Knowledge

Understand the decision behind the number

The ideas behind those numbers: how much a portfolio can pay out, the order returns arrive in, and the German rules a projection has to apply. Each guide has a worked example beside it, and the calculator it belongs to is one click away.

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Financial freedom

German rules

Understand risk

Compare decisions

Calculate a legal amount

What do the rules say I get, or what do they take?

German statute, for the cases each page states it supports. An unsupported case is refused rather than approximated, and the responsible authority stays the authority.

German rules · Every step, worked How is my payslip actually worked out? The whole gross-to-net calculation, step by step, with the law behind each one. Open German rules · Elterngeld Basiselterngeld or ElterngeldPlus – which should we take? Your own salary under both sets of rules, and the gap between them. Open

Model a scenario

What could this plan do over the years ahead?

Projections under assumptions you choose, and the history markets actually delivered. Neither is a forecast.

Financial freedom · Income target What portfolio supports a first €2,000 monthly withdrawal? Translate a first-payment target into a portfolio goal, then test whether it lasts. Open Financial freedom · Withdrawal rate How does the four-percent rule change after German tax? See the rule, its assumptions and the estimated spendable amount. Open Understand risk · Bad timing Could early market losses derail my retirement? Move the same crash across one retirement to isolate timing risk. Open Understand risk · Historical ranges How wide were past drawdowns and rolling returns? Inspect an EUR-adjusted series with dates and only supported periods. Open Compare decisions · Cash and inflation What is €50,000 of zero-interest cash worth in 20 years? See purchasing power under an explicit inflation assumption, then add your actual interest and tax. Open

Learn a concept

What is this, and what does it change?

Explanations checked against the linked source. They describe how something works; they do not assess a product or your situation.

Understand risk · Methodology What do these projections include – and leave out? Check the formulas, worked example and limits behind every result. Open Compare decisions · Index scope What is inside S&P 500, MSCI World and FTSE All-World? Compare regions and company sizes before comparing past returns. Open German rules · Riester How does a Riester pension actually work? The allowances, the capital guarantee and how the payout is taxed. Open German rules · Rürup How does the Rürup Basisrente work? A large deduction, in exchange for giving up access to the money. Open German rules · Workplace pension How does converting salary into a workplace pension work? What it is free of going in, and what it is charged coming out. Open Compare decisions · Debt against growth Is paying off the mortgage faster better than investing? Why the two rates are not worth the same, even at the same number. Open German rules · Pension formula How is the German state pension actually calculated? Entgeltpunkte, Rentenwert, pension eligibility and any lifetime start adjustment. Open Financial freedom · FIRE variants How do FIRE, Coast FIRE and Barista FIRE differ? Understand which part of the spending or saving job each label changes. Open Financial freedom · Choosing a rate Which withdrawal rate is sensible? Compare the income and risk trade-off instead of treating one rate as safe. Open Compare decisions · 70/30 portfolio What does a 70/30 World–Emerging Markets portfolio change? See the deliberate emerging-markets tilt and how rebalancing works. Open