Comments on: Are you Saving Enough for Retirement? http://www.fivecentnickel.com/2006/08/08/are-you-saving-enough-for-retirement/ personal finance tips, tricks, and commentary Sat, 21 Nov 2009 18:35:25 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=abc hourly 1 By: Jim Richmond http://www.fivecentnickel.com/2006/08/08/are-you-saving-enough-for-retirement/comment-page-1/#comment-28204 Jim Richmond Mon, 09 Oct 2006 23:48:44 +0000 http://www.fivecentnickel.com/2006/08/08/are-you-saving-enough-for-retirement/#comment-28204 The dinkytown calculators are cool, but for long range planning you really need to use a planner that takes portfolio volatility into account rather than assuming a steady return each year. These more sophisticated calculators use either historical market data or Monte Carlo simulation to take volatility into account. A couple of good ones are www.flexibleRetirementPlanner.com www.FIRECalc.com They are both free and run inside your web browser. Try these with the same inputs you used on the dinkytown calculator and notice the difference. Jim The dinkytown calculators are cool, but for long range planning you really need to use a planner that takes portfolio volatility into account rather than assuming a steady return each year.

These more sophisticated calculators use either historical market data or Monte Carlo simulation to take volatility into account.

A couple of good ones are

http://www.flexibleRetirementPlanner.com

http://www.FIRECalc.com

They are both free and run inside your web browser. Try these with the same inputs you used on the dinkytown calculator and notice the difference.

Jim

]]> By: jtc http://www.fivecentnickel.com/2006/08/08/are-you-saving-enough-for-retirement/comment-page-1/#comment-18657 jtc Fri, 18 Aug 2006 22:05:44 +0000 http://www.fivecentnickel.com/2006/08/08/are-you-saving-enough-for-retirement/#comment-18657 For anyone under the age of 30... go ahead and do the calculations without Social Security. To do otherwise is dangerous. For anyone under the age of 30… go ahead and do the calculations without Social Security.

To do otherwise is dangerous.

]]> By: Matt http://www.fivecentnickel.com/2006/08/08/are-you-saving-enough-for-retirement/comment-page-1/#comment-16763 Matt Wed, 09 Aug 2006 06:40:55 +0000 http://www.fivecentnickel.com/2006/08/08/are-you-saving-enough-for-retirement/#comment-16763 Actually, I don't intend to retire. I figure, if I don't like the work I do enough to want to keep doing it regardless of how old or wealthy I am, then that's a sign I'm already doing something wrong. Doesn't mean I'm not investing for the future, though. The problem with these calculators is that so many factors depend on what happens in 2018 when it stops being possible to deny that Social Security is bankrupt. Does the government raise taxes, and thus drastically cut the income available to be diverted into savings? Do they try to monetize the debt, and the inflation rate goes from a sane number in the single digits to something like 75% as the dollar collapses? Just how much of the economy will be destroyed? Will Medicare be funded (making healthcare investments very safe ones) or killed (making them among the worst possible places to have money)? Honestly, with all the uncertainty involved in planning that far out even if our massive scheme of intergenerational robbery _weren't_ about to collapse, the notion of "retirement planning" any more specific than "save as much as you can, as diversely as you can, at as good a rate of return as you can get, and pray the politicians don't steal it all" seems like folly. Actually, I don’t intend to retire. I figure, if I don’t like the work I do enough to want to keep doing it regardless of how old or wealthy I am, then that’s a sign I’m already doing something wrong.

Doesn’t mean I’m not investing for the future, though.

The problem with these calculators is that so many factors depend on what happens in 2018 when it stops being possible to deny that Social Security is bankrupt. Does the government raise taxes, and thus drastically cut the income available to be diverted into savings? Do they try to monetize the debt, and the inflation rate goes from a sane number in the single digits to something like 75% as the dollar collapses? Just how much of the economy will be destroyed? Will Medicare be funded (making healthcare investments very safe ones) or killed (making them among the worst possible places to have money)?

Honestly, with all the uncertainty involved in planning that far out even if our massive scheme of intergenerational robbery _weren’t_ about to collapse, the notion of “retirement planning” any more specific than “save as much as you can, as diversely as you can, at as good a rate of return as you can get, and pray the politicians don’t steal it all” seems like folly.

]]> By: Blaine Moore http://www.fivecentnickel.com/2006/08/08/are-you-saving-enough-for-retirement/comment-page-1/#comment-16666 Blaine Moore Tue, 08 Aug 2006 15:04:19 +0000 http://www.fivecentnickel.com/2006/08/08/are-you-saving-enough-for-retirement/#comment-16666 88 median life expectancy. I'll take it...as long as I am still able to run (no matter how slowly) 88 median life expectancy. I’ll take it…as long as I am still able to run (no matter how slowly)

]]> By: mapgirl http://www.fivecentnickel.com/2006/08/08/are-you-saving-enough-for-retirement/comment-page-1/#comment-16653 mapgirl Tue, 08 Aug 2006 14:22:19 +0000 http://www.fivecentnickel.com/2006/08/08/are-you-saving-enough-for-retirement/#comment-16653 WOW. Very interesting. Quite an eye opener. WOW. Very interesting. Quite an eye opener.

]]> By: the Prince of Thrift http://www.fivecentnickel.com/2006/08/08/are-you-saving-enough-for-retirement/comment-page-1/#comment-16617 the Prince of Thrift Tue, 08 Aug 2006 11:22:56 +0000 http://www.fivecentnickel.com/2006/08/08/are-you-saving-enough-for-retirement/#comment-16617 Life Expectancy: 80.27 Lower Quartile : 72.74 Median Lifetime: 81.96 Upper Quartile : 89.26 As you can see with my life expectancy and with what will probably be retirement age by the time I get to retirement...I will have already died or will only a few years to live...if everything is correct. Life Expectancy: 80.27
Lower Quartile : 72.74
Median Lifetime: 81.96
Upper Quartile : 89.26

As you can see with my life expectancy and with what will probably be retirement age by the time I get to retirement…I will have already died or will only a few years to live…if everything is correct.

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