Bank Of America Retirement Calculator

Want To Boost Your Score Here’s How

Here are some ways to boost your retirement readiness whether youre behind on your goals or are on track but maybe want to retire a little earlier.

“My score needs attention.”

An individual retirement account is one of the most popular ways to save for retirement given its large tax advantages. You can put in up to $6,000 a year. And if you’re 50 or older, you can contribute an additional $1,000 a year. » Learn more about IRAs

“On my way, but I could close the gap.”

The annual limit for 401 contributions is $19,500 . Its wise to at least contribute up to the point where youre getting all of the matching dollars your employer might offer. » See about increasing your 401 contributions

“I’m on track, but I want to do more.”

A good advisor can help you understand complex issues, diagnose potential problems and take steps to plan for the future. And theyre not as expensive as you might think. » Learn how to choose a financial advisor

How Much Money Do You Need To Retire

A common guideline is that you should aim to replace 70% of your annual pre-retirement income. This is what the calculator uses as a default. You can replace your pre-retirement income using a combination of savings, investments, Social Security and any other income sources . The Social Security Administration website has a number of calculators to help you estimate your benefits.

It’s important to consider how your expenses will change in retirement. Some, like health care and travel, are likely to increase. But many recurring expenditures could go down: You no longer need to dedicate a portion of your income to saving for retirement. You may have paid off your mortgage and other loans. And your taxes are likely to be lower payroll taxes, which are taken out of each paycheck, will be eliminated completely.

Be sure to adjust based on your retirement plans. If you know you wont have a mortgage, for instance, maybe you plan to replace only 60%. If you want to travel every year, you might aim to replace 100% or even 110% of pre-retirement income.

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Here are some frequently asked questions about My Retirement Plan from Wells Fargo.

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Impact Of Inflation On Retirement Savings

Inflation is the general increase in prices and a fall in the purchasing power of money over time. The average inflation rate in the United States for the past 30 years has been around 2.6% per year, which means that the purchasing power of one dollar now is not only less than one dollar 30 years ago but less than 50 cents! Inflation is one of the reasons why people tend to underestimate how much they need to save for retirement.

Although inflation does have an impact on retirement savings, it is unpredictable and mostly out of a person’s control. As a result, people generally do not center their retirement planning or investments around inflation and instead focus mainly on achieving as large and steady a total return on investment as possible. For people interested in mitigating inflation, there are investments in the U.S. that are specifically designed to counter inflation called Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities and similar investments in other countries that go by different names. Also, gold and other commodities are traditionally favored as protection against inflation, as are dividend-paying stocks as opposed to short-term bonds.

Our Retirement Calculator can help by considering inflation in several calculations. Please visit the Inflation Calculator for more information about inflation or to do calculations involving inflation.

What Is The Best Age To Retire

Retirement means different things to different people. It is becoming more common to think of retirement as the age when you stop needing to make money . By that measure, you can retire as soon as you have adequate income and savings to cover your expenses for as long as you live — no matter how long that turns out to be. Here are some tips for figuring outwhen to retire.

Interested in an early retirement? Try out these29 tips, tricks and hacks for reaching your early retirement goal.

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How Much Do I Need To Retire

To figure out exactly what it will take to retire in comfort, its important to consider what kind of lifestyle you expect to lead in retirement. Do you hope to travel? To Paris, or someplace a little cheaper? How often do you want to eat out? Go to the movies? The beach? Do you want to move closer to the beach? The grandchildren? These questions may seem trivial now, but they can help give you an idea about the income youll need in the future. If youre set on seeing the Eiffel tower, the Pyramids at Giza and the Taj Mahal, youre going to need a sizeable nest egg to draw upon. On the other hand, if you expect to live a rather low-key lifestyle, with far fewer expenses than you currently have, you wont need to save quite as much.

The important thing is to be realistic. Dont shortchange your future self by assuming you can live off of canned tuna and scrambled eggs. While some costs will likely go down in retirement, others may go up. Specifically healthcare costs are likely to rise in retirement. So its best to have a cushion for unpredictable costs like that. Plus, retirement is your reward for decades of hard work: treat yourself accordingly.

Maintaining An Income Stream

Eighteen percent of Americans are worried that they wont be able to afford daily expenses in retirement, according to the Bankrate surveyand theyre concerned that Social Security income either wont be available or wont cover enough of their expenses.

What to do about it: When it comes to income planning in retirement, keep in mind that working for even just a few more years may help you suspend drawing income from Social Security and savings while taking advantage of available pensions and benefits. Learn more about Social Security and how it can affect your retirement income with information from Merrill.

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Ology How The Calculator Works

The Methodology, Assumptions, and Limitations of the Merrill ® Personal Retirement Calculator

The information generated by the Merrill ® Personal Retirement Calculator was developed by Chief Investment Office to estimate how current savings or investments and estimated future contributions may help to meet estimated financial needs in retirement.

The calculator does not take into account a number of important factors that materially impact both what you should save or invest for retirement and which investments may be best for you, including your tax bracket and expected tax payments, other investments or insurance coverage you currently hold, or large expenses you and your family may have both now and in the future, such as educational expenses, alimony, long-term care and health care costs.

The calculator’s results are generated through the use of Monte Carlo simulation to determine the likelihood of levels of returns that a portfolio might experience under different market conditions. The Monte Carlo Analysis is a mathematical technique, based on the statistics of probability, that is used to estimate the likelihood that your assets may realize your target growth goal within the time frame indicated using assumptions of hypothetical risk and return as well as inflation. See more information below.

This analysis is not a guarantee as your actual results may vary materially.

Methodology â How the Calculator Works

Asset Class Assumptions

Equity:

Cash:

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NerdWallet, Inc. is an independent publisher and comparison service, not an investment advisor. Its articles, interactive tools and other content are provided to you for free, as self-help tools and for informational purposes only. They are not intended to provide investment advice. NerdWallet does not and cannot guarantee the accuracy or applicability of any information in regard to your individual circumstances. Examples are hypothetical, and we encourage you to seek personalized advice from qualified professionals regarding specific investment issues. Our estimates are based on past market performance, and past performance is not a guarantee of future performance.

We believe everyone should be able to make financial decisions with confidence. And while our site doesnt feature every company or financial product available on the market, were proud that the guidance we offer, the information we provide and the tools we create are objective, independent, straightforward and free.

So how do we make money? Our partners compensate us. This may influence which products we review and write about , but it in no way affects our recommendations or advice, which are grounded in thousands of hours of research. Our partners cannot pay us to guarantee favorable reviews of their products or services.Here is a list of our partners.

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I Will Have To Pay Taxes In Retirement How Does My Retirement Plan Account For Taxes

The amount of taxes you owe in retirement is based on many things, including where you live, marital status, and future Federal and state tax rates. Its even affected by how much of your retirement income is in tax-advantaged accounts like 401s, Traditional IRAs, and Roth IRAs.

My Retirement Plan uses the income replacement rate to estimate how much money you will need in retirement, including taxes. Based on studies of retirees actual retirement budgets, the tools replacement rate is initially set to 80%. If you feel your tax rate or other expenses will be higher or lower than what the average retiree needs today, you can adjust the income replacement rate found on the Calculator Assumptions tab.

Do You Know What It Takes To Work Towards A Secure Retirement

Use this calculator to help you create your retirement plan. View your retirement savings balance and your withdrawals for each year until the end of your retirement. Social security is calculated on a sliding scale based on your income. Including a non-working spouse in your plan increases your social security benefits up to, but not over, the maximum.

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How Bank Of Americas Cds Compare

Bank of Americas CD yields are much lower than those of the best CD rates. This banks rates are also significantly lower than the national average CD rates, according to the FDIC.

You can find a better deal on CD rates than what Bank of America offers. Especially when you consider its minimum deposit requirement of $10,000, this banks CDs are nowhere near competitive$10,000 is a big commitment in exchange for very little return.

This is an excellent reminder to shop around and do your research on CD rates. Your bank or banks in your immediate geographic area may not have the best CD rates, so consider online options as well. Compare rates from several banks and credit unions and see who can offer you the best deal so you can get the highest possible return on your investment.

Saving For Retirement: Where Are You Now

Whether you plan to live lavishly or frugally, youll need to have a certain amount of money saved by the time you retire. Think of this figure as a mountain summit, reachable by several different paths. If youve done everything right so far, that summit is still in plain view youve followed the most direct and least difficult path, and all you need to do is continue on in the same direction. If, however, your savings arent where they should be, its as if youve wandered in the wrong directionyoull need to recalibrate and start climbing in order to reach the summit.

To determine your current financial coordinates, you need to answer three questions:

• How much have I saved thus far?
• How many years until I retire?
• Whats my annual income ?

The answers to those questions will determine how much work you have to do to reach that mountaintop. If youve saved plenty and youre still young, greatyoure well on your way. If youve saved nothing and your sixties are just around the corner, not so much. Lets check out some examples using our retirement calculator to see how this works in reality.

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What Happens After I Select And Save A Retirement Savings Plan

• Review the monthly amount to save toward retirement, as well as next steps and action items that will help you reach your retirement saving goal.
• of your plan to print or save to your computer.
• Access your plan online at any time by signing on at My Retirement Plan.
• VisitMy Retirement Plan Tips to learn how to make the most of your selected retirement savings plan.

Why Does The Calculator Ask About My Highest Level Of Education

All questions in the calculator help us make more informed predictions about your future. Knowing your level of education lets us determine a more realistic estimate of how much youll earn in the future and in turn provide an estimate of what you may need in retirement. And although this information helps us provide you with a more personalized calculation, it is optional.

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What Is A Cd Ladder Strategy

A CD ladder is a savings strategy to help maximize your yieldand provide more liquidityby opening multiple CDs with different terms and maturity dates. The goal is to take advantage of higher interest rates and lock in a variety of CDs that give you a range of yields over time. Instead of putting all your eggs in one basket with one CD and one fixed rate, a CD ladder can help you take advantage of higher yields and help avoid early withdrawal penalties. To build a CD ladder, do your research to find the best rates, terms and minimum deposits.

About Bank Of America

Bank of America is a full-service national bank with 240 years of history, and its the second largest U.S. bank by assets. It offers 4,100 branch locations, an online banking platform and a highly rated mobile app. Bank of America provides personal, business and commercial banking products and services.

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Ready To Use The Tool

Note: Your plan will not be saved to your online account.

The information generated by the My Retirement Plan Savings Calculator and any information provided by employees and representatives of Wells Fargo and its affiliates is for educational purposes only and does not constitute investment, financial, tax, or legal advice. In making the My Retirement Plan Savings Calculator available for your use, Wells Fargo is not acting as your fiduciary or advisor. The results generated by the calculator are believed to be reliable but are not guaranteed. Please contact your investment, financial, tax, or legal advisor regarding your specific needs and situation.

Investment and Insurance Products are:

• Not Insured by the FDIC or Any Federal Government Agency
• Not a Deposit or Other Obligation of, or Guaranteed by, the Bank or Any Bank Affiliate
• Subject to Investment Risks, Including Possible Loss of the Principal Amount Invested

Investment products and services are offered through Wells Fargo Advisors. Wells Fargo Advisors is a trade name used by Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC and Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network, LLC, Members SIPC, separate registered broker-dealers and non-bank affiliates of Wells Fargo & Company.

Deposit products offered by Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. Member FDIC.

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How Long Will My Money Last

How long your money lasts in retirement depends on how much you are spending and how much income you have. It is possible tolive on Social Security alone, but most people require additional income from savings to support themselves in retirement.

See if you will run out of money in retirement with the NewRetirement Planner

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Income And Percent Of Income To Save

Deciding what percentage of your annual income to save for retirement is one of the big decisions you need to make when planning. If youre just starting out on your retirement planning journey, saving any amount is a great way to begin. Just keep in mind that youll need to keep increasing your contributions as you grow older.

So how much is enough? Financial services giant Fidelity suggests you should be saving at least 15% of your pre-tax salary for retirement. Many financial advisors recommend a similar rate for retirement planning purposes.

But even then, the 15% rule of thumb assumes that you begin saving early. It also assumes youd be comfortable replacing 55% to 80% of your pre-retirement income. If you start later or expect youll need to replace more than those percentages, you may want to contribute a greater percentage of your income.

Retirement Calculator: How We Got Here

Our free calculator predicts your retirement nest egg, and then estimates how it would stretch over your retirement in todays dollars, taking inflation into account. Our default assumptions include:

• A 3% inflation rate.

• Salary increases of 2% per year.

• A 5% rate of return in retirement .

Enter your age, income, current savings and monthly savings rate to see how you’re doing. If you wish, you can enter more details in the Optional settings, such as your expected rate of return before retirement and what you expect from Social Security . You can also fine-tune your retirement spending level, retirement age and more.

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