Retirement Planning

The dream that seems to unite all 20-something overachievers of our time is to retire early. The formula: get into the fast lane, work your guts out, make a pretty packet, get out of the rat race -- and get a life. What separates the dreamers from the daydreamers is some amount of planning -- a roadmap and some course corrections along the way. With this versatile tool, you won't go wrong. It tells you:

* How much you'd have on retirement if you stopped saving now
* How long your savings will last post-retirement
* How much you need to retire comfortably
* How much you need to save from now to get there

The assumptions

* An inflation rate of 8 per cent
* Long-term capital gains tax of 10 per cent on all investments barring PPF (currently tax-free) and fixed deposits
* The value of your spouse's Provident Fund corpus is added on to yours at the time you retire.

Some guidelines
As you go along in life, your expense chart goes through considerable change. Give yourself a moment to consider how you think yours will when you input your post-retirement monthly expenses. You might expect considerably higher medical expenses, for example, or that you'll spend far more on indulgences like food and travel, or entertainment.