Compare paying an estate-planning cost today with the projected estate tax savings it may produce later. The calculator finds the approximate age at which compounded tax savings catch up with the future value of the upfront cost. It is a scenario tool using your assumptions, not a recommendation for a legal strategy.
At year n, cumulative savings = sum of annual savings grown at the entered rate. Cost opportunity value = upfront cost × (1 + opportunity return)ⁿ. Break-even is the first year cumulative savings ≥ cost value.
The displayed age is a scenario milestone, not a life-expectancy prediction. It depends entirely on realized savings and opportunity return.
Tax law, asset ownership, basis, mortality, and legal effectiveness are outside this simplified comparison.
At age 55, a $50,000 cost, $6,000 first-year savings growing 4%, and 5% opportunity return are projected year by year until cumulative savings first meet the compounded cost.
It is the estimated age when projected tax savings equal the compounded opportunity cost of the planning expense.
The tool converts the calculated number of years to an approximate age.
There is no break-even point under that assumption.
No. It assumes the entered savings occur and does not predict law, asset ownership, or mortality.
Savings may grow too slowly, the upfront cost may be too high, or the scenario may not break even within 100 years.
| Series | Projection rule |
|---|---|
| Annual savings | First-year savings grown annually |
| Cumulative savings | Sum through each year |
| Cost value | Upfront cost compounded annually |
| Break-even | First whole year savings meet cost |