Illustration of the application of MATLAB, as an add-on to Excel, to a classroom demonstration of an economic problem. Provides a link to the Mathworks site for ExcelBuilder. The problem is to determine when it is best for retirees to start drawing their social security payments, given that these rise in real terms if taken later. Cumulative payouts are calculated for three starting-ages, showing how a strategy of delay starts to pay off as life expectancy increases.
