Financial Tools

Budget

• ▶ Does inflation impact my standard of living?
• ▶ How much am I spending?
• ▶ How much do I need for emergencies?
• ▶ Should I pay down debt or invest more?
• ▶ How long will my money last?
• ▶ Should my spouse enter the work force?
• ▶ What is my current net worth?
• ▶ What is my projected net worth?
• ▶ What is my current cash flow?
• ▶ What is my projected cash flow?
• ▶ What is the value of reducing, postponing or foregoing expenses?

College

• ▶ How much should I be saving for college?
• ▶ Will I be able to repay my student loan?
• ▶ What are the advantages of the Coverdell ESA?
• ▶ What are the advantages of a 529 College Savings Plan?
• ▶ What is the value of a college education?
• ▶ What are the payments on a parental (PLUS) loan?
• ▶ Should I live at home, on campus, or off campus?

Debt

• ▶ How long will it take to pay off my credit card(s)?
• ▶ How long until my loan is paid off?
• ▶ What would my loan payments be?
• ▶ What is the balance on my loan?
• ▶ Should I consolidate my personal debt into a new loan?
• ▶ Re-structuring debts for accelerated payoff
• ▶ Which is better: cash up front or payments over time?
• ▶ What is the impact of making extra payments on my loan?
• ▶ Should I pay off debts or invest?

Home & Mortgage

• ▶ How much home can I afford?
• ▶ Should I refinance my home mortgage? (breakeven)
• ▶ Comprehensive mortgage calculator
• ▶ Comparing mortgage terms
• ▶ Should I pay extra points for a lower interest rate?
• ▶ Should I rent or buy a home?
• ▶ Should I convert to a bi-weekly payment schedule?
• ▶ Compare a 'no-cost' versus traditional mortgage
• ▶ What are the tax savings generated by my mortgage?
• ▶ Should I take out a fixed or adjustable rate mortgage?
• ▶ Adjustable rate mortgage calculator
• ▶ How do closing costs impact the interest rate?

Income

• ▶ What is my potential estate tax liability?
• ▶ Federal income tax estimator
• ▶ Should I adjust my payroll withholdings?
• ▶ Will my investment interest be deductible?
• ▶ How much self-employment tax will I pay?
• ▶ Capital gains (and losses) tax estimator
• ▶ Compare taxable, tax-deferred and tax-free investment growth
• ▶ How much of my Social Security benefit might be taxable?
• ▶ What are the tax implications of paying interest?
• ▶ Should I itemize or take the standard deduction?
• ▶ What is my tax-equivalent yield?

Insurance

• ▶ How much life insurance do I need?
• ▶ What is my life expectancy?
• ▶ What are my needs for burial and final expenses?
• ▶ How much disability income do I need?
• ▶ What are the chances of becoming disabled?
• ▶ What are my long-term care insurance needs?
• ▶ How much will I earn in my lifetime?
• ▶ What are the tax advantages of an annuity?
• ▶ How long will my current insurance last?
• ▶ What is the future value of an annuity?
• ▶ Which is better, Comprehensive Plan Or High-Deductible Plan With HSA?

Investment

• ▶ How should I allocate my assets?
• ▶ Compare taxable versus tax-free investment return
• ▶ What is the value of a bond?
• ▶ What is the return on my real estate investment?
• ▶ What is the value of compound interest?
• ▶ What is the value of a call or put option?
• ▶ Taxable vs. tax-advantaged saving comparison
• ▶ What is my risk tolerance?
• ▶ What is the long-term impact of increased return?
• ▶ Certificate of Deposit (CD) analyzer
• ▶ What is the dividend yield on a stock?
• ▶ How do expenses impact mutual fund returns?

Payroll & Benefits

• ▶ How much will my company bonus net after taxes?
• ▶ How will payroll adjustments affect my take-home pay?
• ▶ Convert my salary to an equivalent hourly wage
• ▶ Convert my hourly wage to an equivalent annual salary
• ▶ What is the future value of my employee stock options?
• ▶ Should I exercise my 'in-the-money' stock options?
• ▶ What may my 401(k) be worth?
• ▶ What is the impact of increasing my 401(k) contribution?

Qualified Plans

• ▶ Evaluate my company pension payout options
• ▶ How much can I contribute to an IRA?
• ▶ How much retirement income can my IRA provide?
• ▶ Should I convert to a Roth IRA?
• ▶ What will my qualified plan be worth at retirement?
• ▶ What is my current year required minimum distribution?
• ▶ What is my projected required minimum distributions?
• ▶ What are my lump-sum distribution options?
• ▶ How do I maximize my employer 401(k) match?
• ▶ What is the impact of borrowing from my 401(k) plan?
• ▶ What is the impact of early withdrawal from my 401(k)?
• ▶ What is my maximum self-employed retirement plan contribution?
• ▶ Net Unrealized Appreciation (NUA)

Retirement

• ▶ How will retirement impact my living expenses?
• ▶ How much will I need to save for retirement?
• ▶ Are my current retirement savings sufficient?
• ▶ Social Security retirement income estimator
• ▶ How does inflation impact retirement income needs?
• ▶ I'm retired, how long will my savings last?
• ▶ When should I begin saving for retirement?
• ▶ Should I convert discretionary expenses to savings?
• ▶ How much retirement income may my 401(k) provide?
• ▶ Compare Roth 401(k) to Traditional 401(k)

Savings

• ▶ Becoming a millionaire
• ▶ Income generated by a savings plan
• ▶ How long will it take to double my money?
• ▶ How long until my savings reach my goal?
• ▶ Save now vs. save later calculator
• ▶ How much should I save to reach my goal?
• ▶ What will my current savings grow to?
• ▶ Calculate rate of return
• ▶ How do taxes and inflation impact my return?
• ▶ What is my effective annual yield?

Business

• ▶ Tax savings of a qualified retirement/cafeteria plan