Who is going to take care of your needs when you are older? If you are like many Americans, you probably envision retiring one day and enjoying the freedom to travel, acquire new hobbies, or spend valuable time with your grandchildren. Your retirement benefits may not provide you with enough funds to cover your basic needs. While you are young and still working, use a retirement calculator and seek financial guidance to assist with building your retirement savings.

Explore Your Rise Score

The amount of money that you save each year, the number and type of investments that you have, annual inflation rates, and your current and projected earnings are used to determine your RISE (Retirement Income Security Evaluation) score. This score is used to estimate how much money you will have at your disposal on the day of your retirement and a suitable amount of cash that you can withdraw each month, without compromising your financial future.

Use a retirement calculator to determine your RISE score. If you have a portfolio that contains your tax returns and bank records, use this information to help you answer the questions that are used during the assessment. If you normally receive an employment raise each year, estimate how much you plan on earning during subsequent years.

If the number of hours that you work tends to fluctuate, depending upon the season and the respective workload, stay on the low end when you are estimating so that you do not accidentally input an income amount that is not realistic. It is always best to predict the worst case scenario when using a calculator so that you aren't provided with figures that won't be reflective of your actual situation.

If the earnings wind up being more than you expected and you are able to save additional funds that you did not originally plan on, your savings will grow and you can use a retirement calculator to complete another assessment to determine how your financial future will be affected. Another assessment should also be performed if you switch jobs or receive a pay increase over the course of your lifetime, since you may be able to adjust your savings so that more money accrues.

Seek Guidance Through An Advisor

If you would like an in-depth analysis of your current and future financial situation or if you have any questions about the retirement calculator that you used, seek guidance through a financial advisor like Pralana Consulting LLC. An advisor will look over your savings and projected earnings to help you learn more about what you can expect when you retire. They can also advise you, concerning savings accounts or investments that will help you increase the amount of money that you will have to support yourself through your retirement.

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