1. Open the “Calc with sample values” tab in the Retirement Savings Calculator worksheet.
3. Go to the “Calculations” tab. Enter the total amount of your outstanding debt in cell D2 (that is the cell column D, row 2 of the worksheet).
4. Enter the average annual interest rate on your outstanding debt in cell D3. Enter the amount of total monthly payments in cell D5.
5. In cell D8, enter the number of years of delay from today until you start saving. Depending on your situation, this number could be the number of years until your debt is paid from cell D6 or it could be the number of years until you graduate or some other number that makes sense in your situation. It could also be 0.
6. Enter the number of years until you retire in cell D11.
7. Enter the monthly income you want at retirement in today’s dollars in cell D12.
8. Enter the assumed average interest rate on your investments after your retirement in cell D16. This number should be relatively low because most people opt for very safe investments at this point in their lives. These safe investments tend to have lower interest rates than investments that carry more risk. The “Calc with sample values” has a value of 4%. No need to enter the % symbol when you enter this.
9. Enter your estimate of how many years you (and your spouse if you are married) will live after you quit working in cell D19.
10. Enter your estimate of the interest rate on your investments before your retirement in cell D25. Opinions vary widely on the correct rate to use for this. The long-term average interest on stocks in the United States is about 12% per year. Many analysts use this in their future projections. However, many other analysts consider this to be too high due to the long-term effects of the high debt level of the United States government. The “Calc with sample values” has a value of 9%. This percentage is just a number that is somewhere in the middle. It is not intended in any way as an actual prediction of future interest rates. The author of this worksheet has no knowledge of what future interest rates will be and does not intend that anyone use this number as a meaningful prediction.
11. If you have any money invested in savings today, please enter the total amount in cell D27. Do not enter the dollar sign or any commas. Just enter the numerical amount. The “Calc with sample values” has $50,000 just to show the effects of having some money already invested.
nbechtold
How_to_Fill_Out_the_Retirement_Savings_Calculator.docx
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