Cash Flows - RightCapital Help Center

The Cash Flows module of the Retirement tab allows you to break down all of the details within a client's retirement plan. The cash flows are a straight-line, linear growth projection based on the data entry inputs for each client. Each line in the cash flows reflects twelve months of activity, starting at the point you specify via the Cash Flow Timing setting. Each row is marked by the calendar year and each client's age at the end of each twelve-month period. Values shown in each row reflect the end of the period.

To access the Cash Flows, navigate to Retirement > Cash Flows section of a client plan:

The Cash Flows module is made up of six subtabs: Maps, Summary, Net Worth, Invested Asset, Accounts, and Options. See below for an overview of each.

Looking for our training video?

If you'd prefer to watch a video overview of the Cash Flows module, click the link below to watch our dedicated training video:

Cash Flows - Training Video

Maps Tab

The Maps tab provides simple, intuitive visuals to help clients better understand their cash inflows and cash outflows each year. Here you will find a Waterfall chart and a Breakdown chart, each zeroing in on a client's income, expenses, goals and savings in a specific year of the projections:

Above the chart you will find a timeline; drag the pin icon along the timeline to select a specific year of the Cash Flows. A tooltip will appear to help you easily identify the year that each client retires:

Waterfall

The first cash flow map is the Waterfall. This is a Sankey-style flow chart displaying the total inflows and outflows for each year. Each inflow and outflow is proportional in size to the dollar value of that item, to help clients visualize the magnitude of each item's impact. You can identify any cash flow deficits or cash flow excess at the bottom of the chart:

As you scroll through the timeline, you can start to paint a picture for clients, detailing how their income, savings, goals, and expenses might change over the course of their financial lives. This can be a powerful visual backdrop for your planning conversations, and an invaluable tool for client meetings and presentations.

Pro-Tip: Use Maps as a Visual Aid!

The values displayed here are identical to those found in the Summary tab. For clients who may have difficulty reading and understanding a more traditional cash flow table, Maps can be a useful visual aid in demonstrating where their money is coming from, and where it is going each year.

Breakdown

The second cash flow map is the Breakdown. You can switch from the Waterfall to the Breakdown by clicking the toggle arrow next to the name of each chart. This chart provides the same values and information from the Waterfall, using a chart layout that is more in line with the other visuals in RightCapital:

This chart combines visual simplicity with dynamic granularity, allowing you to click into individual tiles to "zoom in" for more detailed cash flow information. Just like the waterfall, this chart focuses in on one cash flow year at a time using the navigational timeline above the chart.

Summary Tab

The Summary tab of the Cash Flows is where you can view and drill into details of the client's yearly inflows and outflows, detailing everything they are receiving and spending. Using the dropdown menu in the upper right, you can switch between viewing your Current or Proposed plans. Click on an underlined column header to "zoom in" and view more details:

Cash Flow Summary Tab	Definition
Income Inflows	Total income from salary, pensions, etc.
Planned Distribution	Includes: Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) from tax-deferred accounts, Income distributions from qualified accounts, distributions from 529 plans to fund college goals, and distributions from HSA accounts.
Other Inflows	Additional inflows such as the sale of property/business and insurance proceeds.
Total Inflows	Equals the sum of Income Flows, Planned Distribution, and Other Inflows.
Expenses	Total expenses
Goals	Total financial goals
Tax Payment	Reflects an estimate of the client's taxes
Planned Savings	Total savings into qualified (tax-deferred or tax-free) accounts for the client (& spouse). Does not include savings specified into taxable accounts under the Modified Cash Flow or Goal Based calculation methods.
Total Outflows	Equals the sum of Expenses, Financial Goals, Tax Payment, and Planned Savings.
Spend Unsaved Cash (Modified Cash Flow Only)	Reflects the amount that is automatically spent under the Modified Cash Flow calculation.
Net Flows	When using Cash Flow Based planning method, this value equals total inflows less total outflows. When using Modified Cash Flow Based planning method, this value equals total inflows less total outflows & spend unsaved cash flows. Any positive values are assumed saved into the taxable assets.

Learn More: The Impact of Planning Method

To learn more about the Planning Method setting and its impact on the Cash Flows, click the link below:

Impact of Planning Method - Knowledge Base

Income Inflows

Income Inflows	Definition
Salary	Reflects all amounts entered in Salary cards.
Self-employment	Reflects all amounts entered in Self-employment cards.
Social Security	Reflects all Social Security benefits based on the Social Security strategy, plus any amounts entered in an 'Other Income' card with Tax status of Social Security.
Pension	Reflects all amounts entered in Pension cards.
Annuity	Reflects all amounts entered in Annuity cards on the Income screen, plus income derived from annuity accounts set up in the Net Worth screen or in the Income Strategy section of the Retirement Analysis action items, whether through annuitization or lifetime income riders.
Investment Income	Reflects investment income (interest + dividends) from taxable accounts during retirement. This column will only appear if the appropriate methodology setting is checked off which distributes income from taxable accounts in retirement rather than reinvesting it.
Business Income	Reflects all amounts entered as business distributions in an Other Account card with a type of business.
Trust Income	Reflects income from investment accounts owned by a Trust.
Other Income	Reflects all amounts entered in Other, Child Support, Alimony, Royalties, or Inheritance income cards, as well as income from a Note Receivable, entered on the Profile > Net Worth screen under 'Other' account.
Total Income Inflows	Equals the sum of all of the prior values on this screen.

Planned Distribution

The 'Planned' Distribution' column is where you will find distributions from a client's investments. This includes:

Required Minimum Distributions, once a client reaches RMD age
Manual distributions, entered using Income Distribution cards within the current or proposed plans
Automatic distributions from HSAs, 529s, etc. at designated times within the plan

Please note that withdrawals that occur due to negative net flows (in other words, a cash flow deficit at the end of a given year) will not be reflected in the Planned Distribution column.

Other Inflows

Other Inflows	Definition
Rental Income	Reflects rental income set up in an Investment Property card on the Net Worth screen.
Sale of Real Estate	Reflects the sale of properties, as specified in the cards for Investment Properties or Vacation Homes, or the sale of the primary home through setting up a Relocation Goal.
Sale of Businesses	Reflects the sale of businesses as specified in an Other Account card with a type of business.
Sale of Other Assets	Reflects the sale of assets as specified in an Other Account card with a type of Lifestyle.
Options and RSU	Income from Options, RSUs, or Restricted Stock, from the Options tab.
Inheritance	Reflects any inheritance income from the Profile / Inheritance screen.
Insurance Death Benefit	Reflects payout from life insurance upon the passing of the client/spouse.
Life Insurance Distribution	Reflects loans from whole/universal life policies, or the full surrender of such policies.
LTC Insurance Benefit	Reflects payout from long term care insurance to offset LTC expenses set up in the Goals screen.
Total Other Inflows	Equals the sum of all of the prior values on this screen.

Expenses

Expenses	Definition
Living Expense	Reflects values set up in the 'Pre-retirement Living Expense' card on the Expenses screen prior to retirement, and values set up in the 'Retirement Expense' card on the Goals screen after retirement.
Housing	Reflects expenses associated with the Primary Home, including any adjustable-rate mortgage, interest-only mortgage, conventional mortgage, property tax, and insurance.
Debt	Reflects credit card payments and payments for all types of debt other than conventional mortgage debt, adjustable-rate mortgage debt, and interest-only mortgage debt.
Health Care	Reflects amounts set up as Medical expenses, amounts entered in the Annual Retirement Health Cost and Annual Retirement LTC Cost cards, and amounts entered in an 'Other' expense card with ‘Tax deductible’ status of ‘Self-employed health care premium’
Insurance Premium	Reflects amounts set up as premiums for life, disability, property & casualty, and long term care insurance.
Rental and Vacation Home	Reflects expenses associated with all Investment/Rental Properties and Vacation Homes, including any mortgage, property tax, insurance, and maintenance.
Other Expense	Reflects additional expenses such as business/property purchases, money used to exercise options, and most items entered in a 'Charitable Giving', 'Alimony' or 'Other' expense card.
Total Expense	Equals the sum of all of the prior values on this screen.

Goals

Goals	Definition
College	Reflects all amounts set up as College Goals.
Car	Reflects all amounts set up as Car Goals.
Vacation	Reflects all amounts set up as Vacation Goals.
Wedding	Reflects all amounts set up as Wedding Goals.
Legacy	Reflects amounts set up as Legacy Goals in the last year of the plan.
Other Goals	Reflects all amounts set up as Other Goals.
Total Goals	Equals the sum of all of the prior values on this screen.

Tax Payment

Taxes	Definition
Federal	Reflects the federal tax projection, as calculated in detail and reflected in the Tax > Tax Estimate > Details screen.
State	Reflects the state tax projection based on the Resident State set in the Client card on the Family screen.
FICA	Reflects the FICA tax projection.
Local	Reflects Local taxes, calculated using the Local tax percentage set in the Tax and Fees card on the Expense screen.
Total	Equals the sum of all of the prior values on this screen.

Planned Saving

The 'Planned Saving' column is where you will find contributions that clients are making to their various investment accounts. This includes 401(k), IRAs, 529s, HSAs, and more.

Employer matches / contributions will not be reflected in this column, only employee contributions. To find employer matches within the cash flows, navigate to the Invested Asset tab.

Taxable Savings will only appear in the planned savings column if you've checked the 'Include taxable saving in Planned Saving column' in Gear Icon > Settings > Methodology. Otherwise, both taxable and bank savings will be reflected in the Net Flows column to the far right.

Net Worth Tab

Within the Net Worth tab, you can see the various assets and liabilities that make up the client's overall Net Worth. Here, you can track the end-of-year balances for properties, businesses, mortgages, and more as they are projected out into the future:

Net Worth	Definitions
Non-Qualified Assets	Reflects all taxable investment assets, including Bank assets.
Qualified Assets	Reflects all tax-deferred and tax-free investment assets.
Options and RSUs	Reflects the current value of vested but unexercised options.
Primary and Vacation Homes	Reflects the value of the Primary Home and all Vacation Homes.
Investment Properties	Reflects the value of all Investment Properties.
Business Assets	Reflects the value of all business assets set up as an Other Account with a type of business.
Trust Assets	Reflects the value of investment assets set up with an owner of 'Trust'.
Other Assets	Reflects the value of all assets set up as an Other Account with a type of Lifestyle.
Mortgages	Reflects the value of all mortgages.
Other Loans	Reflects the value of all non-mortgage loans.
Net Worth	Equals Non-Qualified Assets + Qualified Assets + Primary and Vacation Homes + Investment Properties + Business Assets + Trust Assets + Other Assets - Mortgages - Other Loans.

Invested Asset Tab

The Invested Asset tab focuses in on a client's investment portfolio, highlighting how invested assets grow or decline each year throughout the projections. Here you'll find the beginning-of-year and end-of-year balances for the investment portfolio as a whole, in addition to the portfolio return being generated each year:

Invested Asset	Definitions
Beginning Balance	On the first line, represents the current value of all investments. Subsequently, equals the prior year's Ending Balance.
Planned Saving	Total savings into qualified (tax-deferred or tax-free) accounts for the client (& spouse). Does not include savings specified into taxable accounts under the Modified Cash Flow or Goal-Based calculation methods. Equals the Planned Saving value from the Summary tab. Click into the underlined column header to view additional details.
Employer Match	Equals the amount calculated as an employer contribution on qualified plans as set up in the 401(k) or Roth 401(k) savings cards, plus any amount entered in an 'Other savings > Tax Deferred' card, 'Other savings > Tax-Free' card, 'Other savings > Cash Balance Pension' card, 'Other savings > Profit Sharing' card, or "Other savings > Employee Stock Ownership Plan' card. Click into the underlined column header to view additional details.
Planned Distribution	Reflects the total of the following: (1) Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) from tax-deferred accounts, (2) Income distributions from tax-deferred accounts (as specified as 'Distribution' Income), (3) Distributions from 529 plans to fund college goals, (4) Distributions from HSA accounts to fund medical expenses. Equals the Planned Distribution value from the Summary tab.
Net Cash Flows	Equals the Net Cash Flows value from the Summary tab.
Annuity Adjustment	Reflects the Annuitization of an annuity account and withdrawals from annuity accounts to generate guaranteed lifetime income.
Beneficiary Distribution	Reflects the percentage of the account that is assumed as inherited by the surviving spouse. You can update these figures in our Account Assumptions page.
Insurance Cash Value Change	Reflects changes in permanent life insurance Cash Value. This field will only be visible when a cash value approach is used within a permanent life insurance policy.
Portfolio Return	Reflects the total investment return of the investment accounts.
Ending Balance	Equals the sum of all of the prior values on the tab.

Accounts Tab

The Accounts tab allows you to see details for each type of account within the plan (Taxable, 401(k), IRA, etc). Using the drop-down menu at the top of the chart, you can choose between viewing five different cash flow tables: Ending Balance by Accounts, Addition to Accounts, Required Minimum Distributions, Withdrawal from Accounts, and Net Cash Flows:

Accounts	Definition
Ending balance by accounts	The end of period balance for each type of account - the Total will tie to the Ending Balance on the Invested Asset tab.
Addition to accounts	All contributions (including planned saving, employer contribution, and saving to taxable accounts) to each type of account.
Required Minimum Distribution	Reflects the required distribution of assets from tax-deferred accounts into the taxable account when the client reaches RMD age.
Withdrawal from accounts	Reflects withdrawals from each account type to fund negative cash flows.
Net cash flows	Reflects the total of Addition to accounts, Required minimum distribution, and Withdrawal from accounts for each account type.

Options Tab

The Options tab of the cash flows is a tab that will only appear when a stock plan is included within the financial plan. This cash flow table will highlight the details of a client's stock grants as they're projected out into the future, such as when shares vest and exercise, when shares are sold or held, and the sale proceeds and taxation for each year:

Options	Definitions
New Grant	The year when shares of stock options or units are granted to an employee.
Shares Vested	The volume of shares that vest in that year. This is when the client takes ownership of the stock that was granted to them.
Shares Exercised	The volume of shares that are exercised in that year. This is when the client purchases the shares of stock that have vested.
Vested and Exercisable Shares	Reflects shares that have vested but not exercised.
Unvested Shares	Reflects shares that have been granted, but not yet vested.
Shares Sold	Reflects the number of shares sold in a given year.
Shares Held	Reflects the number of shares exercised, but not yet liquidated.
Cost of Exercise	Equals shares sold times the strike price.
Sale Proceed	Equals the shares exercised multiplied by the current price per share. Please note, the growth applied to the current price can be set within the Stock Plan plan on the Profile > Net Worth tab.
Net Cash Flow	Reflects the difference between the sale proceeds and the cost of exercise.
Ordinary Income	Income that is taxed at the marginal tax brackets.
Short-term Gain	A gain from stock that has been owned for one year or less. Taxed as Ordinary Income.
Long-term Gain	A gain from stock that has been owned for longer than 12 months. Uses its own tax brackets.

Additional Information

General Navigation

In the upper right-hand corner, you can choose which plan you wish to view the Cash Flow details for - Current, Proposed, or any additional plans you have added. You can also choose how many cash flow rows will be displayed at once using the drop-down box in the lower right-hand corner:

You can use the arrows and numbers to the left of the drop-down box to show additional cash flow pages if you are not displaying 'all years'. If there are more than ten years per page, you can use the scroll bar at the right of the cash flow numbers to scroll up or down.

Downloading Cash Flows

Within the cash flows, you can click the blue download button in the upper right corner to download the table you are currently looking at as a .csv file. This will allow you to open that cash flow table as an excel spreadsheet:

Modeling Custom Return Scenarios.

Although not enabled by default, you can choose to implement custom return scenarios within the Cash Flows. You can do this by navigating to the plan settings (Gear Icon > Settings > Methodology) and checking the 'Allow display of scenario-specific cash flows' setting (click here for a quick video walkthrough).

With this setting checked, you'll find a new dropdown menu in the cash flows that allows you to choose between the 'Baseline' projection, and any of your custom return scenarios. The baseline scenario will reflect a straight-line growth projection, whereas the custom scenarios will reflect fluctuating, pre-built sequences of return each year.

To learn more about custom return scenarios in RightCapital, you can visit our Return Scenarios - Knowledge Base article.

Generating Cash Flow Reports

To generate a Cash Flow report for a client, navigate to the Gear Icon > Report tab of that client's plan. Within the Report checklist, choose the "Cash Flows" option in the Retirement section:

To further customize your Cash Flow report, click into the 'Cash Flows' hyperlink to open a drawer on the right side of your screen. Choose the specific cash flow tables you would like to include in the report using the checklist. To compare cash flows for multiple plans within a single report, toggle on the "Select Plans" button and choose the plans you would like to include.