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Course 160 · Money course 31

Model Retirement Income and Withdrawals

Practice model retirement income and withdrawals with complete fictional records, worked calculations and changed-input checks.

Before you start

Use the supplied fictional case; paper and a calculator are sufficient.

Start Investing From Zero See everything you’ll need

Free download · Original practice data · No external account required. Download the starter pack

What you’ll leave with

A fictional retirement-income model with spending gap, withdrawal scenarios, inflation, return-order comparison and dated rule questions.

Start course Start without an account. Sign in to save lesson progress across devices.

Your project

Start with the practice files. Build your project one lesson at a time.

Practice files are free without an account. Sign in to save your project record in My Proof: a description, checklist, and optional work link. Keep the original files in your own app or notebook; saving a project record does not upload them.

  1. Get your materialsDownload practice filesSupplied practice cases, a blank working record, complete lesson instructions, and annotated worked examples.
  2. Make your projectView the project checklist Work in your own notebook, document, or software. Use the supplied practice examples when you prefer.
  3. Keep a private recordSave a project record Sign in to save a description and checklist, then return to update them.
Course handbook

Know the route before you begin.

Here’s what you’ll need and what you’ll make. You can return to this guide during any lesson.

Who this is for

Learners ages 14+ practicing independently; adult-only transactions are studied as fictional future decisions.

Prepare before lesson one
  • Use the supplied fictional case; paper and a calculator are sufficient.
  • Recommended preparation: Start Investing From Zero. Do not supply private financial documents.
Your final project

Finish with proof you can use.

A fictional retirement-income model with spending gap, withdrawal scenarios, inflation, return-order comparison and dated rule questions.

Save a project record in My Proof
See project checklist and review criteria

Keep your working files in your own notebook or software. Save a private description, checklist, and work link in My Proof.

What to include

  • An income/spending map with an annual and monthly gap.
  • A one-year withdrawal roll-forward and conditional rate explanation.
  • An inflation-adjusted spending table with category limits.
  • A return-order stress table and sequence-risk explanation.
  • A gross/net withdrawal worksheet and dated rule-verification list.
  • A retirement scenario packet and spending-review policy.

Review and revise

Use these criteria to check your work and choose what to improve.

  • All supplied records reconcile and the decision uses the named case rules.
  • Calculations show units, intermediate values and a second check.
  • Changed-input practice revises the affected result and identifies uncertainty.
  • The final project combines six lesson records, separates fictional assumptions from current rules, and states a supported next step.
Three ideas to help you along the way
Three useful ideas

The rules behind the steps.

01

Trace the money

For model retirement income and withdrawals, keep the source amount, transformation and resulting balance together.

02

Keep the assumption visible

Use the stated rate, date, permission and case rule; a real arrangement can produce a different result.

03

Test the decision

Use a changed input and a clear stop or review condition before turning this practice into an action.

What do these words mean?
Key words

Key terms worth knowing.

Withdrawal
Money removed from a savings or investment balance.
Sequence risk
Risk from the order of returns interacting with withdrawals.
Nominal value
An amount in the dollars of its stated period, without removing inflation.
Spending gap
The difference between modeled spending and available income for the same period.
Your route

6 lessons.
One useful project.

Work in order the first time. Each lesson makes something the next lesson can use.

  1. 1
    Up next

    Map retirement income and a spending gap

    Calculate an annual retirement spending gap from explicitly assumed income.

  2. 2
    10 min

    Calculate a portfolio withdrawal scenario

    Model a start-year withdrawal and subsequent return with explicit timing.

  3. 3
    9 min

    Adjust spending for inflation

    Project a stated spending basket across inflation scenarios with clear units.

  4. 4
    13 min

    Compare the order of returns during withdrawals

    Compare two specified return sequences with identical start-year withdrawals.

  5. 5
    9 min

    Separate tax and account-access assumptions

    Calculate usable cash under an explicitly fictional deduction and distinguish real access/tax questions.

  6. 6
    13 min

    Write a flexible retirement review policy

    Apply a prewritten retirement review rule and assemble a conditional income model.

Use the tools

Tools to help you practice.

See all tools
ZIP · practice files

Model Retirement Income and Withdrawals practice files

Supplied practice cases, a blank working record, complete lesson instructions, and annotated worked examples.

Text worksheet

Your course project worksheet

A downloadable text worksheet with each lesson’s working output, space for your answers, and the shared final-project checklist. Save your own copy.

Source transparency

Sources and further study.

Explore the references behind the lessons and take your learning further. Source notes explain access and reuse.

SEC Investor.gov — Managing Lifetime Income
Source & access notes · checked 2026-10-01

Official page opened/read during Money expansion authoring; checked the relevant concept and access state. These sources do not establish funding eligibility.

Access: Readable official webpage inspected with the web reader on 2026-10-01. No interactive-tool operation is claimed.

Reuse: Original fictional practice, questions and calculations; paraphrased concepts with a source link. No source exercise copied.

Social Security Administration — Get a benefits estimate
Source & access notes · checked 2026-10-01

Official page opened/read during Money expansion authoring; checked the relevant concept and access state. These sources do not establish funding eligibility.

Access: Readable official webpage inspected with the web reader on 2026-10-01. No interactive-tool operation is claimed.

Reuse: Original fictional practice, questions and calculations; paraphrased concepts with a source link. No source exercise copied.

IRS — 401(k) Resource Guide: General Distribution Rules
Source & access notes · checked 2026-10-01

Official page opened/read during Money expansion authoring; checked the relevant concept and access state. These sources do not establish funding eligibility.

Access: Readable official webpage inspected with the web reader on 2026-10-01. No interactive-tool operation is claimed.

Reuse: Original fictional practice, questions and calculations; paraphrased concepts with a source link. No source exercise copied.

Ready when you are

Start with the first useful move.

You’ll always know what to do, what to make, and where to go next.

Start lesson one