Free Tools for Retirement Planning

Smart Money

Tracking your money and savings is just as important as it was a year ago and there are a multitude of tools and programs to be found. has picked the three best new tools from the last few months. And best of all, they’re free.

Analyzenow.com already had its Free Retirement Planner, but at the beginning of June it released its free “Social Security Planner.” The tool allows you to compare the benefit of starting Social Security at different ages for yourself and your spouse as well as the effects from different returns, inflation and tax rates. The tool is good for those near retirement and for those who have a long time to go.

The planner is a simplified version of the Free Retirement Planner, which also includes pensions, historical scenarios, conversion of an IRA to a Roth and other options.

Finally, check out BrightScope Inc.’s new “Advisor Pages,” a nationwide directory of financial counselors. Almost half a million advisors are listed and the site even allows you to compare advisors, although you have to register. You can find out advisors’ qualifications, the assets they manage, areas of specialty and any legal disputes.

If you’re close to retirement or already retired, then Fidelity Investments’ “Income Strategy Evaluator” is good because it shows users how different investment strategies and portfolios generate money later. This tool will also help predict how your portfolio could perform during market ups and down.