Answer:
OPTION A yields the most money at 10 and 20 years. Hence Option A is the better choice for "thinking about your future"
Step-by-step explanation:
In the absence of any more information, I am going to assume that Simple Interest applies. (see attached)
hence the applicable formula is:
A = P(1+rt), where
A = final amount after t years
P = Principal (beginning) amount ($1500 for option A and $1000 for option B)
r = annual interest rate (5% = 0.05 for option A and 5.5% = 0.055 for option B)
t = time (we are asked to evaluate t = 10 years and t = 20 years)
<u>For option A </u>:
P = $1500 and r = 5% = 0.05
A = P(1+rt)
A = 1500 [ 1 + (0.05)t]
at 10 years: A = 1500 [ 1 + (0.05)(10)] = $2,250
at 20 years: A = 1500 [ 1 + (0.05)(20)] =$3,000
<u>For option B </u>:
P = $1000 and r = 5.5% = 0.055
A = P(1+rt)
A = 1000 [ 1 + (0.055)t]
at 10 years: A = 1000 [ 1 + (0.055)(10)] = $1,550
at 20 years: A = 1000 [ 1 + (0.055)(20)] = $2,100
Comparing all the 4 results above, we can see that OPTION A yields the most money at 10 and 20 years. Hence Option A is the better choice for long term returns.