Turn $200,000 into $13 Million?

Title: "Turn $200,000 into $13 million?" in black toward the bottom. The image is of a beatiful big home with a large swimming pool at dusk.

How to Build Wealth

Many people want to get rich now.

That leads them to:

  • invest in risky opportunities

  • launch business after business

  • buy lottery tickets

That’s not (usually) how wealth is built.

Want to know the secret?

Time.

Average Billionaire is 66

According to Forbes:

The average billionaire is 66.

Every billionaire under 30 inherited his or her fortune.

Young heirs lower the average. Self-made billionaires are even older.

“Rule” of 72

The “rule” of 72 is a quick way to estimate about how long it takes an investment to double.

Simply divide 72 by the annual growth percentage as a whole number:

  • 4% annual growth doubles in about 18 years (72 / 4)

  • 6% annual growth doubles in about 12 years (72 / 6)

  • 8% annual growth doubles in about 9 years (72 / 8)

  • 12% annual growth doubles in about 6 years (72 / 12)

Title: "Rule" of 72 in black on top. It's a table with Annual growth and Doubles in: 4% doubles in 18 years, 6% doubles in 12 years, 8% doubles in 9 years, and 12% doubles in 6 years.

“Rule” of 72 Error

However, the “rule” of 72 is more like a guideline. It’s imprecise and most accurate at 6-9% annual growth rates.

For more check out: Are You Less Behind Than You Think?

Growth Example

Let’s assume someone who’s 30 years old has saved and invested diligently. They have a Roth IRA worth $200,000.

That’s helpful because they might not need to:

  • pay taxes or

  • take Required Minimum Distributions.

They’re also fortunate in that they:

  • don’t need this money,

  • earn a 7.2% annual return, and

  • live to 90 years old.

Napkin Math

Using the “Rule” of 72, their funds would double about every decade:

  • $200,000 at age 30

  • $400,000 at age 40

  • $800,000 at age 50

  • $1.6 million at age 60

  • $3.2 million at age 70

  • $6.4 million at age 80

  • $12.8 million at age 90

More Precise

Due to the “rule” of 72’s error, the actual values could be a little higher:

Title: "Value of $200,000 at 7.2% annual growth" in black on top. It's a table with Age and Value. 30 is $200,000, 40 is $400,846, 50 is $803,389, 60 is $1,610,177, 70 is $3,227,167, 80 is $6,467,989, and 90 is $12,963,346.

After Inflation

Inflation could erode the purchasing power. As long the growth rate is bigger than inflation, the real value will grow well above $200,000.

Let’s assume inflation will be 2.54% a year.

With 7.2% nominal annual growth and 2.54% inflation, the real annual return would be about 4.55% (1.072 / 1.0254 - 1).

In today’s dollars, it would grow to:

Title: "Value of $200,000 at ~4.55% real growth in black on top. It's a table with Age and Value. 30 is $200,000, 40 is $311,921, 50 is $486,474, 60 is $758,707, 70 is $1,183,284, 80 is $1,845,456, and 90 is $2,878,183.

That’s almost $3 million in today’s dollars. It’s nearly 15 times the $200,000 today!

Power of Compounding

Warren Buffett’s long-time business partner Charlie Munger said:

The first rule of compounding is to never interrupt it unnecessarily.

Starting early gives investments longer to grow.

Let’s review a made-up example.

Nick

  • Nick saved $10,000 a year from age 22 until age 31 (10 years).

  • He hasn’t withdrawn funds

  • His investments earned a 7% annual return

Nate

  • Nate saved $10,000 a year from age 32 until age 67 (36 years)

  • He also hasn’t withdrawn funds

  • His investments also earned a 7% annual return

Who Has More

Nick contributed $100,000 ($10,000 a year for 10 years).

Nate contributed $360,000 ($10,000 a year for 36 years).

However, Nick has more at age 67!

  • Nick: $1,688,870

  • Nate: $1,593,374

Despite contributing nearly four times as much and only starting a decade later, Nate has less than Nick.

Title: "Life Savings" in black on top. Nick: $10,000 a year, Age 22 to 31 (10 years), Saved $100,000, Value at age 67 is $1.7 million. Nate: $10,000 a year, Age 32 to 67 (36 years), Saved $360,000, Value at age 67 is $1.6 million.

Here’s a graph of how their portfolios might have grown over time:

Title: "Value with 7% growth" in black on top. It's a line graph with two lines. Nick $10,000 a year age 22 to 31. Nate $10,000 a year age 32 to 67. Nick's starts early and grows to about $1.7 million. Nate starts late and grows to $1.6 million.

When’s the best time to plan a tree? 30 years ago.

The second best? Today.

I hope this helps!

If you’re interested in a review of your specific situation…

Disclaimer

In addition to the usual disclaimers, neither this post nor these images include any financial, tax, or legal advice.

Kevin Estes | Founder | Scaled Finance

Kevin Estes is a financial planner helping T-Mobile employees and their families live their best lives.

He worked in T-Mobile Financial Planning & Analysis for nine years and has extensive experience with T-Mobile’s compensation and benefits package. He received a certificate in financial planning from Boston University, passed the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ exam, and founded Scaled Financed in 2022.

About | LinkedIn | Contact

https://www.scaledfinance.com/
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