Projects combined savings and investment-fund value each October 1, 2026–2064 · all figures nominal (future dollars)
| Oct 1 | Money needed | Total income | Taxes | Surplus / shortfall | Savings balance | Fund value | Est. monthly dividend |
|---|
Monthly figures (money needed, total income, taxes, surplus) are for that October; savings balance and fund value are as of Oct 1 (before that month's contribution).
Income each month = A & B work (flat, only between their start/stop dates) + Social Security (grows 3%/yr from each person's start) + B's pension + any additional pension (both grow with the pension COLA, default 2%/yr, from their start; federal-taxable but NY-exempt) + the fund distribution (yield × current fund value), once distributions have started.
Deferred distributions: if a start month is set, the fund still pays out beforehand but nothing is drawn — each month’s payout buys more shares instead, so it is not income, is not taxed, and compounds into a larger fund. Those months show the payout marked reinv. in the dividend column. A month’s shortfall is met in a fixed order: savings first, but only down to the minimum cash reserve; then the payout — just enough of it is drawn to hold savings at the reserve, and only the remainder is reinvested; then fund shares are sold; and only once the fund is exhausted does savings fall below the reserve. So while deferring, shares are sold only after the whole payout has been taken, and the reserve is protected ahead of the fund. Deferring months show the amount taken alongside what was reinvested. Leave the field blank to take distributions from the start.
Deaths (entered as the age at death — A reaches it in July, B in December of the relevant year): the deceased's work income stops; combined Social Security resets to the higher of the two benefits (continuing to grow with COLA); if B dies the pension drops to the survivor amount, the additional pension and B's student-loan payment stop, and if A dies alone the pension is unchanged; if both have died all of the above go to zero. If a reduced after-death money-needed amount is entered, it replaces the base amount (still growing 4%/yr) from the first death onward.
Money needed grows 4%/yr from its 2026 value; during its active window B's student-loan payment is added on top (flat, not inflated), so the Money needed column shows total monthly outgo. Surplus = total income − taxes − money needed.
A chosen share of any surplus buys fund shares at the fixed share price; the rest goes to combined savings. A shortfall is drawn first from savings — but only down to the minimum cash reserve — then by selling fund shares; the reserve is breached only if the fund is fully exhausted.
Fund cash-ins: each April once A reaches the chosen age (72 → first cash-in April 2037), the set amount of fund shares is sold and moved to savings, until the lifetime maximum ($230,000) is reached. The proceeds are taxed as ordinary income (federal + NY) at that year's marginal rate, and that tax is paid out of the proceeds — so savings rises by the amount net of tax while the fund falls by the full amount. These cash-ins are balance-sheet events (reflected in the Oct 1 savings and fund balances), separate from the recurring monthly Taxes column.
Two-phase money needed: the phase-1 amount applies until the phase-2 start month, then the phase-2 amount takes over; both grow 4%/yr from 2026 and are still replaced by the reduced after-death amount when one is set. House sale: on the entered month the net proceeds (sale proceeds minus tax on the taxable gain) are added to savings, with an optional share redirected into the fund — a one-time balance-sheet event, like the fund cash-ins. House renovation: on the entered month the renovation cost is deducted from savings down to the minimum cash reserve, then by selling fund shares if savings can’t cover it — a one-time balance-sheet event with no tax effect.
Taxes use 2026 graduated brackets — married filing jointly while both are alive, switching to Head of Household (its own brackets, standard deduction, and Social Security provisional-income thresholds) once one person has died. Federal: standard deduction, with Social Security taxed under the provisional-income test (up to 85% taxable); work, pension and fund distributions are ordinary income. New York: Social Security and the pension are excluded; only work and fund distributions are taxed.
Brackets are held at 2026 levels (not re-indexed), consistent with applying the 4% inflation rate to money needed only — so taxes here are a modestly conservative estimate. This is a planning model, not tax advice.