One of the best uses of the time value of money concept is using it to make a retirement plan!  Think about your life as 2 timelines… the “working years” timeline and the “retirement years” timeline.  What you do, how you plan, and how you save during your working years will ultimately determine how you live during your retirement years.  In this discussion post, share the following:

• How many years do you plan to live in retirement and what do you anticipate your annual income needs to be during those years?
  
• What is the present value of the retirement income needs? (this is how much you will need in retirement savings on the day you retire in order to meet your goals).
  
• How much must you save each year (or each month) during your working years to meet this goal?  (Compute the required payment to achieve a future value equal to the amount you need to have on the day you retire, which was computed above).
  
• Is your goal realistic?

You do not need to share the details of your computations (but you may if you wish).  However, you should discuss whether or not your goal is realistic and what other factors you believe should be considered when creating a retirement plan.