Question 1

What is the 4% Rule?

Accepted Answer

The 4% Rule (Safe Withdrawal Rate or SWR) suggests a retiree can withdraw 4% of their portfolio in the first year, then adjust for inflation annually, with historically ~95% probability of not running out over a 30-year retirement. FuturePath lets you model different withdrawal rates to find the right balance.

Question 2

What is FIRE?

Accepted Answer

FIRE stands for Financial Independence, Retire Early. It's a movement focused on achieving financial independence — having enough invested assets to cover living expenses indefinitely — often with the goal of retiring well before age 65. FuturePath is built specifically to help FIRE planners model the path from high-earning years through semi-retirement to full financial independence.

Question 3

What is a Monte Carlo simulation?

Accepted Answer

A Monte Carlo simulation runs your retirement plan through thousands of random market scenarios, varying returns each year based on historical volatility instead of assuming a fixed rate. FuturePath runs 1,000 simulations, giving you a success probability — for example, 'Your plan succeeds in 87% of market scenarios' — which is far more realistic than deterministic projections.

Question 4

How does FuturePath calculate taxes?

Accepted Answer

FuturePath models federal income tax, state income tax for all 50 states, FICA/payroll taxes, capital gains tax with cost basis tracking, Social Security benefit taxation, and Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) starting at age 73 — all year-by-year for every year of your projection.

Question 5

What is a Roth Conversion Ladder?

Accepted Answer

A Roth conversion ladder is a strategy of gradually converting Traditional IRA funds to Roth IRA over several years during lower-income years, when you're in a lower tax bracket. Each converted dollar must wait 5 years before penalty-free withdrawal. FuturePath models the year-by-year tax impact and helps you optimize the annual conversion target.

Question 6

Where is my financial data stored?

Accepted Answer

By default, all data is stored in your browser's localStorage and never sent to any server. If you create a free account, you can optionally sync to the cloud to access across devices. Your data is protected by Firebase security rules and only accessible by your authenticated account.

Question 7

What is semi-retirement and why does it matter?

Accepted Answer

Semi-retirement is the period between high-intensity full-time work and complete financial independence, where you might work part-time or take a lower-paying but more fulfilling job. FuturePath lets you model exactly how many years of your current salary you need before safely downshifting, and how long that bridge period needs to be before full FIRE.

Question 8

Is FuturePath free to use?

Accepted Answer

Yes, FuturePath is completely free to use with no account required. All features including Monte Carlo simulations, 50-state tax modeling, semi-retirement planning, and Roth conversion strategies are available at no cost. You can optionally create a free account to sync your plans across devices.

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