This site is great....but I found it 4 months ago and have been ER minded for 20 years. The info spewed by wall street is so much more easily found.
On the positive side, I have shared this site with several friends and work buddies that were shocked when I told them I was finished.
Will they take the advice given....
It really seems that people get set in their ways--
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Re: Retirement calculator
Old 08-24-2006, 08:07 PM   #5
 
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Re: Retirement calculator

Quote:
Originally Posted by Donzo
It's sad that solid info on how you can get out early is not more available. This site is great....but I found it 4 months ago and have been ER minded for 20 years. The info spewed by wall street is so much more easily found.
On the positive side, I have shared this site with several friends and work buddies that were shocked when I told them I was finished.
Will they take the advice given....
It really seems that people get set in their ways--
It takes tremendous will power to save and LBYM for retirement for 20-25 years. It only takes a year or two of willpower to reach your goal weight. Yet look at how many people in the U.S. are Fat!

People are set in their ways and want instant gratification. Whether it be food or material things.
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Re: Retirement calculator
Old 08-24-2006, 08:50 PM   #6
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Re: Retirement calculator

Quote:
Originally Posted by Cut-Throat
People are set in their ways and want instant gratification. Whether it be food or material things.
How true.* I personally would feel bad to be really fat or broke. Luckily, I have not had to struggle too hard to attain these goals. For others it may not be easy. Not sure how I would do if I were a real gourmand for example. For me, comfort food is casserole made from spinach, onion, tomato sauce and perhaps an egg on top.

For some others, it is a pound of brownies.*

Ha
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Re: Retirement calculator
Old 08-25-2006, 07:43 AM   #7
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Re: Retirement calculator

Instant gratifacation is definately a problem - people do not want to do "with out". I had a conversation with an aquaintance a couple of days ago. He had questions on how best to get into the pharm. sales arena. He had been a regional manager with a building supplies co and made very good money. He was laid off a couple of months ago and has already gone through the 3 months severance and vacation payout. He and his wife used to live in a small, nice house and had a very managable mortgage. Two years ago they bought a mcmasion with........a $3200 mo mortgage payment/30 years. This poor guy is sweating bullets and is considering ANY sales position just to stay above water.
They have a beautiful house, they are not "without" but, that house and their lifestyle is a prison and a source of alot of stress.
They are going to be working hard for a long time for their stuff - not themselves
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Re: Retirement calculator
Old 08-25-2006, 08:52 AM   #8
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Re: Retirement calculator

Quote:
Originally Posted by HaHa

For some others, it is a pound of brownies.*

Ha
Hey, don't knock my brownies.*
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Re: Retirement calculator
Old 08-25-2006, 09:44 AM   #9
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Re: Retirement calculator

What sort of brownies... :P
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Re: Retirement calculator
Old 08-25-2006, 04:05 PM   #10
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Re: Retirement calculator

Sorry.. chocolate chip cookie dough for ME...
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Re: Retirement calculator
Old 08-26-2006, 06:08 AM   #11
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Re: Retirement calculator

Quote:
Originally Posted by pfpelican
The current AARP mag points to a site they have for calculating the amount you need for retirement (sort of a poor man's firecalc)....

but it barks and won't work if you try to put in more than $1mm as your investment total.* Says that's too much.

go figger....or not....

I wouldn't trust the AARP calculator. My husband is retiring before me and when I say I am continuing to contribute to my deferred retirement after he retires, it informs me that:

"Your age to end contributions must not be after your spouse's retirement, please limit your Age to End Contributions to no more than 61." (61 is the age I will be when he retires.) I guess if my spouse did not work at all, ever, I would be barred from saving for retirement.
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Re: Retirement calculator
Old 08-26-2006, 06:26 AM   #12
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Re: Retirement calculator

Quote:
Originally Posted by Tadpole
I wouldn't trust the AARP calculator. My husband is retiring before me and when I say I am continuing to contribute to my deferred retirement after he retires, it informs me that:

"Your age to end contributions must not be after your spouse's retirement, please limit your Age to End Contributions to no more than 61." (61 is the age I will be when he retires.) I guess if my spouse did not work at all, ever, I would be barred from saving for retirement.
Just my reading... but if you spouse had not worked at all, ever... then they would not be able to retire as they never worked... just my opinion on something I know nothing about...
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Re: Retirement calculator
Old 08-26-2006, 09:01 AM   #13
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Re: Retirement calculator

Whenever I use a retirement calculator, I enter DH as the main dude (he's still working) and me (retired) as the spouse. Many calculators choke when I enter my correct age at retirement in the past, which is technically OK--I just enter 0 as my income, the next year as my retirement age, and no current or future contributions to savings. In fact, I enter no current or future contributions to savings for him as well, since he's only contributing to a pension plan now and that rarely appears on these calculators. (We're also contributing to Roths, but just by shuffling taxable savings into them. I figure the slightly larger Roths and slightly smaller taxable accounts will be a small added benefit that I need not account for, mainly reducing our taxes a smidge.)
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Re: Retirement calculator
Old 08-26-2006, 09:55 AM   #14
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Re: Retirement calculator

Most of these web based calculators are pretty bad.* This one on CNN to perform the easy "when will you be a millionaire?" calculation is one of my favorites.* If you enter in current savings in excess of 1,000,000 it tells you:

Quote:
The following errors have occured [sic]:

The amount you have on all your accounts already met your target.
Please correct your errors and resubmit.
As if no one on the planet has more than $1,000,000.* I understand that if you already have $1 million or more, playing around with this calculator is kind of silly . . . but don't you think a better response would be "Congratulations!, you're already a millionaire"?
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Re: Retirement calculator
Old 08-26-2006, 01:02 PM   #15
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Re: Retirement calculator

Quote:
Originally Posted by Texas Proud
Just my reading... but if you spouse had not worked at all, ever... then they would not be able to retire as they never worked...* *just my opinion on something I know nothing about...
I think you missed the point. The calculator won't let me contribute to my savings after my husband retires even though I will be working 5 years after. Ok, based on that, if my husband retired, 20 years before me, I guess that, according to the calculator, I would not be able to take advantage of my workplace deferred plan for 20 years. Go to AARP and try to save beyond your spouse's retirement and see for yourself.
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Re: Retirement calculator
Old 08-26-2006, 02:47 PM   #16
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Re: Retirement calculator

I looked around alot and couldn't recommend more highly the Microsoft Money 2005 Deluxe Lifetime Planner.

You can put everything in that you'd want... I have medical insurance and medical expenses as they change at different ages... with different inflation rates (I use 30% for Med Insurance)..... and different rates of return on investments.... I could go on and would be glad to if others have any specific questions.

You put in life expectancy and it lets you know if your plan works or not.

The only complaint I've heard is that you have to sign in to Microsoft Passport to use it.... and they do set it up that way... but that can be turned off.

... Rick
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