Frequently Asked Questions

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No. We do not have a phone-number field. We do not pass your inputs to advisors or annuity salespeople. Estimates are computed locally.

Use the FIRE Calculator with the 4% rule: roughly 25x your annual expenses. So $40k/yr expenses = $1M nest egg. For longer retirements (early FIRE at 40), drop to 3-3.5% withdrawal rate, requiring 28-33x expenses.

Rule of thumb: Roth wins when your current tax bracket is lower than your expected retirement bracket. Traditional wins when current is higher. Most early-career people benefit from Roth; high earners later in career often benefit from traditional.

Use the Social Security Calculator. Claiming at 70 yields 24% more than full retirement age (67). Break-even is roughly age 80. If you expect to live past 80, wait. If you need cash now or have shorter family longevity, claim earlier.

For 30-year retirements: ~88% historical success. For 40-50 year FIRE retirements: drop to 3-3.5% to keep similar safety. 4% is a guideline, not a guarantee — adjust spending in down markets.

No. Roth IRAs have no required minimum distributions during your lifetime. SECURE Act 2.0 (2024) also eliminated RMDs from Roth 401(k) accounts.

Use the Roth Conversion Calculator. Conversion wins when your future tax bracket will be ≥ current. Best timing: low-income years (between jobs, early retirement before Social Security). Watch out for IRMAA Medicare premium spikes if you convert too much.

FIRE number = annual expenses × (100 / safe withdrawal rate). At 4% SWR: 25x expenses. At 3.5%: 28.6x. At 3%: 33x. Lean FIRE uses lower expense baseline; Fat FIRE uses 2x typical expenses.

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