What common input mistakes should I check before running TIME MACHINE?

Use this checklist when reviewing a scenario:

• Save each form before leaving it, and complete any additional screen that follows. A name does not set an entry’s type or owner; check the actual selections for accounts, loans and savings.

• Enter CPP/QPP and OAS through their pension screens. Enter investment holdings and withdrawal instructions in their own sections. Adding these again as ordinary INCOMES can count the same money twice.

• Enter saving instructions under AUTOMATIC SAVINGS and WITHDRAWALS or use deposit PRIORITIES. Savings are not EXPENSES. Enter living costs in EXPENSES, without duplicating loan payments or insurance premiums already modelled elsewhere.

• TIME MACHINE calculates income tax. Use the pre-run tax-information fields for taxes already paid and any previous-year balance; do not also add the same tax as an expense.

• To have an RESP pay for education, enter an education expense linked to its beneficiary and account. Simply leaving money in an RESP until it must close can produce a different withdrawal and tax result.

• For a CCPC, enter its revenues and accounts and any salary or dividend payments to household members. A requested payment still requires corporate funds.

• Review deposit and withdrawal PRIORITIES and any automatic instructions. Withdrawal Optimizer recommendations concern retirement years; the earlier years still depend on your scenario’s instructions.

• Complete previous-year income and current-year tax information before launching. These affect taxes and income-tested benefits. If you do not know the spending budget, you can use CHOOSE YOUR LEGACY to estimate spending for a chosen legacy, with the Spending deposit-priority limits set to 0%.