Question

When Martin was born, his father set up a $5,000 college fund for him with an annual compound interest rate of 7.3%.

What is the total value of this account after 18 years, and what was the interest earned on the account? Round the answers to two decimal places.



*Remember to use your STAAR Reference Sheet for support!

(2 points)
The final amount of the college fund is $
, and the amount of interest earned on the account is $
.

Answers

GPT-4o mini
To find the total value of Martin's college fund after 18 years with an initial principal of $5,000 and an annual compound interest rate of 7.3%, we can use the formula for compound interest:

\[
A = P(1 + r)^n
\]

Where:
- \(A\) is the amount of money accumulated after n years, including interest.
- \(P\) is the principal amount (the initial amount of money).
- \(r\) is the annual interest rate (decimal).
- \(n\) is the number of years the money is invested or borrowed.

Given:
- \(P = 5000\)
- \(r = 0.073\) (7.3% expressed as a decimal)
- \(n = 18\)

Now, we can substitute these values into the formula:

\[
A = 5000(1 + 0.073)^{18}
\]

Calculating \(1 + 0.073\):

\[
1 + 0.073 = 1.073
\]

Now raising this to the power of 18:

\[
A = 5000 \times (1.073)^{18}
\]

Calculating \((1.073)^{18}\):

\[
(1.073)^{18} \approx 3.634
\]

Now, substituting this value back into the equation to find \(A\):

\[
A \approx 5000 \times 3.634 \approx 18170
\]

So, the total amount in the college fund after 18 years is approximately:

\[
A \approx 18170.00
\]

Next, to find the amount of interest earned:

\[
\text{Interest} = A - P
\]

Substituting the values we have:

\[
\text{Interest} \approx 18170.00 - 5000 = 13170.00
\]

Thus, the final amounts are:

- The final amount of the college fund is approximately **$18,170.00**.
- The amount of interest earned on the account is approximately **$13,170.00**.

Final answers:

The final amount of the college fund is **$18170.00**, and the amount of interest earned on the account is **$13170.00**.