Do the Math with Yahoo! Calculators

Do the Math with Yahoo! Calculators

The next time someone tells you to "do the math," try a Yahoo! Calculator.

Every computer has a simple calculator application, which you probably use to do addition and subtraction. Yahoo! can take the place of this calculator, and Yahoo! Calculators can give you answers to complex financial questions.

For the simplest types of calculations, you can use any Yahoo! Search form. Type 237 + 13 into a Yahoo! Search form and you'll find the answer at the top of the search results. You can also group together more complex functions with parentheses, as shown in Figure.

Simple math in a Yahoo! Search result

Yahoo! Search forms can also handle unit conversion with the convert shortcut. Type convert 25 miles to kilometers into a Yahoo! Search form, and the top result will tell you the answer is 40.234 kilometers. And the time in shortcut will do some quick time zone math. Type time in London, and you'll know whether it's too late or too early to call someone there.

In addition to the simple calculators built in to Yahoo! Search, there are more sophisticated ones that help you answer everything from how to pay down your debt to which stock to invest in, providing charts and detailed explanations to help you make sound financial decisions. Computers are calculators, but they don't necessarily tell you what to calculate when you want answers to complex financial questions. That's where Yahoo! Calculators can help.

Anatomy of a Yahoo! Calculator

Before you start calculating how much credit you can receive based on the value of your house, take a minute to orient yourself to the basic Yahoo! Calculator format. Instead of a traditional calculator with a keypad and numbers, a Yahoo! Calculator is a questionnaire that you fill in with relevant values. Filling out a calculator can take some timeespecially when you have to gather all of the information requiredbut the end result will give you a sharper picture of your financial situation, which should help you make informed decisions.

Within each calculator section of a Yahoo! site, you'll find a series of questions like the ones shown in Figure, organized by subject.

A listing of banking calculators at Yahoo!

Click any question to bring up a calculator that's designed to help you answer that particular question.

You can navigate within many Yahoo! calculators by clicking tabs running across the top of the page, as shown in Figure.

Here's a look at what you'll find behind each tab, but keep in mind that some calculators will have only some (or none) of these options:

Inputs

This is the web form where you enter your personal data. Many calculators have sample numbers in the fields already, but you can highlight the values and enter your own figures.

Results

Once you've entered your personal data, this is where you'll find the results of the calculations. The results can be displayed as a series of tables, charts, or sometimes a few paragraphs.

Graphs

In addition to the standard results, many calculators offer additional graphs that display your calculations in a visual format.

Explanation (or help)

The page behind this tab summarizes the results you've seen in a general way and explains how you should be using the calculator.

The graphs tab on a Yahoo! calculator

There are over a hundred different calculators available at Yahoo!, in a number of different categories. Here's a look at some of the main subject areas you can run numbers for and where you can find the calculators.

Saving and Investing

Whether you're fine-tuning your retirement plans or trying to pay off your credit cards, there are a number of calculators to help you project and strategize.

Banking.

You'll find calculators that deal with credit cards, home equity, individual retirement accounts, and general savings at http://banking.yahoo.com/calculators.html. This page contains links to answers on questions in the following topics:

Credit Cards

See how changes in interest rates, annual fees, and paying off balances affect your credit card debt.

Credit Line

Find out the difference between a home equity loan and a home equity line of credit in real numbers.

IRA

Compare different types of retirement accounts and analyze when to begin saving for retirement.

Savings

Calculate how much you'll need for retirement and review the benefits or drawbacks to paying off debt compared with saving.

Mutual funds.

You can analyze your current mutual funds or compare potential investments at http://biz.yahoo.com/edu/fundcalc.html. You'll find the following topics:

Compare Funds

Compare growth versus income funds, or compare two different funds side by side.

Determine When to Sell

Look at the financial impact of different selling scenarios: selling today, waiting one year, and working to achieve a specific return.

Analyze Fee Structures

Look at load versus no-load funds, front versus back-end loads, and the impact of fees on your return.

Miscellaneous

See the impact of exchange rates on foreign funds and see how fees and taxes affect when fund costs will be recovered.

Bonds.

Much like mutual fund calculators are bond calculators, which you can find at http://bonds.yahoo.com/calculator.html. Topics include:

Compare Bonds

Look at tax-exempt versus taxable bonds, zero coupon bonds, discount or high coupon rate, and compare two bonds side by side.

Purchasing & Selling

Take a look at pricing and returns, including which selling price yields the desired return, selling before or after one year, and yield to maturity. You can also see the impact of rate changes on current bond values.

Home, Auto, and Education

Your home, car, and college education are some of the biggest purchases you'll make in your life, and you can find several calculators to help you plan them.

Mortgage.

In the Mortgage section of Yahoo! Finance, you'll find a series of questions designed to help you learn about mortgage options. Point your browser to http://loan.yahoo.com/m/mortcalc.html and you'll find the following topics:

Starting a Loan

Calculate the benefits of renting versus owning, look at the range of houses you can afford, and determine how much you'll need to borrow. Compare loans side by side to see which is better.

Calculating Rates and Payments

Compare fixed and adjustable loans, payment schedules, and see how paying points to lower the rate will affect your loan.

Refinancing

Find out how much refinancing your home would cost.

More Home Financing Calculators

Calculate tax savings from a home purchase, reduce mortgage insurance costs, and review the long-term financial savings by making extra payments.

Auto.

The auto calculators at http://loan.yahoo.com/a/autocalc.html are divided into three concepts:

Type of Purchase

Compare loaning and leasing, and see estimated payments for each. You can also compare buying new and used cars.

Financial Impact

Calculate monthly payments associated with a car loan, how much money to put down, and the costs of depreciation.

Loan Specifics

Review the terms of loans, financing versus paying cash, home equity versus auto loan, and rebates versus special dealer financing.

School financing.

You can plan for the costs associated with college at http://education.yahoo.com/college/financial_aid/articles/loan_calculators.html. You'll find calculators to help with monthly budgets, expected family contribution (EFC) for some loans, and repayment plans.

Death and Taxes

They're both inevitable, so you may as well get a handle on the numbers.

Life insurance.

You can find calculators dealing with life insurance at http://insurance.yahoo.com/lh/lhcalc.html. The questions there will help you understand how life insurance works and what the differences are between plans. General topics covered include:

Coverage

How much life insurance do you need?

Returns

Find returns for whole life policies, universal policies, and variable universal policies.

Analysis of the Different Types

Compare term life insurance with whole life, universal life, and variable universal life.

Taxes.

Get a jump on tax time at http://taxes.yahoo.com/calculators/. Yahoo! keeps all of the calculators up-to-date for the current tax season, unless otherwise specified. You'll find help with the following:

Filing Tools

Using TurboTax, these tools help you find deductions, estimate your refund, and calculate your average tax rate.

Income/Employment Tax Tools

Using TurboTax, find out if you are withholding the right amount from your paycheck, estimate your take-home pay after deductions, and estimate your self-employment tax.

Family Life Tools

Use TurboTax to find out how much of a benefit or penalty you'll get from education expenses, your marital status, and selling a home.

Retirement Tax Planning

Yahoo! calculators look at the impact of potential tax changes and inflation in the future for your savings and IRAs. Also, calculate how much you can invest before taxes each year to save some money.

Calculators Beyond Yahoo!

If you can't find the right calculator at Yahoo!, you might be able to use Yahoo! to find what you need elsewhere. There are several online calculator categories in the Yahoo! Directory; just browse to http://dir.yahoo.com and type calculator into the search form. Or go directly to http://search.yahoo.com/search/dir?p=calculator for a list of related categories.