Written by: Jeff Maciolek
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Do you know how much money you’ll have to live on in retirement? If you don’t, you have plenty of company. Many people don’t know.
In a survey by nonprofit Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies®, almost half of workers (46%) who provided an estimate of their retirement savings needs indicated they guessed at their estimates. Twenty-two percent estimated this goal based on their current living expenses.1
Knowing how much you’ll need to create your retirement paycheck is a mystery for many. Fortunately, there’s a new online tool called RISE — Retirement Income Security Evaluation — developed by the Alliance for Lifetime Income, a nonprofit organization.
Much like a credit score, a RISE ScoreTM provides users a free, estimated measure of their income security to help assess how well their current retirement income portfolio will cover basic living expenses and healthcare costs in retirement.
While using the tool only takes a few minutes, there are a few things you’ll want to gather before you get started. Find your latest tax returns, estimate your total retirement savings, look up your estimated pension amount (if applicable), estimate your monthly living and medical expenses, and, if you have it, your estimated Social Security amount. Don’t know or can’t find some of those numbers? It’s OK. The tool provides average estimates as a guide if you’re not sure of a figure or two.
And don’t worry about sharing your personal information on the website. All the information you enter is anonymous. No identifiable information is required to get your score — not even your email.
Users will receive a score between 0 and 850. Obviously, the more accurate the numbers you can put in, the more confidence you can have in your personalized score. The tool also provides the flexibility to play the “what if” game, offering the chance to retake the quiz and look at different scenarios.
Ultimately, the goal behind the RISE Score is to give you a starting point with a financial professional, who can then help you dial in a more accurate financial snapshot of where you stand in your retirement planning versus your goals.
Find out where you stand on your retirement journey today.
Things to Consider:
- Your score is just an estimate. A financial professional can help you get a more detailed picture of your retirement forecast.
- Try adjusting different numbers in the tool to see what effect a small change now could make later.
- Don’t be discouraged if your score isn’t what you hoped. Keep saving — every little bit helps.
1. What is “Retirement”? Three Generations Prepare for Older Age, 19th Annual Transamerica Retirement Survey of Workers, nonprofit Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies®, April 2019
Neither Transamerica nor its agents or representatives may provide tax or legal advice. Anyone to whom this material is promoted, marketed, or recommended should consult with and rely on their own independent tax and legal professionals regarding their particular situation and the concepts presented herein.
Transamerica is not affiliated with Alliance for Lifetime Income. Transamerica does not control, guarantee, endorse, or approve the information, products, services, or any content maintained by third parties.
Transamerica Resources, Inc. is an Aegon company and is affiliated with various companies which include, but are not limited to, insurance companies and broker dealers. Transamerica Resources, Inc. does not offer insurance products or securities. The information provided is for educational purposes only and should not be construed as insurance, securities, tax, legal or financial advice or guidance. Please consult your personal independent professionals for answers to your specific questions.
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