--- Title: How does Gilded work? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-does-gilded-work --- Gilded is a financial planning application that uses the data you input for your income, expenses, assets, and liabilities. Gilded creates a financial projection on the app dashboard that shows how your net worth will grow over time, after expenses and taxes. You can also create custom financial plans in the “Financial Plan” section where you can add and remove custom income, expenses, assets, and liabilities to see how future life events impact your longterm finances. --- Title: What is the Gilded dashboard? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/what-is-the-gilded-dashboard --- The Gilded dashboard provides a summary of your financial picture. It includes: * The Gilded projection graph that shows what your current net worth will grow to over time based on the income, expenses, assets, and liabilities you entered into the app. * The app assumes you invest your after-tax income after expenses for an average rate of return of 8% on your investments, and an average rate of inflation of 2.1%. * A summary of your assets and liabilities below the net worth projection graph. * Any financial plans you have created below the net worth projection graph. --- Title: What is the inflation rate? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/what-is-the-inflation-rate --- **Inflation is 2.1%** We set inflation at 2.1%. This is the amount outlined in the 2025 Projection Assumption Guidelines published by the Institute of Financial Planning and the FP Canada Standards Council. --- Title: How do I add my pension? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-do-i-add-my-pension --- In Gilded, you have three options to include your pension: * **Add it as an Asset.** This works best if you have a defined contribution pension. You can get the present cash value from your HR and enter it into Gilded as a financial asset. You can update it each year to ensure the projections stay current. If you ever leave this job, you can transfer the cash to a LIRA and track that in Gilded, or leave it invested in the pension and Gilded will track that, too. * **Add it as a future Income Source.** This works best if you have a defined benefit pension and know exactly how much money you'll receive at what age when you retire. You can get your projected pension income from your HR and enter it into Gilded as an income source. Simply set the start year to the year you plan to retire, and the end year to “End of Plan” (the nicest way to say your death!). * **Add it as Income with Pension Adjustment.** This works if you have your employer matching or you have a % taken off your paycheque each month. You can toggle on PA when you're entering an Income and it will adjust your RRSP contribution room the following year. --- Title: How do I add my partner’s finances to create a joint financial plan? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-do-i-add-my-partners-finances-to-create-a-joint-financial-plan --- Adding your partner or spouse’s financial data so you can model your financial future together is easy. You do not need to create a second account for your partner. Instead, you can: * **Add your partner’s income, expenses, assets, and liabilities** the same way you do your own and label them as belonging to your spouse. * **When adding incomes:** Enter both your salary and your partner’s salary separately. You might label your salary as “My Salary” and your partner’s as “Spouse’s Salary.” * **For joint assets or liabilities:** You may choose to label them as a joint income/asset/liability, or you may split them into two entries 50/50 or by another proportion you use. * **Use financial plans to toggle:** You can toggle your partner’s income, expenses, assets, and liabilities on and off within the financial plans section. This will help you see how your financial plan changes with or without your partner’s contribution. In order to unlock spousal items within the app, make sure you do the following: 1. Navigate to **More** in the lefthand menu and click on **Settings.** 2. Under **Account** , you will see "**Spouse Settings** ". 3. Under Spouse Settings, enter your partner's birth year. --- Title: What is an asset? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/what-is-an-asset --- An asset is anything you own that has value. Examples of assets might be investment accounts, your primary residence, and investment property, whole life insurance or jewellery. --- Title: What is a liability? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/what-is-a-liability --- A liability is anything you owe; this could be**** a mortgage,**** credit card debt, student loans, or car loans. --- Title: What is income? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/what-is-income --- Income is money you receive from employment, government benefits, rental income, dividends, or other sources. --- Title: What is an expense? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/what-is-an-expense --- An expense is money you spend on things such as groceries, rent, transportation, subscriptions, or entertainment. --- Title: What is net worth? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/what-is-net-worth --- Net worth is what you own (assets) minus what you owe (libailities). --- Title: How do I add an asset? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-do-i-add-an-asset --- 1. Go to the **Assets** tab in the left sidebar. 2. Click **+Add Asset**. 3. Select the **Asset Type**. 4. Enter the name (e.g.: "Shannon's TFSA" or "123 Main Street House"), balance, and Annual Contribution. 5. Click **Save**. --- Title: How do I add a liability? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-do-i-add-a-liability --- 1. Go to the **Liabilities** in the left sidebar. 2. Tap +**Add Liability**. 3. Select **Liability Type**. 4. Enter the type of debt (e.g.: "Mortgage" or "Student Loan"), balance owing, interest rate (if known), and repayment amount (if needed). 5. Click **Save**. --- Title: How do I add my income? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-do-i-add-my-income --- 1. Go to the **Income** tab in the left sidebar. 2. Tap **+Add Income**. 3. Select **Income Type**. 4. Name the income source (e.g.: "Full-time Job" or "Side Hustle"), the annual salary, the start year, and the end year. --- Title: How do I enter my expenses? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-do-i-enter-my-expenses --- 1. Go to the **Expenses** tab in the left sidebar. 2. Click **+Add Expense**. 3. Select the **Expense Type.** 4. Enter the name (e.g.: Rent, Utilities), amount, frequency (if recurring), start year and end year. 5. Click **Save**. You do not need to enter your Mortgage payments under Expenses. When you enter your Mortgage details under Liabilities, it will automatically calculate your Mortgage payments. --- Title: Can I connect my bank or investment accounts? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/can-i-connect-my-bank-or-investment-accounts --- Gilded does not connect directly to your accounts. You have to enter your account balances into the app manually. This means your banking information is not at risk when using Gilded. The data you enter into Gilded is only used to create your financial projections and financial plans. --- Title: How do I update my net worth? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-do-i-update-my-net-worth --- Your net worth updates automatically whenever you adjust your assets or liabilities. You can view your current net worth on the Dashboard at any time. --- Title: How often should I update my info? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-often-should-i-update-my-info --- We recommend reviewing and updating your finances **once a month** ;**** especially your account balances, loan repayments, and new expenses. Gilded will show you how your net worth changes over time. --- Title: How do I delete data I entered? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-do-i-delete-data-i-entered --- 1. Find the asset, liability, income, or expense you want to remove. 2. Click the **Delete** (🗑️) icon. 3. Confirm deletion. --- Title: How do I edit data I entered? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-do-i-edit-data-i-entered --- 1. Find the asset, liability, income, or expense you want to edit. 2. Click the **Edit** (✏️) icon. 3. Edit information as needed. 4. Click **Save**. --- Title: Does Gilded calculate my income tax? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/does-gilded-calculate-my-income-tax --- Yes! Gilded automatically calculates your income taxes based on the province you live in and the income you enter under Income Sources. Gilded is accurate using current federal and provincial income tax rates for the current year based on your location, and uses projected inflation-adjusted estimates for future years. The net worth results displayed on your projection graph and financial plans assume you’ve invested after-tax income after all expenses are paid. --- Title: Does Gilded calculate my RRIF withdrawals? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/does-gilded-calculate-my-rrif-withdrawals --- Gilded automatically calculates the minimum required RRIF withdrawals from your RRSP converted to an RRIF at age 71. These are factored into your projection graph and financial plans as withdrawals beginning at age 71. --- Title: What is 'End of Plan' mean? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/what-is-end-of-plan-mean --- "End of plan" refers to the point at which a person’s life comes to an end; it’s the nicest way to say your death. Gilded automatically projects your end of life age to be 90 --- Title: How do I change my retirement age? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-do-i-change-my-retirement-age --- Gilded automatically assumes your retirement age to be 65, but you can change this to any number inside your financial plans. You can even create multiple plans to see how retiring earlier or later impacts your finances. To change your retirement age, follow these steps: 1. Go to **Financial Plans** in the left sidebar. 2. Open an existing Financial Plan or create a new Financial Plan. 3. Click on **Settings** at the end of the top menu. 4. Set the **Retirement Year** to your projected year of retirement. --- Title: How do I change my end of life age? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-do-i-change-my-end-of-life-age --- Gilded automatically projects your end of life age to be 90, but you can change this to any number inside your financial plans. You can even test different ages to see how living longer impacts your finances. To change your end of life age, follow these steps: 1. Go to **Financial Plans** in the left sidebar. 2. Open an existing Financial Plan or create a new Financial Plan. 3. Click on **Settings** at the end of the top menu. 4. Set the **End of Plan** year to your projected last year of life. --- Title: How do I plan the costs of having a child? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-do-i-plan-the-costs-of-having-a-child --- There are several key financial considerations when planning for a child. Some of the items you can include in Gilded’s income sources and expenses are: * Reducing your income to go on parental leave. * Collecting EI benefits during your parental leave. * Funding your child’s RESP for future education savings. * Planning for childcare costs such as daycare or a nanny. * Including miscellaneous childcare costs in your budget. * Planning financial gifts for your child, such as a downpayment, wedding expenses, or inheritance. Once you've determined your expected income sources and expenses, you can enter them into the Financial Plans section of the app and set the years accordingly. Your financial plans will update automatically. --- Title: How do I plan for maternity or parental leave? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-do-i-plan-for-maternity-or-parental-leave --- To plan for maternity or parental leave in Gilded, follow these steps: * Under Income Sources, add your current income but set it to end the year you expect to give birth. * Add a new Income labeled _“EI Maternity Benefits”_ or _“EI Parental Benefits”_. * Enter the amount of EI benefits you expect to receive during your parental leave. * Set the start year to when your maternity or parental leave begins. * Set the end year to when your leave ends. Once added, Gilded will factor these adjustments into your financial plan. --- Title: How do I plan a sabbatical? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-do-i-plan-a-sabbatical --- Under Financial Plans, create a new scenario where your income is reduced for the duration of your sabbatical. --- Title: How do I create a financial plan? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-do-i-create-a-financial-plan --- Click on 'Financial Plans' in the left sidebar and select 'Create New Plan'. --- Title: How do I test a scenario in a financial plan? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-do-i-test-a-scenario-in-a-financial-plan --- Under Financial Plans, toggle different income and expense scenarios to see how they impact your net worth. --- Title: How do I plan the cost of going back to school? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-do-i-plan-the-cost-of-going-back-to-school --- Add your expected tuition costs under 'Expenses' and adjust your income sources for potential part-time work or student loans. --- Title: How do I add an inheritance? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-do-i-add-an-inheritance --- Add an inheritance income in Financial Plans, setting the start year to when you expect to receive the inheritance and the end year to ‘One Time’. --- Title: How do I add a Line of Credit? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-do-i-add-a-line-of-credit --- 1. Go to your **My Financial Data** section. 2. Navigate to the **Liabilities** tab. 3. Click **Add New Liability**. 4. Enter details like the **name of the LOC** , **current outstanding balance** , and optionally, any **interest rate** or **payment schedule** you’d like to track. 5. Click **Save**. --- Title: I found a bug or the app isn’t working properly. What should I do? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/i-found-a-bug-or-the-app-isnt-working-properly-what-should-i-do --- Please contact us at [**support@gildedplan.com**](https://mailto:support@gildedplan.com) and our team will help resolve the issue. --- Title: What are my investment returns? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/what-are-my-investment-returns --- **Your investments return 8%** We assume your investments inside a TFSA, RRSP, and non-registered accounts return 8%. You can set a custom rate of return if you expect your rate of return on your investments to be higher or lower. --- Title: Does my income increase with inflation? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/does-my-income-increase-with-inflation --- **Your income increases with inflation** We assume your income increases with inflation, but you can set a custom growth rate based on your anticipated raises or lack thereof. --- Title: Do my expenses increase with inflation? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/do-my-expenses-increase-with-inflation --- **Your expenses increase with inflation** We assume your expenses increase with inflation, but you can always add custom expenses if you think certain costs will be higher or lower in future years. --- Title: Will my home value increase with inflation? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/will-my-home-value-increase-with-inflation --- **The value of your home increases with inflation** We assume the value of your home increases with inflation, but you can set a custom growth rate if you feel another number is more appropriate. --- Title: How much is Gilded contributing to my investment accounts? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-much-is-gilded-contributing-to-my-investment-accounts --- **If you do not specify a TFSA or RRSP contribution amount, we assume you contribute the maximum** You can customize the amount you want to contribute annually to your TFSA and RRSP inside of Gilded, but if you do not set a fixed dollar amount, we will allocate extra cash towards these accounts until the maximums are reached. If you do not have enough to meet the maximum contributions on registered accounts, will we allocate what is available. You choose whether to prioritize the TFSA over the RRSP or vice versa in your Priorities. --- Title: Do my investment accounts increase with inflation? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/do-my-investment-accounts-increase-with-inflation --- **Maximum TFSA and RRSP contribution room increases over time with inflation** The annual TFSA contribution limit is raised increments of $500 to keep pace with inflation. The annual RRSP contribution limit also increases each year to keep pace with inflation. These increases in contribution room to both the TFSA and RRSP are automatically calculated in Gilded. If you are consistently maxing out your TFSA and RRSP, we assume you continue to do so at the increasing contribution limits. --- Title: How long will Gilded contribute to my investment accounts? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-long-will-gilded-contribute-to-my-investment-accounts --- **RRSP contributions stop at age 71 but TFSA contributions continue until the end of life** Your RRSP must be converted to an RRIF at age 71 and you will begin drawing down from the account following the required minimum withdrawal schedule. The TFSA has no age limit. You will continue to receive additional TFSA contribution room each year until you pass away. --- Title: I've maxed out my TFSA and RRSP, now what? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/i-ve-maxed-out-my-tfsa-and-rrsp-now-what --- **If you max out your TFSA and RRSP, excess cash is invested in a non- registered account** If you identify in Priorities that you want to max out both your TFSA and RRSP, and then invest anything left over, Gilded will assign the excess cash to a non-registered investment account. --- Title: Will my RRSP convert to an RRIF at the age of 71? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/will-my-rrsp-convert-to-an-rrif-at-the-age-of-71 --- **Your RRSP is converted to an RRIF at age 71 and you adhere to the required minimum withdrawals, unless more cash is required to service your expenses** We assume you begin drawing down from an RRIF at age 71 and follow the required minimum withdrawal schedule amount based on your age. Gilded will take more from your RRIF if your withdrawals are insufficient to meet your expenses, and you have identified the RRIF as the account to drawdown first in your Priorities. If you have identified the TFSA and/or non-registered accounts as a priority before the RRIF, then Gilded will withdraw from those accounts to meet expenses before it makes additional withdrawals from your RRIF beyond the required minimums. --- Title: Will my income tax brackets inscrease over time? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/will-my-income-tax-brackets-inscrease-over-time --- **Income tax brackets increase with time** Each year, the minimum required income for each income tax bracket is raised. This means every year the basic personal amount you can claim is higher and more of your money is taxed at a lower rate. Gilded automatically calculates future income tax brackets and taxes your income accordingly. We update these numbers each year as the Government of Canada and provincial governments release their income tax brackets. --- Title: How is CPP calculated? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-is-cpp-calculated --- **CPP is calculated based on your age and income and adjusted to inflation** We assume you begin collecting CPP at age 65 and the amount is calculated based on your age and income that you input into Gilded. We currently do not allow for a custom CPP amount entry, or to change the age you begin taking CPP, but these features are currently under development and will be available soon. --- Title: How is OAS calculated? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-is-oas-calculated --- **OAS is calculated based on your age and income and adjusted to inflation** Your OAS is automatically calculated based on your age and CPP income, taxable RRIF withdrawals, and taxable withdrawals from your non-registered accounts. Your OAS clawback is automatically calculated based on your other sources of taxable income and estimated income tax brackets during your retirement. Our OAS estimate is adjusted to inflation. --- Title: What happens to my investments after I retire? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/what-happens-to-my-investments-after-i-retire --- **Your investments continue to compound after retirement** We do not assume you allocate all money to cash at retirement. Instead, we assume your registered and non-registered accounts remain invested and continue to compound and grow in retirement. Because your portfolio will likely be very large at the time you retire, this compounding is significant. --- Title: What is the difference between nominal and real dollars? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/what-is-the-difference-between-nominal-and-real-dollars --- **There is a difference between nominal and real dollars. Gilded shows you both.** Currency loses purchasing power due to inflation over time. The amount of money in your investment portfolio (its nominal value) 30 or 40 years from now will not have the same purchasing power (its real value) as it does today. Gilded shows you the projected balance of your investment accounts over time, as well as its value in “today’s dollars” so you can get a clear picture of how much your investment portfolio will really be worth. Note: some retirement calculators only display the real value of your future account balances. This is an inflation-adjusted number and is lower than their nominal value. If you are using other retirement calculators, make sure you are comparing the real value of your future account balances to Gilded’s value in today’s dollars. These are the equivalent numbers. If you compare real value to Gilded’s nominal calculations, Gilded’s projections will appear significantly higher. --- Title: What happens if I have an unexpected life event? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/what-happens-if-i-have-an-unexpected-life-event --- **Gilded does not predict disability, illness, layoff, divorce, early death of you or our spouse, or other unexpected expenses, but these can happen** A financial model cannot predict when and what kind of unexpected financial challenges you experience in life. It is important to understand that while we plan for the best case scenario, it is more likely than not you will experience income interruptions and unexpected expenses that impact how much you earn, what you are able to contribute to investment accounts, and how much you pay towards debt year to year. We encourage you to update Gilded regularly so your projections and estimates can be updated with any change to your circumstances. --- Title: How does Gilded track the stock market? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-does-gilded-track-the-stock-market --- **Gilded does not display future stock market corrections, crashes, or downturns but these will happen. These events do not change the accuracy of our projections.** It is normal for the stock market to go through up and down cycles. This will result in years where the stock market returns very little or even negative returns. This does not make our projections inaccurate, since our average rates of return account for this variability. However, it does mean your experience of your finances will likely not feel as smooth as Gilded’s graphs. It is important to understand that an average annual rate of return of 8% may look like years where the stock market returns -16%, +10%, +23%, and then -9%. This still results in an average annual return of 8%, but the wide variability in returns year to year may make it feel quite different. --- Title: How does Gilded know so much? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/getting-started/how-does-gilded-know-so-much --- **Gilded only knows what you tell it** Gilded does not connect directly to any of your financial accounts and has no way of knowing your actually account balances or spending habits. If you omit expenses or enter data incorrectly, your financial projections will not be correct! Please take care to enter all your financial data correctly and update your numbers regularly to ensure Gilded’s projections remain as accurate as possible. --- Title: How do I switch to Monthly subscription? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/account-billing/how-do-i-switch-to-monthly-subscription --- **Gilded is currently only offering an annual membership.** Our platform is designed to foster long-term financial planning, which is why we aren’t offering monthly plans at this time. --- Title: How do I change my credit card Info on my account? Url: https://gilded.fernand.help/account-billing/how-do-i-change-my-credit-card-info-on-my-account --- Changing your credit card is done by: * Click on _Premium_ in the top right * Click on _Manage Subscription_ * Edit your credit card on the Stripe page