FAQ

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.

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. You can read more about how your data is used in our Privacy Policy.

We're constantly working to improve Gilded and add new features that help you better plan your financial future.

To see what we're currently working on and what's coming next, check out our Product Roadmap.

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.

You will be prompted to add income sources during the Gilded onboarding process, but if you didn’t complete onboarding or want to add additional income sources, it is very easy to do. In the lefthand sidebar, click on “Income & Expenses”. You will be taken to the Income page. Click on “Add New Expense.” You’ll be able to select from some of the suggested income sources, or if you are a premium member, enter your own.

You will be prompted to add expenses during the Gilded onboarding process, but if you didn’t complete onboarding or want to add additional expense, it is very easy to do. In the lefthand sidebar, click on “Income & Expenses”. Navigate to the Expenses page by selecting “Expenses” at the top, then click on “Add New Expense.” You’ll be able to select from some of the suggested expenses, or if you are a premium member, enter your own. Make sure to enter your expenses as the annual amount.

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.

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.

In Gilded, you have two 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!).

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.

This can help you see how you’re doing as a couple and how you’re doing individually.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Under Financial Plans, create a new scenario where your income is reduced for the duration of your sabbatical.

Go to My Financial Data, navigate to Assets, and click 'Add New Asset'. Select the type of asset and enter the value.

Go to My Financial Data, navigate to Liabilities, and click 'Add New Liability'. Enter the outstanding balance.

Click on 'Financial Plans' in the left sidebar and select 'Create New Plan'.

Under Financial Plans, toggle different income and expense scenarios to see how they impact your net worth.

Add your expected tuition costs under 'Expenses' and adjust your income sources for potential part-time work or student loans.

Add an inheritance income in Financial Plans, setting the start year to when you expect to receive the inheritance.