TimeTable and Year Check-in

The TimeTable presents the TIME MACHINE projection in a compact year-by-year form. It shows income, spending, taxes, account and loan activity, net worth, and the balances of individual accounts, loans and properties.

The results can be viewed in today’s dollars, discounted for inflation, or in future dollars. The columns may be reordered by dragging their headings.

Quick start

Begin with the first rows of the table. They show what has happened during the current year, what the TIME MACHINE recommends for the rest of the year, and how the plan continues in later years. Select a year to open its more detailed Year report.

Current-year rows in a Year Check-in

An improved Year Check-in divides the current calendar year into two rows:

  • YTD: January 1 through the Check-in date.
  • Rest of the year: The TIME MACHINE projection from the run date through December 31.

Together, these periods describe the full calendar year. A separate Full-year report combines them. The TimeTable does not add another Full-year row because that would repeat the same year’s amounts.

The YTD row is a reconstruction of the elapsed part of the year. Income, expenses, government benefits and taxes are estimated from the information in the plan unless actual year-to-date amounts were supplied. Account contributions, withdrawals, loan borrowing and loan payments come from the Check-in information. A blank value means that it is not known; it does not mean zero.

The Rest-of-year row is the ordinary first-year TIME MACHINE projection. It starts from current account, loan and property balances and shows the plan from the run date through December 31.

Select the YTD or Rest-of-year button in the first column to open the corresponding Year report. The Year Check-in report also provides access to the YTD, Rest-of-year and Full-year reports.

Reading the TimeTable

  1. YEAR: Each year is a link to a detailed report. In a Check-in run, the YTD and Rest-of-year rows link to their respective partial-year reports.
  2. WARNINGS/INFO: Identifies significant events or possible cash-flow problems in the projected plan. The YTD row does not recreate past warnings.
  3. CPP/QPP, OAS and other public benefits: Shows benefits calculated by the TIME MACHINE. OAS amounts may include GIS or Allowance benefits when applicable.
  4. EXTERNAL INCOME: Includes entered INCOMES, CPP/QPP, OAS and other calculated government benefits. It does not include ordinary withdrawals from investment accounts.
  5. ACCOUNT WITHDRAWALS: Includes withdrawals from accounts other than Wallet accounts. Loan proceeds are also included because they provide cash available to the plan.
  6. TAXES: Includes income taxes, CPP/QPP contributions and EI premiums where applicable. In the YTD row, this represents taxes and deductions already paid or estimated through the Check-in date. The Rest-of-year row shows the additional amount calculated for the remainder of the current year after allowing for those year-to-date amounts.
  7. SPENDING: Includes entered EXPENSES, insurance premiums and amounts assigned to Spending through PRIORITIES.
  8. NET SAVINGS: Shows the net amount directed to accounts and debt after allowing for withdrawals and additional borrowing. The YTD value requires sufficiently complete account and loan activity; otherwise it is left blank.
  9. NET WORTH: Is the total value of accounts and properties minus loans. When there is a spouse, individual and household totals are shown. The YTD row uses current balances, while projected rows show balances at the end of their period.

Accounts, loans and properties

Each account is shown with its balance, deposits or withdrawals, and investment growth. In the YTD row, the balance is the current balance. When the previous year-end balance, contributions and withdrawals are all known, the displayed YTD growth is the amount required to reconcile those values with the current balance. It may therefore include investment gains or losses as well as transfers, employer or government contributions, fees or other activity not entered separately.

The Rest-of-year and later rows show the account activity and end-of-year balances projected by the TIME MACHINE. Accounts are rebalanced according to their target asset allocations.

Loans are shown with their balances, payments and interest where available. YTD loan activity comes from the Check-in information. Projected loan interest reflects the repayment schedule and the timing of planned prepayments.

Real-estate properties are shown with their values and projected growth. A property sale repays linked loans and makes the net proceeds available to the plan. A planned purchase creates the required cash outflow. HBP repayments are also included when applicable.

The Wallet accounts

The TIME MACHINE uses a Wallet when it does not know where excess cash should be deposited or where additional cash should be withdrawn. The intended Wallet balance is zero.

  • A persistent positive Wallet balance generally means that additional funds need an account or a Spending PRIORITY.
  • A persistent negative Wallet balance means that the available sources of funds were insufficient and the plan should be reviewed.

There is a separate Wallet for each spouse when applicable. The TIME MACHINE may use one spouse’s available funds to cover the other spouse’s expenses, but it does not use those transfers to make contributions to the other spouse’s accounts.

Graphs and other reports

The graphs continue to show the TIME MACHINE projection from the run date onward. The YTD row is not plotted as another complete annual observation.

The graphs include net worth, income, spending, saving and withdrawal rates, taxes, taxable income, account balances, account growth, public pensions and asset allocation where applicable.

The navigation bar provides access to the Summary Cash Flow, Detailed Cash Flow, Year Check-in, CPP/QPP report, printable Report and Excel download. A run may also be saved with a description, compared with another run, or restored later as a planning scenario.

The TIME MACHINE results depend on the information and assumptions in the scenario. Account values, market expectations, tax rules and personal circumstances change over time, so the information should be reviewed and the TIME MACHINE rerun regularly.