How can I change the starting age of a forecast I'm working on?

If you are on the ‘Cash Flow Modeller’ home page, this can be done by clicking on “Edit forecast details”. If you are already in the forecast you wish to edit, hover over “Options” in the top right corner of the screen and select “Edit forecast details.”

You can edit the name of the forecast on this pop-up if you wish. Once done adjust the Start Age in the dropdown menu.

Note that if you increase the starting age of a forecast to a later date, any incomes / expenses you entered which would now be outside the scope of the forecast will disappear. Please ensure to check that the forecast data is still valid after editing this value.

When creating a forecast for two clients i.e. a husband and wife, whose age do I use when adding incomes or expenses?

When creating a joint report, i.e. for a husband and wife, you should ensure to base the starting and ending ages off the age of the main client, i.e. the first client of the two you entered.

This means that if you have two clients and the main client is 5 years younger than the second client, an income which ends when the second client is 65 would need to have an ending age of 60 (as this is how old the main client would be at the time).

We therefore generally advise that when entering clients for a joint report, put the youngest client as the main client. Your cash flow models can then run until the younger client is 99.

In this video, our director, Ray Adams, talks about this issue:

Should the figures I enter be input as net or gross?

You should enter all incomes, expenses, contributions and withdrawals as net of tax.

This also applies to pension withdrawals - you should enter the net amount which the client wishes to receive and then an average tax rate. The system will then taken the "grossed up" value from the pension in order to provide the net amount you entered into the client's Current account.

In this video, CashCalc Director and Chartered Financial Planner, Ray Adams, talks about net and gross inputs:

Why does the yearly breakdown show a different output for a pension than my client's pension illustration?

All calculations in the cash flow modeller work on an annual basis - this includes any growth on pensions or investments.

We do this for simplicity's sake and for both advisers and clients to clearly see from the yearly breakdown how the results were arrived at.

Pension providers may of course use different calculations to arrive at their projected figures, therefore it may be useful to remind the client that what you're providing them is a forecast which should be reviewed regularly.

In this video, CashCalc Director and Chartered Financial Planner, Ray Adams, talks about this issue:

Why does the income or expense I added start at a value less than the one I entered?

We show all outputs in today's terms by default, which means that the outputs shown are the relative buying or spending power of all future amounts rather than their actual amounts.

This is useful to clients because it shows them what their savings will look like in the future, in figures which are relative to today.

Therefore when you add an income of £10,000 per year which starts in the future, the buying power of that £10,000 could have significantly eroded between now and when it actually comes into payment. This is why the modeller may show it starting at a lower value than what you entered.

To get around this, you will need to tick the "Adjust for inflation" option when adding the income or expense. This ultimately makes the £10,000 retain its buying power between now and when it starts.

You as the adviser will need to decide whether you wish to add "whatever £10,000 will be worth in the future" or "the amount which would have the same buying power as £10,000 does today".

In this video, Cashcalc Director and in-house Chartered Financial Planner, Ray Adams, talks about this issue:

Why does a savings withdrawal I entered stop at an age earlier than the one I chose?

Savings withdrawals in the Cash Flow Modeller are ultimately transfers from the savings pot or pension which you selected into the client's Current account.

However, the amount which can be withdrawn is limited to the amount which is actually in the pot.

If you attempt to make a withdrawal which is beyond what is available to the client, the withdrawal will ultimately stop once the pot is empty. The money requested does not get taken from anywhere else.

If taking a large ongoing withdrawal, you may need to look at the Yearly Breakdown or the Savings Over Time graph to see whether this is happening for your client.

In this video, our director, Ray Adams, talks about this issue:

How does the modeller calculate tax on pension withdrawals?

The cash flow modeller requires all inputs to be net of tax - this includes pension withdrawals.

You must enter the net amount which your client would like to receive as their withdrawal and then an assumed "average" tax rate. The system then crunches the numbers and takes the gross value needed from the pension, in order for the client to get that net value you entered.

This applies to both withdrawals which you enter, and any withdrawals taken out of necessity to cover a shortfall. In the event of a shortfall, the tax rate used is the one you entered when you created the pension in the "Savings Pots" tab and can be edited at any time.

In this video, our director, Ray Adams, talks about this issue:

How can I set a withdrawal from a pension or investment to increase each year?

For any withdrawals which aren't one-offs, this can be done by choosing one of the options on the "Inflation rate" dropdown when adding or editing the withdrawal.

Choosing "Increase at same rate as inflation" will cause the value of the withdrawal to keep pace with inflation from the start and end ages you selected. This will appear to stay level on the yearly breakdown, but this is because we show everything in today's terms and thus the withdrawal is retaining its buying power over time.

Choosing "Don't increase with inflation" will cause the value of the withdrawal to stay level over time. This will show the withdrawal as decreasing over time (if the assumed inflation rate is above 0%), since its value is staying level, but its buying power is eroding over time.

Choosing "Increase at custom rate..." allows you to set your own rate of increase each year. Note that the "real return" will then be the value you enter, minus that of the assumed inflation rate in the Assumptions tab.

In this video, CashCalc Director and in-house Chartered Financial Planner, Ray Adams, talks about this issue:

Why do the pension or investment withdrawals I enter stop too early?

Savings withdrawals in the Cash Flow Modeller are ultimately transfers from the savings pot or pension which you selected into the client's Current account.

However, the amount which can be withdrawn is limited to the amount which is actually in the pot.

If you attempt to make a withdrawal which is beyond what is available to the client, the withdrawal will ultimately stop once the pot is empty. The money requested does not get taken from anywhere else.

If taking a large ongoing withdrawal, you may need to look at the Yearly Breakdown or the Savings Over Time graph to see whether this is happening for your client.

Why does the client's current account have an overdraft, even though there is an income surplus?

This is ultimately because the client is making savings contributions which they cannot afford to make.

All personal savings contributions are taken from the client's Current account and moved into another savings pot which you choose.

However if the client is making contributions which exceed the value of their Current account, then this will cause the Current account to go into an overdraft. This shown on the "Savings Over Time" graph are the pot going into the red.

There are a few options you can consider to mitigate this. If you have chosen to only save a certain portion of the client's surplus income (as set in the Assumptions tab), this could be discarding income which could be used for the client's savings contributions.

It may also be worth considering that contributions labelled as an Employer Contribution are not taken from the client's own money and assumed to be added from an external source.

In this video, CashCalc Director and in-house Chartered Financial Planner, Ray Adams, talks about this issue:

How can I show the outputs in real terms, instead of today's terms?

We currently don't have an option for this as we recommend showing all outputs in today's terms - however, this can be done manually via a workaround.

To do this, you will first need to set the Assumed inflation rate to 0% in the Assumptions tab. You will then need to give all incomes, expenses, contributions and withdrawals which were growing each year a custom inflation rate.

Finally, you will need to manually calculate the future numeric values of anything which you adjusted for inflation.

In this video, CashCalc Director and in-house Chartered Financial Planner, Ray Adams, talks about this issue:

Should my client's pension income be input as an income or as a withdrawal?

If you wish for the client to draw money from one of the pensions you added in the "Savings Pots" tab, then you should enter this as a savings withdrawal. This will move the money from the client's pension into their Current account.

If you wish for the pension income to come from a pension you didn't enter in the "Savings Pots" tab, then add this as an income. Incomes are assumed to come from an external source, such as salary or a State Pension. These also get added to the client's Current account but don't decrease the values of the pensions entered in the "Savings Pots" section.

In this video, CashCalc Director and in-house Chartered Financial Planner, Ray Adams, talks about this issue:

Using Charges & Fees on the Cash Flow Modeller

The charges & fees section on the Cash Flow Modeller gives you a significant level of extra functionality, especially if you're utilising variable growth rates on savings pots.

The section can also be used to show the purchase of an annuity, and this can be done by the helpful shortcut within the section.

When should I use it?

If you have used linear growth rates on your client's Savings Pots, you may have already discounted any charges or fees with the rate you entered. As such, you will not need to include those charges or fees again.

The same applies if you have created your own Variable Growth templates and have discounted charges or fees in the rates which you entered.

If, however, you have used Variable Growth Rates on savings pots and have used one of the pre-built templates such as the "IA Mixed Cautious (0-35%)", these rates do not account for any charges or fees, and thus you may wish to add your own in.

How does it work?

A charge or fee works in much the same way as a withdrawal from a savings pot, in that the amount or percentage is removed from the savings pot each year. However, the money withdrawn is removed from the client's savings entirely rather than being added to the client's Current account.

The withdrawal happens each year before growth is applied, much like any other withdrawals from the Savings Pot.

Adding annuities

If you wish to use the functionality to add an annuity, or to utilise the Purchase Annuity shortcut, you can read about it here.

Further questions

If you would like any further help with this, please feel free to contact us at [email protected]

Adding an annuity purchase on the Cash Flow Modeller

CashCalc's Charges & Fees section can also be used to illustrate the purchase of an annuity.

This can be used in much the same way as a charge or fee, in that the money is withdrawn from the pension in question and is simply removed from the client's total savings.

To make things even easier, we have added a helpful shortcut in the Charges & Fees section entitled "Quick-add: Annuity Purchase".

How do I use it?

To add an annuity purchase, navigate to the Charges & Fees tab on the left hand side and click on the button entitled "Quick-add: Annuity Purchase".

Then, enter the age at which the annuity will be purchased, the pension which will be used to purchase the annuity, and the amount of the pot to be used.

The system will tell you what the forecasted value of the pot will be at that age, so you can ensure to use the correct proportion of the pot. You can purchase the annuity using either a flat amount, or a percentage of what the pot will be in that year.

Once you have done this, you will need to enter what the corresponding annuity income will be. This will start at the same time as the annuity is purchased.

To do this, enter the expected amount that the client will get, or alternatively you can choose that the income will be a percentage of the purchase amount (e.g. 4%).

Finally, choose whether the annuity income is to be level or indexed, then simply click "Add".

This shortcut will ultimately create a charge to show the purchase of the annuity, and also add an income to illustrate the annuity income.

Further help

If you need any further help with this or have any additional questions about how this works, please feel free to contact us at [email protected].

How do I move money between Savings Pots? i.e. from a GIA to an ISA

To do this, you must make a withdrawal from the pot you are taking the money from (GIA), and then make a contribution to the pot you want the funds to go into (ISA).

If the funds you want to utilise are in your client's Current account, then you only need to add a contribution as the system will automatically take the funds from the Current account. (If you have a surplus of income over expenditure in the year, the contribution will be funded by the surplus income and then will use the funds in the Current account).

NB. The withdrawal will be shown as an income on the "Money in vs. Money out" cash flow graph and the contribution (unless it's an external / employer contribution) will be shown on the "Money in vs. Money out" cash flow graph as an additional line labelled "Expenditures & Savings contributions".

How do Contributions, Withdrawals, and the Current account work?

In the Cash Flow Modeller, the Current account is the default cash pot for your client. If your client has a surplus of income in a given year, by default this will be added into the Current account. Also, any contributions made are taken from the Current account, and any withdrawals are moved into the Current account.

When you take a withdrawal from a Savings Pot, the funds are added to the client's income for the year. You can see this visually on the "Money in vs Money out" graph, on the "Cash Flow Model" tab.

When you make a contribution to a Savings Pot, the funds are taken from the client's income for the year. This is displayed on the "Money in vs Money out" graph as an additional line above expenditure labelled "Expenditures & Savings contributions".

If there is a surplus of income over expenditure (and/or Expenditure & Savings Contributions), the system will automatically put this surplus into the "Current account" which is the default savings pot for the system.

If there is a deficit of income over expenditure, the system will automatically take this deficit from the "Current account" until the Current account is completely eroded. The system will then try to fund the deficit from the other Savings Pots in the order they are ranked into the system (top to bottom).

You can re-order the Savings Pots aside from the Current account by dragging and dropping the pots in the order you would like, then clicking "Save Changes" at the bottom of the screen.

How does the modeller deal with surplus income over expenditure?

In any cash flow forecast, the 'Current account' is set to be the default cash pot to be drawn upon if the client has a shortfall of income over expenditure.

Similarly, if there happens to be a surplus of income over expenditure in any given year, this surplus gets added to the balance of the Current account.

If for any reason the client doesn't want to save all their surplus income, you can override this in your Advanced Options. If you hover over the grey "Options" button in the top right corner of the screen, then select "Advanced Options", you will be able to adjust the maximum surplus income the client can save in a given year.

If you do limit the maximum surplus income a client can save, anything above this limit will simply be discarded and assumed to be spent by the client rather than saved into their Current account.

Please note that any withdrawals made are not affected in any way by this setting. Withdrawals are transfers from a Savings Pot to the Current account, and will still be transferred in full regardless of the "Save All Surplus" setting.

Does the modeller take into account unforeseen or one-off market events?

The "Stress Testing" tab allows you to apply market events to a client's savings pots based on historic market data. We have several pre-built templates to apply to in the system based on the FTSE 100's historical performance. This allows you to test your client's capacity for loss as well as demonstrating the client's market volatility.

To apply an historical market event to your forecast, click the pink "Simulate market event" button underneath the graph on the "Stress testing" tab.

After this, you can select what savings pots are affected by the event. For example, a FTSE crash would affect the client's ISA and pension, but wouldn't affect their cash deposit account. Once you are happy with your selection, click "Run simulation." This will apply the market event to the savings pots you've selected (the graph on the right will change to reflect this).

CashCalc Director and in-house Chartered Financial Planner, Ray Adams, explains below:

How do I edit my contributions and withdrawals?

To edit a contribution or withdrawal, proceed to the "Contributions & Withdrawals" tab. Click on the "Edit withdrawal / contribution" pencil to the right of the 'Adjusted?' column. This will open a pop-up box which allows you to fully edit the contribution / withdrawal.

You can easily create bespoke templates using the template builder in My Account.

This includes bespoke Market Events, Asset Allocation Templates and Funds/ Benchmarks.

Watch our short video below, explaining how to build each for yourself:

Adding money in and out

In terms of the Cash Flow Modeller money in and money out equates to incomes and expenditures.

These are incredibly easy enter into your forecast if you follow these steps:

1. Click the add income/expenditure button.
2. You will be presented with a pop-up containing all the fields to enter your income/expenditure.
3. Enter a description for your entry (e.g. Salary for income/mortgage for expenditure).
4. Choose whether the entry is an income or an expenditure from the first dropdown menu and then choose the frequency of this event from the second drop down menu.
5. Enter the net amount of the income/expenditure.
6. Enter the starting age via the dropdown menu (if its a recurring event choose the end age from the second dropdown.
7. Time to select the inflation rate in which you have three options: Increase with assumed inflation (which in this calculator is 2%); don't increase with inflation if you want it to stay a set amount and the option to enter a customer inflation rate in which a slider will unlock allowing you to adjust the inflation rate to your liking.
8. The final option is the ability to adjust for inflation. You would select this option if you have entered an income/expenditure which will be starting in the future and you wish for it to start at it's actual value instead of what the value will be worth in the future due to inflation. (e.g. £10,000 in today's terms if this option is selected or a drastically reduced value if left un-selected)
9. Click the add button and you're all done!

Adjusting for inflation

The adjust for inflation option is designed for if you have specified an income or expenditure which is due to start in the future. It allows you to specifiy whether you would like for this event to be taken at it's value today, if selected, or at what it's value will be in the future after it has been adjusted for inflation.

For Example:

You would like to add a car purchase of £10,000 to your cashflow for 10 years' time. If you select 'Adjust for inflation' this purchase will be made with £10,000 in todays terms. However if you leave this box unticked the purchase will be made with the future equivalent of £10,000, which could be substantially less in today's terms due to inflation.

Understanding today's terms

"Today's Terms" relates to the value (buying power) of money in the present day and when it comes to the Cash Flow Modeller and most other calculators on CashCalc, all values are shown in today's terms.

This concept can be seen quite clearly in the calculator when looking at the graphs produced, when an asset is told to increase with inflation on the graph the value stays level throughout the years.

This is because in real terms the amount of money has increased however the buying power has remained the same.

For example, if you entered a pension with a growth rate of 4% and set the inflation rate to two percent you will have a 'Real Return' of 2% and in the breakdown the growth of this pot is seen as two percent whereas in reality it's growing at 4%.

So, if you have a value that's increasing with inflation it will essentially have a 'Real Return' of 0% and will remain level.

CashCalc Director and Chartered Financial Planner, Ray Adams, explains below:

Using net or gross inputs?

All figures must be entered in net. The Cash Flow Modeller (Basic) does not calculate taxation.

CashCalc Director and in-house Chartered Financial Planner, Ray Adams, explains this further:

Editing forecast details

To edit the details for the forecast you're currently working on, you can simply hover over the options button on the top right of your screen and select 'Edit forecast name' from the dropdown menu.

Alternatively, if you are in the main forecast selection screen you can click the 'Edit' button which can be found at the bottom of the forecast option.

Once the edit forecast page has loaded, you can type the new forecast name into the text field and if applicable you can also change the planner assigned to the forecast here by selecting a name from the dropdown menu. Click update and you're all done or click back to cancel the changes and go back to the forecast selection screen.

Cloning a forecast

Cloning a forecast is an incredibly easy process, simply click add a new forecast either from the forecast selection screen or from the options dropdown menu of the calculator itself. Once the page has loaded fill in the forecast name, starting age, planner and simply select the forecast you wish to clone from the the 'Copy income/expenditure info from' drop down menu and click the 'Add' button.

CashCalc Director and in-house Chartered Financial Planner, Ray Adams, explains:

Understanding the real return rate

Real return rate is the rate of asset growth after the inflation rate has been taken into account.

For example:

A savings pot has been entered with a net investment return of 4% and there is also an assumed inflation rate of 2%. Although, the value of the pot will be increasing at a rate of 4% the actual buying power of the pot is only increasing at 2% because the value of the currency is decreasing at the rate of 2%. Hence the 'Real Return' of the pot is 2% rather than 4%.

Creating a report

After the relevant information has been entered and a calculation run, a 'Create Report' button will appear at two locations on the calculator page; one below the area where the assumptions are made and another below where the graphs are generated.

After the relevant information has been entered and a calculation run, a 'Create Report' button will appear at two locations on the calculator page; one below the area where the assumptions are made and another below where the graphs are generated. After the relevant information has been entered and a calculation run, a 'Create Report' button will appear at two locations on the calculator page; one below the area where the assumptions are made and another below where the graphs are generated.

CashCalc Director and in-house Chartered Financial Planner, Ray Adams, explains below:

How do I edit my contributions and withdrawals?

To edit a contribution or withdrawal, proceed to the "Contributions & Withdrawals" tab. Click on the "Edit withdrawal / contribution" pencil to the right of the 'Adjusted?' column. This will open a pop-up box which allows you to fully edit the contribution / withdrawal.

Understanding the 'Money in vs Money out' graph

The 'Money in vs Money out' graph depicts all of the individual incomes of the client throughout their life set against their ongoing expenditure figures. While expenditure is represented by the line across the x-axis, the income is displayed as bars, separated year by year.

Each bar will be colour coded according to the income expected that particular year for each individual input made in the 'Income & Expenses' tab. These will be represented by various colours and will be labelled in the key underneath the graph. The expenses will be totalled from your input in the expenses section of 'Income & Expenses' and can be viewed by hovering over the expense line on the chart.

The graph will range from the starting age of your client through to the stipulated end age.

Understanding the 'Savings over time' graph

The 'Savings over time' graph is a straightforward graph showing the progression of savings and investments throughout the client's life. A shortfall in income subsidised by savings may be reflected in the graph with a negative figure - reflected by red bars.

The green bars in the graph represent the 'savings pots' figures entered. If you hover over these bars, you will notice the different shades representing the different savings accounts. You will be able to see here the totals expected in the respective account along with the net growth rate. Similarly, if there is a shortfall, if you hover over the red bars, you will see the overall negative sum of the current account. The model defaults to take money first from the current account, but savings pots can be re-ordered in the 'Savings pots' tab.

Understanding the 'Savings & cashflow' graph

The 'Savings & cash flow' graph amalgamates income & expenditure along with the client's savings over time. The line along the x-axis represents the client's yearly expenditure. Income is represented by the multi-coloured elements of the bars, and can be individually hovered over to view exact amounts. Each different income will be displayed in the key under the chart.

Savings are represented by either the green or red bars. While green will represent savings in a positive figure, red means that the savings have been depleted due to a shortfall in income / excess expenditure and the current account is now in an overdraft.

How does the State Pension Age Calculator work?

Our State Pension Age calculator is a tool that can be used to calculate when a client will reach their qualifying state pension age. A user may simply add a client's gender and date of birth, and our State Pension Age calculator will predict how old, and when that client is eligible for state pension.

In this video, CashCalc Director and in-house Chartered Financial Planner, Ray Adams, walks through a State Pension Age Example:

Can I alter a client's details to achieve an alternative result?

Yes. The State Pension Age calculator allows our users to edit a client's gender/date of birth temporally if they wish to produce an altered outcome.

State Pension Age example

In this video, our director, Ray Adams, walks through a State Pension Age Example:

How can I create a forecast?

If you are creating a forecast for the first time, you will be taken directly into the calculator and the forecast name will be automatically generated to today's date; however, this can be changed via a shortcut menu that will appear at the top of the screen.

If there is already a forecast available, then you will be taken to the forecast selection page. To create a new forecast from this page simply click the 'Add new forecast' button; then simply enter a forecast name, select which planner you would like to appear on the forecast and click the 'Add' button.

How is the interest worked out?

The calculations taking place work the interest out on a monthly basis; this decision was made in order to reduce the compute time taken before the results are produced while still producing usable and accurate answers.

How are the annual figures calculated?

The Annual figures are derived from the results of the monthly breakdown.

The payments, Interest & Capital is the sum of the twelve month period which have passed. The start balance of the year is the end balance of the previous month and the end balance is the value of the end value of month 12.

This ensures consistent data between the two breakdowns as well as less computations resulting in a faster service.

How can I edit or delete a forecast?

If you are currently on the forecast selection screen then the forecasts can be edited or deleted by clicking the corresponding buttons in the end column of the selection table.

If you are inside the calculator itself its just as easy to change/delete a forecast; hover over the 'Options' button in the top right of your screen and select either 'Edit forecast name' or 'Delete forecast' from the drop down menu.

Case Study: Financially Uncertain

In this video, our Director, Ray Adams, runs through a case he has worked on via the cash flow modeller. He explores a multitude of options and explains what can be seen and what should be done.

How does the Monte Carlo Simulator work?

The Monte Carlo Simulator firstly takes a single DC (Defined Contribution) pension pot along with any expected contributions, withdrawals, charges and fees. It then runs 10,000 simulations of the pot's value over time, with the growth rates being randomly generated based on the past performance of a given asset allocation.

How many simulations are run?

Between 5,000 and 10,000 simulations are run in total. The simulations are performed in batches of 1,000 and the system keeps running batches until 10,000 simulations have been performed, or if more than 5,000 have been performed and the new batches are no longer making a difference to the percentage of simulations which were above the thresholds.

Where does the example asset allocation data come from?

The data has been carefully selected and provided by an industry leading fund provider. Figures are based upon benchmark returns in the 20-year period ending 31st December 2016.

It's important to remember, however, that the defaults we provide are simply benchmarks. For best results with the simulator, we recommend creating your own asset allocation templates based on your own model portfolios.

How do I create my own asset allocation templates?

You can do this via the Asset Allocation template builder.

Click on My Account when logged in, then "Asset Allocation Templates" and create a new template from there.

For a more detailed insight, please watch our short video:

Are the outputs in today's terms?

Yes, outputs are all shown in today's terms. We also randomly generate an assumed inflation rate going forward based on a historic average of the past 20 years.

What is the Cashflow & Onboarding module?

Our Cashflow & Onboarding modules is the base functionality of CashCalc. It includes a range of tools to help our users give good quality advice to their clients.

The Cashflow & Onboarding module includes:

• Cashflow Modeller
• Monte Carlo Simulator
• Client Onboarding
• Integrations
• Mortgage & Equity Release Calculator
• Salary & Dividend Tax Calculator
• State Pension Age Calculator
• Cashflow Modeller (Basic)

As the Cashflow & Onboarding module is core, you must have taken our a trial or have purchased the plan, in order to access any other tools in the CashCalc suite.

For more information on our new pricing structure, click here.

How do I request a trial?

New users

If you’re a new user and would like to trial our Cashflow & Onboarding tools, then you must register for a free CashCalc account, here. You will automatically be enrolled onto a trial of our core Cashflow & Onboarding module.

You can take a trial of the Cashflow & Onboarding module by logging into your account and finding the Cashflow & Onboarding module under ‘Plans’ in the ‘My Account’ section. Here, you can trial our range of plans as well as add them to your account subscription.  

Existing users

If you’re already a CashCalc user, then you can add a trial of the Cashflow & Onboarding module in the ‘Plans’ section under ‘My Account’.

Your 28-day free trial

Your 28 Day Free Trial will allow you unrestricted access to the Pension Tools plan for the entire trial period. This includes our guides, downloadable Reports and the Premium Support service.

Throughout the trial period, you will have the opportunity to upgrade your account and continue using the tool with no restrictions, beyond the 28 days. The Cashflow & Onboarding module costs £50 per-month + VAT, with no contracts or tie-ins.  

How can I add the tool to my package?

New users

If you're currently undergoing a trial or are new to CashCalc, you can add the Cashflow & Onboarding module to your subscription in the 'Plans' section under 'My Account'.

Existing users

The Cashflow & Onboarding module is the core plan for all CashCalc modules. This module must be purchased before you can add any other module to your CashCalc subscription.

Can I book a demo?

We try to ensure that CashCalc is as user-friendly and straightforward as possible, but we have a range of training options on offer.

You can:

• Watch a pre-recorded demonstration
• Book a 1-to-1 demonstration (£40 + VAT for a 30-minute session)
• Book a free group demonstration
• Arrange for one of our trainers to come and visit you

Find out more info and book a demo in your CashCalc dashboard.

Can I download a sample report?

You can access all of our sample reports in the 'Resources' section, which includes downloadable reports for all of our tools.

How much is the Cashflow & Onboarding module?

CashCalc is a modular system, meaning you can add different tools to create your own personalised suite. Our Cashflow & Onboarding module is the core plan to CashCalc, and can be purchased for £50 per-month + VAT per-adviser.

You must be a user of the Cashflow & Onboarding module to add any of the optional modules to your subscription.

You can purchase the module or take out a trial, in the 'Plans' section under 'My Account'.

For more information on our Pricing plans, click here.

What is the Reduction In Yield (RIY) Calculator?

The Reduction In Yield (RIY) Calculator helps to give clients an important insight into the impact of costs and charges on an investment’s potential growth & returns.

Specifically, our tool will:

• Compare different investment portfolios and apply bespoke rates
• Consider how charges & fees will affect the growth of investment portfolios. You can set these yourself or use Projected Values.
• Use Tiered & Milestone Charging to change charges based on value thresholds and milestones
• Compare portfolios in a concise and detailed visual graph
• Produce a white-labelled client-facing report, branded with your firm’s logo

If you’re currently a CashCalc Premium subscriber, then you can already access the RIY Calculator through the Core Tools section of the Client Dashboard. If you aren’t already a CashCalc user, then you can sign up for a 28-day free trial, here.

Watch: Reduction In Yield Calculator Overview

What is Tiered & Milestone Charging?

Tiered & Milestone Charging is available in the Charges section of the RIY Calculator, under Advanced Options.

Tiered Charging allows you to change Platform Charges within certain value boundaries. For example, you can set the Platform Charge from £1 to £50,000 at 1%, and £50,001 to £100,000 at 0.5%. This is an optional feature, whereby you can add as many or as few as required.

Milestone Charging allows you to change the entire Platform Charge once a specific value has been reached. For example, an investment fund is charged at 1%, then once it reaches a specific value such as £100,000, the Platform Charge can be changed to 0.5% across the entire fund. 

How do Projected Values work?

You have the option of adding Charges & Fees yourself or by using Projected Values. This is where we calculate the charges for you, based on the projected value of the different growth rates.

This can be useful for older investment portfolios, where you may not have access to the charges being applied.  

How can I compare portfolios?

You can compare your two portfolios with varying growth rates very easily. We display all the information you need in a concise and detailed visual graph, where you will be able to view the monetary and percentage differences. Or, you can view a detailed year-by-year breakdown of the charges, deductions and contributions.

You will have the option of producing a custom client-facing report, only including the data that you feel is important and relevant to your particular client.  

Can I produce white labelled reports?

Just like any of CashCalc’s tools, our Reduction In Yield Calculator allows you to produce a client facing white labelled report, branded with your firm’s logo. We’ve also give you the option to bespoke reports, only including the information you think is relevant to your client.

How much does RIY cost?

The RIY Calculator will form part of our core Cashflow & Onboarding module. This means that if you’re a current CashCalc Premium subscriber, you already have access to the RIY tool free of charge. Login to access the tool, here.

If you don’t have a CashCalc Premium subscription, you can sign up for a free 28-day free trial, here.  

How can I access RIY?

To access the RIY Calculator, go to a recent client, and click the Core Tools section from the Client Dashboard. Then, select Reduction In Yield Calculator.  

Login to your CashCalc account, here.

If you aren’t already a CashCalc user, then you can sign up for a 28-day free trial, here.