2020 Retireator released (v0105)

[Retireatee1]

Hello all,

Last March I launched my open source retirement simulator here on the MMM forum (https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/share-your-badassity/launch-of-the-2019-retireator!/).  I've updated it for 2020 and have added a reverse mortgage calculator.  So far the interest level has been muted but maybe this is the break out year?

Here are the system requirements:

Microsoft® Windows®
Microsoft® Excel® 2007-2019 (32-bit or 64-bit, requires macros)
Microsoft® Excel® Online (limited functionality)

http://www.retireator.org/

[Retireatee1]

I did a quick refresh to build 0112 for a few minor fixes.

Here's a quick case study walkthrough which demonstrates how to get started:

1) Start with a clean copy from the website and enable macros to begin the setup process
2) Set initials to "JS" (Joe Sixpack) and birth date of 1/12/1980 (40 years old)
3) Check Employer income and Social Security Retirement Insurance Benefits.  All other settings at defaults.
4) Next/OK.  The Dashboard will appear.  Keep this open.
5) On the main page enter 67 for the Social Security RIB Primary Benefits filing age.
6) On the income page enter $40,000 for 2020 Employer Income (this is the median individual income age).  Note that the past and future income is extrapolated.  At this point, a graph should appear on the Dashboard.  The Retirement Date is 1/1/2073 which is the end of the simulation (basically no retirement).  Years Worked should indicate 53 with Years Retired at zero.
7) Go to Expenses and enter $2750 for Accumulation Phase / Miscellaneous 1.  This equals $33000 annually.
8) Now that we have some rough income and expenses happening, hit the "Retireate" button on the Dashboard.  A Retirement Date of 6/10/2050 will be calculated, so Joe Sixpack can retire at age 70!

Now you can experiment with various settings and hit the Retirate button again.  The dashboard will indicate how far the Retirement Date moved.

[forestj]

Hey I noticed that your site is using a misconfigured TLS certificate. It's valid for GoDaddy's secureserver.net but not valid for your domain. Considering that you are offering links to download and execute code from there I think it should have HTTPS. Depending on how you are hosting it you can probably use LetsEncrypt to set it up for free. I can help you get it working if you want  :)  just DM me

[Retireatee1]

Hey I noticed that your site is using a misconfigured TLS certificate. It's valid for GoDaddy's secureserver.net but not valid for your domain. Considering that you are offering links to download and execute code from there I think it should have HTTPS.

I'm a bit confused, how can I be using a misconfigured TLS certificate and also not support HTTPS at the same time?

My site doesn't use any certificates.

[forestj]

Well, when I visit https://www.retireator.org/  I see:



These days any web site where you can download software or has a link to a place where you can download software should at least have HTTPS.  Users expect it and web browsers are getting more and more aggressive about warning users away from visiting sites over unencrypted transports. Many users like myself will have an HTTPS Everywhere type of setting or extension on their web browsers which will highlight any site that does not have HTTPS set up correctly.

You can't even upgrade the version of HTTP to version 2 or 3 without TLS and there is no excuse for not using TLS any more considering that you don't have to pay for a certificate or manually renew it or anything.  How are you hosting your site?  If it's all through GoDaddy they may or  may not make it difficult for you to do that but it should still be possible with a bit of effort.   

I get that this is a small project and security might not be at  the forefront of your mind, but I think it's important to know how to do it and it helps it look professional, especially if you want other people to use your thing.

[Retireatee1]

Well, when I visit https://www.retireator.org/  I see:

These days any web site where you can download software or has a link to a place where you can download software should at least have HTTPS.  Users expect it and web browsers are getting more and more aggressive about warning users away from visiting sites over unencrypted transports. Many users like myself will have an HTTPS Everywhere type of setting or extension on their web browsers which will highlight any site that does not have HTTPS set up correctly.

You can't even upgrade the version of HTTP to version 2 or 3 without TLS and there is no excuse for not using TLS any more considering that you don't have to pay for a certificate or manually renew it or anything.  How are you hosting your site?  If it's all through GoDaddy they may or  may not make it difficult for you to do that but it should still be possible with a bit of effort.   

I get that this is a small project and security might not be at  the forefront of your mind, but I think it's important to know how to do it and it helps it look professional, especially if you want other people to use your thing.

Interesting, that appears to be a consequence of this "HTTPS Everywhere" setting which changed my URL to https.  If you put in the correct http URL that I posted, there isn't an issue.  If you continue on with the https address, it goes to a stock GoDaddy "Coming Soon" page which has nothing to do with my site.

I'll take your feedback into consideration, GoDaddy certainly does offer a wide variety of security options.

Anyway, I'd like to move the focus of this thread to the Retireator tool and away from the landing page if possible.

[Retireatee1]

Here's how to update the case study to include a mortgage and then a reverse mortgage:

1) Launch Add-ins/Retireator/Setup...change Parameters to "Advanced" and then check the Home/Mortgage box
2) On the Main page set the State, Local, and Foreign Income Taxes to Florida
3) On the Expenses tab enter a Home Value of $120,000, a Mortgage Origination Date of 1/15/2020, an Original Balance of $96,000, and a Term of 360 months (30 years)
4) Lower the Miscellaneous 1 expense to $2100 / month.
5) Retireate!  The Retirement Date is now 9/14/2046
6) Let's set the Mortgage Extra Payment to $100 / month just for fun.
7) Retireate!  This pushed out 3 months and 1 days to 12/15/2046.  That's interesting.
8) Let's set up a reverse mortgage starting at age 62.  On the Expenses tab enter a HECM Origination Date of 1/12/2042
9) Retireate!  This pulls in 1 year and 22 days to 11/23/2045.

The Retireator estimates a Principal Limit Factor with these parameters of 32%.  Flip to the Annuitizer page and note a Lump Sum of $78,528 in the year 2042.  This results in annuity payments of $6786 annually (not inflation-adjusted by default, configurable through the Main page).

Flip to the Annualizer page which is a cash flow report.  Joe's nominal Net Worth (which subtracts the HECM balance as well as his tax liability) peaks in 2046 at $555,298 and steadily declines from there.

[Retireatee1]

Joe Sixpack has thus far funded his retirement with Social Security and non-retirement savings.

1) On the Main page, set the Before-Tax Contribution 401(k)/403(b) to 4%
2) Retireate!

The Retirement Date pulled in 3 months and 18 days.  This is a result I typically see on many simulations.  Leveraging tax-advantaged retirement accounts is usually beneficial, but doesn't pull the retirement date in as much as you might hope.  The reason is the low effective tax rate during retirement (0% in this case study).

[NaN]

Neat tool, nice website. But I would highly suggest taking @forestj 's offer on securing your website. Dismissing it because you want to talk about the tool itself is like a restaurant wanting to talk about how the food tastes and not how clean their kitchen is when you take a peak into it.

[Retireatee1]

Neat tool, nice website. But I would highly suggest taking @forestj 's offer on securing your website. Dismissing it because you want to talk about the tool itself is like a restaurant wanting to talk about how the food tastes and not how clean their kitchen is when you take a peak into it.

OK so I've got the site secured via SSL.  It will take a bit to propagate to the search engines but it should redirect to the https URL automatically.  WordPress can be a pain but I think I've got it. 

https://www.retireator.org/

Google and Bing have not been kind to me thus far so maybe I can move up a few notches?  You'll never find my site searching for "Excel retirement simulator".  A pity, considering it's the best one out there...and free with no ads!

[NaN]

...and free with no ads!

THANK YOU!

[NaN]

It might be helpful if you provide an automatic limit on 401k contributions. This gets tricky because future years are not so certain. However, you can likely just increase the current limit each year by inflation, rounding down to the nearest $500.

[Retireatee1]

It might be helpful if you provide an automatic limit on 401k contributions. This gets tricky because future years are not so certain. However, you can likely just increase the current limit each year by inflation, rounding down to the nearest $500.

Yeah, I debated implementing the caps.  My account types are generalized, and the specific rules are complicated (especially for self-employment income).  So for now you have to enter the percentage which equates to the actual withheld amount under the cap.  If you are at the cap, it may float above the cap slightly as the years go by, but the effect on the actual Retirement Date calculation should be minimal.