Comments on: The “What IF” Retirement Planner Review http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/the-what-if-retirement-planner-review/ Helping you invest and prosper Sun, 12 Feb 2012 00:54:40 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: The Financial Blogger » Blog Archive » Financial Ramblings http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/the-what-if-retirement-planner-review/#comment-191643 The Financial Blogger » Blog Archive » Financial Ramblings Sat, 16 May 2009 10:05:43 +0000 http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/?p=2339#comment-191643 [...] Canadian Capitalist reviews the “What IF” retirement planner review. [...] [...] Canadian Capitalist reviews the “What IF” retirement planner review. [...]

]]> By: steve http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/the-what-if-retirement-planner-review/#comment-191151 steve Mon, 11 May 2009 22:09:45 +0000 http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/?p=2339#comment-191151 Yes, the demo is fully functioned. It is just time-crippled... you get 60 days to play with it. Also, financial planners can buy the personal version and then upgrade to the pro version for the differential cost. Yes, the demo is fully functioned. It is just time-crippled… you get 60 days to play with it. Also, financial planners can buy the personal version and then upgrade to the pro version for the differential cost.

]]> By: Canadian Capitalist http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/the-what-if-retirement-planner-review/#comment-191148 Canadian Capitalist Mon, 11 May 2009 21:00:49 +0000 http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/?p=2339#comment-191148 @steve: I've head of RRIFmetic before but I've been under the impression that it had something to do with RRIFs as well! It sounds intriguing, so I'm going to try it out. Does the demo download come with a full set of features that I can test out for a review? If it doesn't would you be willing to supply me with a review copy? @steve: I’ve head of RRIFmetic before but I’ve been under the impression that it had something to do with RRIFs as well! It sounds intriguing, so I’m going to try it out. Does the demo download come with a full set of features that I can test out for a review? If it doesn’t would you be willing to supply me with a review copy?

]]> By: steve http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/the-what-if-retirement-planner-review/#comment-191146 steve Mon, 11 May 2009 20:29:14 +0000 http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/?p=2339#comment-191146 OK.... I am the author of RRIFmetic and I'd like pre-answer a few things. First of all, don't be put off by the name. It has nothing to do with RRIFs... it is a full functioned cash flow (pre-and post retirement) planner. I just liked the name (rhymes with 'arithmetic') and stuck with it. Also... the program is used mainly by professional planners... the personal version is identical in every way except it limits the user to tracking just 5 subjects/clients. Its main emphasis is income tax accuracy which is mostly avoided by commercial software. It is a severe math problem (computing tax in reverse) which simply cannot be solved using a spreadsheet. Finally... it is inclusive. In other words it includes all other financial entities in addition to your investments... loans, cpp, oas, salary, lump sums, cash calls... as well the individual investment entities (rrsps, rrifs, lifs, tfsas, roc, resps), and differentiates the way income tax interacts with each over time. It is "needs-based". In other words, it computes in reverse... i.e. the user specifies the net income requirement, and the program schedules investment cash flows (in-out-between) the reg and non-reg savings entities in order to solve for the net income. It is very fast to source the data, and solves (converges) in under 3 seconds. ...whew. OK…. I am the author of RRIFmetic and I’d like pre-answer a few things. First of all, don’t be put off by the name. It has nothing to do with RRIFs… it is a full functioned cash flow (pre-and post retirement) planner.

I just liked the name (rhymes with ‘arithmetic’) and stuck with it.

Also… the program is used mainly by professional planners… the personal version is identical in every way except it limits the user to tracking just 5 subjects/clients.

Its main emphasis is income tax accuracy which is mostly avoided by commercial software. It is a severe math problem (computing tax in reverse) which simply cannot be solved using a spreadsheet.

Finally… it is inclusive. In other words it includes all other financial entities in addition to your investments… loans, cpp, oas, salary, lump sums, cash calls… as well the individual investment entities (rrsps, rrifs, lifs, tfsas, roc, resps), and differentiates the way income tax interacts with each over time.

It is “needs-based”. In other words, it computes in reverse… i.e. the user specifies the net income requirement, and the program schedules investment cash flows (in-out-between) the reg and non-reg savings entities in order to solve for the net income.

It is very fast to source the data, and solves (converges) in under 3 seconds.

…whew.

]]> By: Basil2 http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/the-what-if-retirement-planner-review/#comment-191132 Basil2 Mon, 11 May 2009 16:21:39 +0000 http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/?p=2339#comment-191132 CC, I replicated/verified what was in the book using Crystal Ball without actually customizing to my situation. Basic idea about MC is simple and easy to understand. What you actually do is you build a deterministic spreadsheet and then use a CB to inject a probability distribution to some inputs. What CB does is it reruns your Excel spreadsheet thousounds of times by varying inputs and evaluating all formulas. It is quite fast. For example 10,000 runs will take a few seconds for most spreadsheets I played with. Output from CB is a probability distribution for one or more output formulas in your spreadsheet created on all 10,000 scenarios. CC, I replicated/verified what was in the book using Crystal Ball without actually customizing to my situation. Basic idea about MC is simple and easy to understand. What you actually do is you build a deterministic spreadsheet and then use a CB to inject a probability distribution to some inputs. What CB does is it reruns your Excel spreadsheet thousounds of times by varying inputs and evaluating all formulas. It is quite fast. For example 10,000 runs will take a few seconds for most spreadsheets I played with. Output from CB is a probability distribution for one or more output formulas in your spreadsheet created on all 10,000 scenarios.

]]> By: John http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/the-what-if-retirement-planner-review/#comment-191131 John Mon, 11 May 2009 16:01:39 +0000 http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/?p=2339#comment-191131 This may be too simplistic for this group but I am using good ol government Canadian Retirement Income Calculator at: http://www1.servicecanada.gc.ca/eng/isp/common/cricinfo.shtml This may be too simplistic for this group but I am using good ol government Canadian Retirement Income Calculator at: http://www1.servicecanada.gc.ca/eng/isp/common/cricinfo.shtml

]]> By: Canadian Capitalist http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/the-what-if-retirement-planner-review/#comment-191129 Canadian Capitalist Mon, 11 May 2009 15:34:16 +0000 http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/?p=2339#comment-191129 @Fred: Actually, they have a fully-functional software that can be downloaded for demo purposes. I'll try it out and post my thoughts. @Fred: Actually, they have a fully-functional software that can be downloaded for demo purposes. I’ll try it out and post my thoughts.

]]> By: Canadian Capitalist http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/the-what-if-retirement-planner-review/#comment-191127 Canadian Capitalist Mon, 11 May 2009 15:28:42 +0000 http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/?p=2339#comment-191127 @Basil2: Thanks for the reading material. I'll check them out. I'm curious if you have built a probabilistic tool and tried some Monte Carlo simulations yourself. @Fred: I'll see if I can get a review copy of RRIFmetic. Thanks for the tip! @Basil2: Thanks for the reading material. I’ll check them out. I’m curious if you have built a probabilistic tool and tried some Monte Carlo simulations yourself.

@Fred: I’ll see if I can get a review copy of RRIFmetic. Thanks for the tip!

]]> By: Fred (ETF2X.com) http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/the-what-if-retirement-planner-review/#comment-191126 Fred (ETF2X.com) Mon, 11 May 2009 15:17:12 +0000 http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/?p=2339#comment-191126 Has anyone used RRIFmetic and, if so, were you impressed? http://www.fimetrics.com/rmpers.shtml Has anyone used RRIFmetic and, if so, were you impressed?

http://www.fimetrics.com/rmpers.shtml

]]> By: Basil2 http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/the-what-if-retirement-planner-review/#comment-191125 Basil2 Mon, 11 May 2009 14:59:54 +0000 http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/?p=2339#comment-191125 There is a continuation of the retirement model with more complicated assumptions on probability of survival to a certain age which is on page 135 of the Financial Modeling with Crystal Ball and Excel book I mentioned in my previous post: http://books.google.ca/books?id=dkuI6rkkBG0C&printsec=frontcover&dq=Financial+Modeling+with+Crystal+Ball+and+Excel#PPA135,M1 There is a continuation of the retirement model with more complicated assumptions on probability of survival to a certain age which is on page 135 of the Financial Modeling with Crystal Ball and Excel book I mentioned in my previous post:

http://books.google.ca/books?id=dkuI6rkkBG0C&printsec=frontcover&dq=Financial+Modeling+with+Crystal+Ball+and+Excel#PPA135,M1

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