Use our financial calculators to manage and plan your investment
strategies.
Savings
Calculator
Consistent
investments over a number of years can be an effective strategy
to accumulate wealth. Even small additions to your savings add
up over time. This calculator demonstrates how to put this savings
strategy to work for you!
Definitions
-
Starting
amount
-
The
starting balance or current amount you have invested
or saved.
-
Additional
contributions
-
The
amount that you plan on adding to your savings or
investment each period. The investment period options
include monthly, quarterly and annually. This calculator
assumes that you make your contributions at the beginning
of each period.
-
Years
-
The
total number of years you are planning to save or
invest.
-
Rate
of return
-
The
annual rate of return for this investment or savings
account. The actual rate of return is largely dependant
on the type of investments you select. From January
1970 to December 2006, the average compounded rate
of return for the S&P 500, including reinvestment
of dividends, was approximately 11.5% per year (source:
www.standardandpoors.com). During this period, the
highest 12-month return was 61%, and the lowest was
-39%. Savings accounts at a bank pay as little as
1% or less.
It
is important to remember that future rates of return
can't be predicted with certainty and that investments
that pay higher rates of return are subject to higher
risk and volatility. The actual rate of return on
investments can vary widely over time, especially
for long-term investments. This includes the potential
loss of principal on your investment. It is not
possible to invest directly in an index and the
compounded rate of return noted above does not reflect
additional sales charges and fees that funds may
charge.
-
Compounding
-
Earnings
on an investment's earnings, plus previous interest.
This calculator allows you to choose the frequency
that your investment's interest or income is added
to your account. The more frequently this occurs,
the sooner your accumulated earnings will generate
additional earnings. For stock and mutual fund investments,
you should choose 'Annual'. For savings accounts and
CDs, all of the options are valid, although you will
need to check with your financial institution to find
out how often interest is being compounded on your
particular investment.
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