How to Use IW Retirement Planner

Retirement planning is an empowering process, regardless of age. The process of planning not only fosters a sense of financial security but also a roadmap for financial well-being.

IW Retirement Planner streamlines retirement planning by bringing together two widely-used methods: straight-line forecasting, which projects future financial needs, and industry-standard Monte Carlo stress testing, which evaluates risk by simulating different market conditions. This approach combines the strengths of both techniques, offering a powerful, free tool that helps you feel confident in your plan and the decisions you make.
step 1Gather Your Finances and Expenses
Before you begin, you need to gather your financial data. This includes your current savings and investments.

You will also need to factor in an estimate of your expenses during retirement. You can use IW Retirement Planner's built-in Retirement Expenses Estimator tool or create a detailed estimate using Vanguard's Retirement Expenses Worksheet. Alternatively, you can estimate your retirement expenses with Morningstar's 7-step method or Fidelity's rule of thumb method. Retirement Income Replacement Rate Rule of thumb to roughly estimate your retirement income needs

Healthcare and Long-Term Care Expenses
Healthcare expenses are likely to become your largest cost in retirement. If you plan to use the detailed retirement expenses worksheet, Vanguard's Health Care Cost Estimator can help you forecast costs related to pre-Medicare, Medicare, and long-term care.

  • Vanguard's Health Care Cost Estimator does not factor in subsidies for the pre-Medicare Health Insurance Marketplace (ACA). You can refer to the KFF Health Insurance Marketplace Calculator for an estimate of subsidies.
  • The U.S. Administration for Community Living estimates that a 65-year-old today has approximately a 70% chance of needing some form of long-term care in the future. For a more detailed estimate of long-term care costs, you can use the Genworth Cost of Care Survey tool.
step 2Run a Straight-Line Forecast
Straight-line forecasting assumes consistent year-to-year investment growth, from the beginning to the end of retirement. This forecasting approach helps determine the funds needed to sustain a comfortable retirement lifestyle and evaluate the necessary contributions to achieve your desired goals.

Please review the following sections to gain an understanding of how best to use IW Retirement Planner when creating your retirement plan.

Spending Strategies
IW Retirement Planner supports both fixed and flexible spending options. The right choice between these approaches depends on your financial circumstances, risk tolerance, and personal preference. Each strategy has its pros and cons, so it's important to select the one that aligns best with your needs and goals. Spending Strategies Choose your Spending Strategy

  • Fixed spending withdraws a set, inflation adjusted, amount each year, offering a predictable and stable income that simplifies budgeting for essentials. While this approach provides simplicity, it may not account for lifestyle changes or needs at various stages of retirement. Use one of the methods from Step 1 to estimate the income you will need to maintain a comfortable retirement.

    Difficulty in Practice: Low

  • Smile spending is an age-dependent strategy for retirement spending, based on research indicating that retirees typically spend more in the early and late stages of retirement and less in the middle years. This approach provides a balanced way to align spending with evolving lifestyles and needs throughout retirement. Use one of the methods outlined in Step 1 to estimate your initial expenses.

    Difficulty in Practice: Medium

  • Dynamic spending provides the most flexibility by adjusting spending levels based on market performance and portfolio health. It is best suited for retirees who are willing to reduce expenses during lean market years in exchange for the ability to spend more initially and during favorable market years. This approach also helps mitigate the risk of outliving assets by adapting spending in response to changing economic conditions.

    Dynamic spending starts with a withdrawal of 5% of your total investment portfolio. Each subsequent year adjusts the prior year's spending for inflation and then applies 'guardrails' of 4% and 6%. If the withdrawal amount falls below 4% of the total investment portfolio, it is increased to 4%. Conversely, if the withdrawal amount exceeds 6% of the portfolio, it is capped at 6%.

    Difficulty in Practice: Medium

All spending strategies are indexed to inflation. IW Retirement Planner applies a 1% annual reduction to Fixed and Dynamic Spending expenses, based on research from The Center for Retirement Research. You can modify this reduction amount under Assumptions. See FAQ for additional information.
Extra Savings
Income bucket savings are automatically increased during pre-retirement years using the growth rate specified for your buckets. You can supplement your savings by clicking the Extra Savings button to add additional pre-retirement savings.

Extra Expenses
Apart from your regular monthly expenses, you might require other one-time or recurring expenses like paying off debt, taking a memorable family vacation, covering long-term care expenses, or contributing towards a child's education or wedding. You can include these expenses by clicking the Extra Expenses button, and adding additional post-retirement expenses into your retirement plan.

Other Income
In addition to your income buckets, you have the option to incorporate one-time or recurring income events like inheritance, lump sum pension distributions, and royalties. To include these contributions, click the Other Income button, and add both pre and post-retirement income into your retirement plan.

Employment
Part-time employment can be included in your plan to supplement retirement income or explore the feasibility of retiring earlier. Full-time employment can also be included for continued spousal employment.  If there is a gap between your retirement date and your spouse's, be sure to account for any employment during that period. For example, if you plan to retire in 2040 and your spouse in 2045, make sure to include your spouse's employment from 2040 to 2045.
Social Security Maximizer
The Social Security Maximizer feature simplifies decision-making by determining your optimal Social Security filing strategy. It evaluates more than 700 filing strategies to identify the one that maximizes lifetime benefits within your retirement plan.

Social Security Maximizer Quickly find the Social Security filing strategy that maximizes lifetime benefits

This powerful tool takes into account retirement, spousal, and survivor benefits, and incorporates key benefits rules including early benefit reductions, delayed retirement credits, earnings test adjustments, RIB LIM, and restricted application and deeming rules.

Simply activate the Social Security Maximizer switch and run an analysis of your Social Security filing options. The results of the analysis can be reviewed through interactive charts, along with an estimate of the additional benefits you may be eligible for. The optimized strategy can then be applied directly to your retirement plan.
Tax Optimization
IW Retirement Planner provides three different ways to experiment with the most effective way to lower taxes for your situation. Explore the Withdrawal Strategy, Roth Conversion, or Tax Minimizer features to test your plan and potentially save thousands in taxes. Tax Optimization Strategies Choose from three tax optimization strategies

  • Withdrawal Strategy allows you to choose which bucket to withdraw income from first, Taxable or Tax-Deferred Investments. For example, try selecting Tax-Deferred Investments if 401Ks and Traditional IRAs constitute a large portion of your retirement savings, as it could significantly reduce the tax impact of Required Minimum Distributions later in retirement.

  • Roth Conversion allows you to experiment with converting Tax-Deferred Investment funds to Tax-Free Investments, up to a chosen federal income tax bracket. The ideal times to consider Roth conversions are usually during lower tax years, such as right after retiring, before starting Social Security benefits, and before starting Required Minimum Distributions. Funds converted to Roth are taxed as ordinary income but can reap benefits later in retirement by reducing the tax impact of Required Minimum Distributions.

  • Tax Minimizer attempts to lower taxes to a specified federal income tax bracket by replacing Tax-Deferred Investment withdrawals, which are taxed as ordinary income, with Tax-Free Investments, or Taxable Investments which are taxed as long-term capital gains. This feature can lower taxes by replacing just enough ordinary income to stay within a chosen tax bracket.
Reviewing Plan Outcomes
IW Retirement Planner makes it easy to visualize your straight-line forecasting outcomes. User-friendly charts and dashboard summaries provide valuable insights into your retirement plan, helping you avoid potential pitfalls and make the most of built-in tax optimization features.

For example, the Federal and Capital Gains tax charts can be used to identify if and when tax optimization strategies can be applied to reduce your tax liabilities, and the Medicare Surcharges chart can pinpoint years where you could incur IRMAA surcharges.

For a deeper understanding of your plan, you can also explore actions taken by the IncomeWize modeling engine, year by year, across your retirement plan.
Explore Straight-Line Forecasting Examples
Single tax filer with extra savings and other incomeSingle Tax Filer Example
Married couple with employment, extra savings, and extra expensesMarried Couple Example
Married couple with Roth conversions and long-term care policiesRoth Conversion Example
Married couple with Social Security MaximizerSocial Security Maximizer Example
step 3Run an AI-Enabled Stress Test
Straight-line projections assume a steady average return, like 6% annually, without accounting for the market’s natural ups and downs. In reality, returns vary annually, and the sequence of those returns, especially early in retirement, can significantly impact how long a portfolio lasts.

IW Retirement Planner addresses this risk through advanced stress testing, using Monte Carlo simulations and AI trained on over 55 years of historical market data. Each stress test generates a thousand scenarios designed to resemble real-world volatility, accounting for changes in investment returns, inflation, and other factors, including severe market downturns. The result is a more rigorous evaluation of whether your plan can adapt to uncertainty and still support your retirement income goals.

To perform a Monte Carlo stress test, simply activate the Monte Carlo Stress Test switch and run a simulation to evaluate the risk level of your straight-line plan. The results can be reviewed through interactive charts, along with a summary that includes your plan's probability of success and retirement plan confidence by year. Interpreting Your Stress Test Score Monte Carlo stress test Probability of Success scoring

Interpreting Your Stress Test Score
Your financial goals and retirement lifestyle preferences play an important role in understanding your Probability of Success score. For those with modest retirement goals and a willingness to make lifestyle adjustments, an 85% success rate may suggest a reasonably sound retirement plan. However, if you have ambitious goals or want to maintain a higher standard of living in retirement, aiming for a success rate of 90% or above can offer a larger financial cushion for added security.

Additional reading:  Goldilocks and the "Just Right" Probability of Retirement-Planning Success
Explore Monte Carlo Stress Testing
Married couple with Smile spending strategyMarried Couple Example
step 4Adjust Your Financial Plan
Based on the results of your retirement planning, you may need to adjust your financial plan. For example, if your analysis shows that you are likely to run out of money during retirement, you may need to adjust your savings and expenses or refine your investment strategy.

Similarly, if your analysis shows that you are likely to have more money than you need, you may be able to retire earlier, leave a larger inheritance for your loved ones, or adjust your retirement goals to include more travel and other activities.
step 5Track Your Progress
It is essential to regularly review and adjust your retirement plan based on changes in your financial situation, market conditions, and life circumstances.

You can save your retirement plan at any time by clicking the Save Session button. This action generates a link that can be saved as a bookmark for easy access in the future. You can use the bookmark to make adjustments and monitor your progress from any device at any time.  Be sure to update your bookmark each time you make changes to your plan.

Monitor Different Scenarios
The Save Session feature can also be used to save and monitor various planning scenarios for their effects on your retirement plan. This includes conservative or optimistic investment growth scenarios, as well as unexpected major events.
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