Financial System Check
Get your financial system report with what to focus on next
Use today’s spending for you, or your household if you are planning together. We’ll use a 4% initial-withdrawal assumption for an illustration.
Enter an annual amount from $1 to $1 billion, with no more than two decimal places.
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See where to focus, an exercise you can do yourself, and your financial freedom number. Enter your email and join The Market Hustle newsletter to continue.
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One exercise to start with
Your financial freedom number
This is based on the 4% rule: withdraw 4% of your starting portfolio in the first year, then adjust that dollar amount for inflation each year after that.
Financial planner Bill Bengen developed the rule by testing historical stock and bond portfolios through difficult periods, including the Great Depression and high inflation. He looked for a starting withdrawal rate that lasted through at least 30 years in the periods he studied.
His later research suggested 4% could be conservative with a different investment mix. It gives you a starting target to aim for, not a guarantee that the same withdrawal rate will work for everyone.
Bill Bengen on the research behind the rule
This assumes your portfolio covers all the spending you entered, using a 4% initial annual withdrawal. This is not a 4% investment return or a guarantee that your money will last. It is in today’s dollars and does not separately account for withdrawal taxes, future inflation, other retirement income, or how long retirement lasts. It does not tell you when you can retire. About withdrawal assumptions
This checkup uses your answers to suggest a learning focus. It does not inspect your accounts or verify that your investments are suitable. I teach investing. I am not a licensed financial advisor. You make the investment decisions. Take tax questions to a CPA.