Kiplinger’s has a great little retirement calculator that will calculate whether or not you’re prepared for retirement give you and your spouse’s (if you have one) current financial situation. While no calculator is perfect and no calculator can predict the future, it’s very important for everyone to at least have the confidence that they’re headed in the right direction or that the path forward is clear.
If you’re behind, don’t worry. Even if you’re less than five years from retirement and at a point where you don’t think you can recover, it’s been shown that you can still make crucial decisions to ensure you have a comfortable retirement. If you’re ahead, don’t relax! Just as you can recover in five, you can fall behind in five, so keep working hard at what you’re doing. Keep saving, keep investing, keep on top of your financial picture and you can sleep easy at night.
This is just one of the many calculators out there, just add this one to your list whenever you need a little encouragement or butt-kicking when it comes to your retirement planning.