Skip to content

    Under active development. New calculators and features ship every week. Everything currently runs free while the site matures — pricing pages are a preview, checkout is not open yet.

    Search ⌘K
    Calculates locally in your browser · inflow and outflow
    Household / cash flow

    Household cash flow plan

    A net-worth chart hides the plumbing. This flow diagram traces every dollar the plan takes in — salary, withdrawals from each account bucket, the home sale — through household cash and out to spending, tax and whatever is retained, so the years that run a deficit are visible at a glance.

    Sale age75Proceeds$1,140,813Flow balanceBalanced
    Net cash across the plan
    $1,590,642
    51 years
    Total inflow
    $13,262,307
    Including $1,140,813 of home equity
    Total outflow
    $11,671,664
    Spending, tax and debt service
    Retained in accounts
    $1,590,642
    Cash flow the plan does not spend
    Cash flow by year
    What comes in, what goes out, the debt it services and what is left.
    $1,590,642
    Cash flow by year
    AgeInflowOutflowDebt serviceMortgageNet worth
    45$120,000$116,235$26,092$343,158$1,553,833
    50$139,113$132,337$26,092$302,870$2,177,630
    55$161,270$151,983$26,092$250,216$3,011,374
    60$186,956$174,758$26,092$181,399$4,124,802
    65$170,581$170,581$26,092$91,457$5,414,578
    70$167,502$167,502$0.00$0.00$6,132,609
    75$1,360,654$219,841$0.00$0.00$6,774,985
    80$265,063$265,063$0.00$0.00$7,601,729
    85$331,354$318,238$0.00$0.00$8,378,365
    90$405,303$377,550$0.00$0.00$8,973,427
    95$455,876$440,127$0.00$0.00$9,386,752

    Every fifth year, the year shown above, and the year the home is sold.

    Inspect the model
    Choose a quick result view, a scaled comparison, or the complete diagnostic set.
    Where the money comes from and goes
    Lifetime flows across the plan. Each band is one flow and its width is the amount it carries.
    Where the money comes from and goesSalary → Household cash: $3.22MHousehold cash → Living costs: $9.37MHousehold cash → Income tax: $1.64MHousehold cash → Debt service: $652.3kHousehold cash → Retained in accounts: $1.59MTaxable account → Household cash: $1.39MTax-deferred account → Household cash: $7.51MHome sale → Household cash: $1.14MHousehold cash$13.26MSalary$3.22MTaxable account$1.39MTax-deferred account$7.51MHome sale$1.14MLiving costs$9.37MIncome tax$1.64MDebt service$652.3kRetained in accounts$1.59MSources total $13,262,307 · uses total $11,671,664 · the diagram balances
    One year in detail — age 45
    The same diagram for a single year, so a salary year and a drawdown year can be compared.
    One year in detail — age 45Household cash → Living costs: $80.0kSalary → Household cash: $120.0kHousehold cash → Income tax: $10.1kHousehold cash → Debt service: $26.1kHousehold cash → Retained in accounts: $3.8kHousehold cash$120.0kSalary$120.0kLiving costs$80.0kIncome tax$10.1kDebt service$26.1kRetained in accounts$3.8kAge 45: $120,000 in, $116,235 out, $3,765 retained
    Canonical equations
    The exact relationships implemented by this engine.

    salary + withdrawals + home sale · Withdrawals are gross of tax.

    spending + tax + debt service + retained · A deficit enters the diagram as an unfunded gap.

    Σ sources = Σ uses · Every band that enters the hub leaves it.

    assets = debt + equity · The same conservation, applied to the stock rather than the flow.

    finance methodology

    A clear path from inputs to results.

    A net-worth chart hides the plumbing. This view shows what actually comes in and goes out each year — salary, withdrawals, the home sale — against spending and tax, so you can see the years that run a deficit and how the home sale changes them.

    Step-by-step methodWorked exampleAssumptions explained

    How to use

    1. Enter the household and its spending.
    2. Add the home value, appreciation and the age it is sold.
    3. Set the mortgage balance repaid at sale.
    4. Read the inflow/outflow chart and the deficit years.

    The formula

    Nett=(incomet+Wt+salet)−(spendingt+Tt)\text{Net}_t = (\text{income}_t + W_t + \text{sale}_t) - (\text{spending}_t + T_t)

    Reference: Cash-flow view of the deterministic household projection, net of sale costs and mortgage (Brigham & Ehrhardt, Financial Management, cash budgeting).

    Worked example

    Age 45 to 95, $500k home sold at 75

    Inputs
    • Income $120k, spending $80k.
    • Home $500k growing 3% a year, sold at 75.
    • No mortgage at sale.
    Calculation path
    1. 1

      The home is worth 500,000 × 1.03³⁰ = $1.21M at age 75.

    2. 2

      Selling costs of 6% leave $1.14M of net proceeds.

    3. 3

      That cash lands in the taxable account in the sale year.

    4. 4

      Working years run a surplus; retirement years run a deficit funded by withdrawals.

    5. 5

      The sale year is the single largest inflow in the plan.

    Result

    Sale proceeds $1.14M · deficit years funded by withdrawals.

    Interpreting the result

    The sale year distorts everything around it, which is why a net-worth line hides the story. In the years before the sale, withdrawals do the work; after it, the taxable account carries the plan. If the sale slips by five years, the deficit years in between have to be funded from somewhere else.

    Assumptions & limitations

    • Deterministic returns and inflation.
    • Selling costs of 6% and the stated mortgage balance.
    • Proceeds move into the taxable account and are not separately taxed.
    • No rental income before the sale.

    Frequently asked questions

    Why does the home sale matter so much?

    It converts an illiquid asset into cash in a single year, which changes the drawdown order afterwards.

    Can I model downsizing?

    Enter a lower home value and the sale age; the difference is the equity released.

    Is the gain taxed?

    Primary-residence exclusions often cover it, but that is not modelled here.

    Methodology last reviewed 2026-10-21. Results are informational and not financial or engineering advice — see our disclaimer.