Education Center

Use this calculator to determine your Required Minimum Distribution (RMD). The IRS requires that you withdraw at least a minimum amount - known as a Required Minimum Distribution - from some types of retirement accounts annually. 

Should you rent or should you buy your home? It takes more than looking at your mortgage payment to answer this question. This calculator helps you weed through the fees, taxes and monthly payments to help you make a decision between these two options.

What will it take to help reach your savings goals? This financial calculator helps you find out. Enter in your savings plan and view graphically your financial results. Click the report button to get more information about your plan, and what you can do to make sure that it is on track.

Your net worth is the value of all of your assets, minus the total of all of your liabilities. Put another way, it is what you own minus what you owe. If you owe more than you own, you have a negative net worth. 

Interactive calculators

Our interactive tools can assist you in your unique financial planning needs. Interactive calculators are made available as self-help tools for independent use and are not intended to provide investment or tax advice, either expressed or implied.

Interactive calculators

Our interactive tools can assist you in your unique financial planning needs. Interactive calculators are made available as self-help tools for independent use and are not intended to provide investment or tax advice, either expressed or implied.

Estate tax planning is very important to preserving your wealth for future generations. Knowing your potential estate tax liability is a great place to start your estate tax plan.

Contributing to a Roth IRA could make a difference in your retirement savings. There is no tax deduction for contributions made to a Roth IRA; 

If available in your employer's plan, the 401(k) Roth allows you to contribute to your 401(k) account on an after-tax basis - and pay no taxes on qualifying distributions when the money is withdrawn. 

Interactive calculators

Our interactive tools can assist you in your unique financial planning needs. Interactive calculators are made available as self-help tools for independent use and are not intended to provide investment or tax advice, either expressed or implied.

Use this calculator to generate an estimated amortization schedule for your current mortgage. Quickly see how much interest you could pay and your estimated principal balances.

An employer-sponsored retirement savings account could be one of your best tools for creating a secure retirement. It provides two important advantages.

Many experts believe that long-term investment success is more a function of how assets are allocated among asset classes rather than the individual securities in which they are invested.

Do you wonder how much you might receive in Social Security? Use this calculator to help you estimate your Social Security benefits. Remember, this is only an estimate. Your actual benefits may vary depending on your actual work history and income.

Waiting to begin your savings plan can have a huge impact on your results. A delay of even a few years could cost you thousands of dollars. This calculator helps show you how much postponing your savings plan can really cost.

Interactive calculators

Our interactive tools can assist you in your unique financial planning needs. Interactive calculators are made available as self-help tools for independent use and are not intended to provide investment or tax advice, either expressed or implied.

Internal Revene Code sections 72(t) and 72(q) provide for tax-penalty-free early withdrawals from retirement accounts under certain circumstances.

Saving for your children's education requires a long-term plan. And, like saving for retirement, the earlier you start your plan the better. Use this calculator to help develop or fine-tune your education savings plan. Click the "View Report" button for a detailed look at the results.  

Consistent investments over a number of years can be an effective strategy to accumulate wealth. Even small additions to your savings add up over time. This calculator demonstrates how to put this savings strategy to work for you.

Interactive calculators

Our interactive tools can assist you in your unique financial planning needs. Interactive calculators are made available as self-help tools for independent use and are not intended to provide investment or tax advice, either expressed or implied.

In 1997, the Roth IRA was introduced. This new IRA allowed for contributions to be made on an after-tax basis and all gains (or growth) to be distributed completely tax-free.

The IRS requires that you withdraw at least a minimum amount - known as a Required Minimum Distribution - from your retirement accounts annually;

Interactive tools and calculators

Our interactive tools can assist you in your unique financial planning needs. Interactive calculators are made available as self-help tools for independent use and are not intended to provide investment or tax advice, either expressed or implied. 

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.

Use this calculator to see what it will take to pay off your credit card balance, and what you can change to meet your repayment goals.

Remember the "pinky swears" - the silly promises you made to your friends back in grade school? What if someone came back to you decades later as an adult and expected you to abide by those promises? It's unlikely they would ever prevail in a court of law.

If you’re similar to the average person, you probably have a budget that you made years ago sitting in an excel spreadsheet somewhere untouched. 

If better financial planning has been a long-term goal for you, you’ve probably run into some common issues along the way: deciding how much you need to save for retirement, balancing debt and long-term goals, and simply covering day-to-day expenses are all common challenges most Americans face.

Many people might not realize that their will does not control who inherits all of their assets when they die. Many assets pass by beneficiary designation — which is the ability to fill out a form with the financial company holding the asset and name who will inherit the asset upon your death.

Though many of us will face a significant unexpected expense at some point during our lives, more than half of Americans don’t have the cash or savings on hand* to cover a financial emergency requiring $1,000 or more to resolve.

For many of us, setting aside the recommended six months’ worth of expenses in an emergency savings account to protect ourselves and our loved ones can feel daunting.

The prospect of growing your family may fill your heart with butterflies, excitement, nervousness—or, most likely, all of the above.

Many people who have had their income adjusted may be panicking and looking for other sources of cash to pay the bills.

Life can be full of changes, challenges and opportunities. For every situation, there are ways to cope. Here are a few things to consider when life comes your way.

When it comes to creating an investment portfolio to help you maintain your quality of life during retirement, most experts agree that portfolio diversification is a good option for achieving desired returns while managing risk.

For many parents, the idea of setting aside savings for their young child’s college education on top of all their family’s current essential financial needs can feel like a daunting task. But it doesn't have to be, and here’s why. You don’t need to plan on saving to pay the full sticker price for your child’s education.

You’ve heard the advice that you should try to contribute as much as possible to your retirement plan, but experts tend to speak in percentages. More important to you is what will be the real-life impact of saving for retirement. 

It’s a given that Americans will spend outside of their typical budget during the holiday season.

Finding an employer who cares enough to put together a thoughtful benefits package should be front-of-mind when it comes to deciding which company deserves your valuable services and talents.

No matter your age, it's good to know how to protect your financial accounts. As you get closer to retiring, you may need to tap into them, whether they're set up specifically for funding retirement or used for other purposes, such as a liquid savings or money market account.

We witnessed a flurry of legislation in 2020-2021 meant to help Americans cope with the financial fallout from the pandemic. While many of the provisions in the CARES Act, the Consolidated Appropriations Act and the American Rescue Plan, were focused on immediate assistance in terms of stimulus payments and mortgage and student loan relief, the bills also included changes that can have some long-term effects on long held financial assumptions.

Women continue to be the primary caregivers in most families with children, but they are also likely to be important breadwinners for their families. 

Setting a goal is an important prerequisite for accomplishing almost anything. And without setting clear financial goals, some people are likely to spend their lives aimlessly earning and spending, rather than building wealth and achieving a more financially secure life.

In 2022, the Federal Reserve raised the federal funds rate 7 separate times. Is it any wonder investor concerns are rising, too?

But is it really a time to worry? Or is it an opportunity to capitalize?

An increasing number of people are graduating from college with student loans to pay back. Some 44.7 million student borrowers have an average of $37,584 in student loans each, and 65% of students graduated with student loan debt in 2020.

If you're not following a budget, you're not managing your money correctly. Without a budget, you really have no way of knowing how much you're spending each month, and how much room for savings your expenses and income allow for.

Seniors have a number of tough decisions to make during their golden years, but few could have larger ramifications on their financial well-being than deciding when to file for Social Security benefits.

If you have kids or grandkids, you're probably hoping they'll go to college one day. Of course, given the rate at which college tuition and fees continue to rise, you may also be wondering how on Earth you'll be able to pay for it.

Without Social Security benefits, 22 million Americans would be poor — per a report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. 

Saving for college before funding retirement seems like a no-brainer for new parents.

When a new baby is born, you may think, “College is only 18 years away, while retirement is way down the line!” You may even think you’ll never retire at all, so why worry about it now? You certainly don’t want your kids burdened with student loans like you were.