Would You Like Help Planning Your Retirement?
Making sure that you can live your retirement in comfort and not in frustration takes a lot of planning. Soon-to-be retirees may find that they aren’t exactly sure what to plan for or how, though. If you have questions about retirement that you would like answered, don’t worry – you’re not alone. You can seek the help of a professional retirement planner!
Hi, I’m Dr. Penelope Tzougros, and I can be your retirement planner. I aim to help soon-to-be-retirees like you to make important retirement decisions based in facts. Once you have all the facts in front of you, you can make informed retirement decisions.
Are You Considering Using A Retirement Calculator?
If you are thirty and want to retire at 60, a retirement calculator might help you estimate how much more you need to save. If you are much nearer to retirement, say just a few years away, using a calculator may trap you. Why? Isn’t it just running numbers? Isn’t it just math?
Is Your Retirement Calculator Asking the Right Questions?
Yes, retirement planning is about numbers, but not only about numbers. It’s also about who you are, and what you value. What does the calculator ask you to input? What are the assumptions that the software is making?
Some Retirement Calculators Ask Too Much
Suppose you state your age, does the program assume your actuarial death, or does it ask- as a financial planner would – about your health and family history of longevity? You state how much you have saved or invested. Saved and invested are not the same. Saved is likely to be vehicles that remove risk and invested adds risk and volatility. However, the calculator may assume the rate of return on the money is the same for both, now and continues to be the same until retirement and after retirement. That is a trap which may understate or overstate your pool of money for retirement
The calculator may also assume that your cash flow needs are the same from now until you die.
Some retirement calculators may allow you to be more specific about your investments. However, are they extrapolating the most recent year’s returns or looking at ten years? Does the calculator capture the “habits” of the fund or investment? For those of you who would like to preserve your capital and live on the dividends or interest, can the calculator show you the growth in income not just the appreciation in price of the holding?
What inflation rate does the calculator assume? If it is 2%, you may have rosy picture. If it is 4% which is closer to the United States 40-year history, you may feel you are not as prepared for retirement.
Retirement Calculator vs. Personally Tailored Retirement Plan
These are just a few of the points where a retirement calculator may trap you into being optimistic or gloomy. Having a guesstimate has some value but it is hard to pay bills and pay for your future needs if the guesstimate is wrong. You might serve the future you better by taking the time to have a comprehensive and personally tailored plan rather than relying on a retirement calculator that initially feels less intrusive and intensive, but what a difference the two approaches might have for your satisfactory retirement.
Whatever you do, I wish you healthy, joyful, and prosperous days.
Dr. Penelope Tzougros Helps You Prepare For Retirement
Wouldn’t be it nice to rely on professional financial advice as you prepare for retirement? I’m Dr. Penelope Tzougros, and I’m ready to offer the personalized advice you seek. I use my experiences as an author, a speaker, a financial consultant, and a Professor to help you prepare for the future and for retirement. Making financial plans can feel scary, confusing, or overwhelming – but it doesn’t have to be. Contact me today to learn about how you can prepare for retirement now!