Modelling outside the scope of Pathfinders' standard modelling

Cases that have more than two individuals

You should be able to model a case fairly well with two or more people, however, you should review the results carefully.

If anything isn’t working as expected, then please send support the details of what the issue is

If the case has an SMSF with three or four members.

Age Pension Gifting

Add a ‘gift amount’ to be accounted for in the age pension estimate, reducing the value of a property, and adding a capital gain to count towards the individual’s taxable income

Unless you ask support to enter these details for you, you will not be able to include any gifting when estimating the Age Pension.

• The case name

• The scenario(s) to apply it to

• The financial year(s) and amounts for the gifting. Pathfinder can model:

  • Gifting that occurred in the 4 years prior to the start of the analysis

  • Gifting that occurs in the years of the analysis

  • If there are multiple years, please supply the values as separate values for each year (not a total for all years)

Pathfinder can model simple cases where the DSP is applied for the entire case for one individual.

If it it more comples, then we may suggest yousubmit the case to the SDS.

Tax rates for non-residents

Individuals are only taxed on Australian rates in the online interface. However, we can apply non-resident tax rates in the SDS.

Let support know you would like to submit the case to the Optimo Financial SDS and tell them:

• The case name

• The name of the individual paying non-resident tax rates

All cases that have an individual with non-resident tax rates need to be submitted to the SDS.

Include the Disability support pension (DSP)

Pathfinder does not model the disability support pension by default. It is possible to include it, but please note that it is treated the similarly to the Age Pension.

Please see How to model a Disability Support Pension (DSP)

Pathfinder can model simple cases where the DSP is applied for the entire case for one individual.

If it it more complex than this, then we may suggest you submit the case to the SDS.

Child tax rates

This is particularly relevant for cases with a Trust that have children as beneficiaries. People below 18 years of age are subject to different tax rates than adults. Child tax rates are currently out of scope for Pathfinder, so needs to be completed in the Optimo Financial SDS .

• The case name

• An overview of why the chlid is receiving income and the tax you expect them to pay

Caes with child tax rates are likely to require the Optimo Financial SDS .

As part of the SDS, we can assist you with manual tax adjustments or workarounds. As well, we can set constraints to your scenario to control income, such as specifying how much a child receives as Trust distributions.

Dependants who own items (e.g. assets or income)

• If the dependant is over 18, you could consider entering their details in Pathfinder as an Individual.  If the Dependant is are under 18, special tax rates may apply, and you should submit the case to the Strategy Development Service (SDS).

First home super saver for saving for a family home.

The first home super saver is an initiative that lets individuals deposit their savings for their first home in their super funds.

This is not built into Pathfinder, as it is not very popular, however if you can work out the amounts yourself, it’s possible to include them in Pathfinder.

If you need assistance for implementing the workaround in Pathfinder, then please contact Optimo support and give a general overview of what you would like to model.

If the workaround is going to take a lot of work or you would like Optimo Pathfinder to work out values for you, then additional charges may apply.

For example, multiple deposits over multiple years for two individuals, and you would like us to work out the tax calculations for you.

Converting a your current family home to an investment property or vice versa (i.e. you currently live in the property and would like to rent it out)

A workaround is available here: How to convert a family home to an investment property (or vice versa) - a workaround

Other property options

See Investment Property | Strategy-Development-Service-(SDS)-options

Borrowing options

See Secured loan | Strategy-Development-Service-(SDS)-options

Specify a different property value for different years. e.g. if the property value has increased as a result of a renovation.

The value for investment properties and family homes is based on an initial amount that is indexed over the years. It can’t be modified year-to-year.

Please tell us:

• The scenario(s) you want to apply it to

• The name of the property

• The financial year the property value increases

• The new property value in unindexed/present values, since Pathfinder will apply the indexation.

If we just need to to do a one-off adjustment, then this can be part of standard support.

Purchasing or selling an investment property on a date other than 1st January

By default, property transactions occur mid-financial year (that is, 1st January).  This means that when a property is bought, savings made in the first half of the financial year may contribute to the deposit and loan repayments to be made in the second half of the financial year.  And when a property is sold, loan repayments are assumed to be made in the first half of the financial year, with the proceeds of the sale available in the second half of the financial year.

Please tell us what you would like to see, and we can advise whether a workaround is feasible.

Options for borrowing

See Secured loan | Strategy-Development-Service-(SDS)-options

See Secured loan | Strategy-Development-Service-(SDS)-options

Keeping open several cash accounts with specific balances

Pathfinder tends to prefer a keeping single cash account, so if you have multiple cash accounts, it may transfer funds between them unexpectedly.

You could try using:

• Fixed interest (term deposits, government bonds)

• The Cash reserve goal

If you would like specific instructions for cash accounts, please tell us:

• the case name

• the scenarios you want to apply the change to

• the names of the cash accounts and what you want to do with them

If it is only one or two cah accounts with minor changes, it will likely be part of the standard support.

Keeping cash in proportion to another asset

Deposits to cash and shares should be equal

Please send specific details, and we’ll see what we can do.

We will let you know, based on the request.

Adjust assumptions (e.g. income, growth, fees)

By default, Pathfinder fills in assumptions for shares/manged funds based on your selected profile.

• The name of the investment

• What you would like the returns to be. We can adjust:

  • Income %pa

  • Growth %pa

We can typically do this adjustment as part of support as a one-off, for a trial case or as part of a workaround.

If you regularly want to use different assumptions from the Optimo defaults, then you can contact support and request to set up custom assumptions (where additional charges may apply).

Options for borrowing (including margin loans)

You can add loans to shares/managed funds, however, the borrowing may not be what you expect (too high or too low)

See Secured loan | Strategy-Development-Service-(SDS)-options

See Secured loan | Strategy-Development-Service-(SDS)-options

More precise controls of deposits, withdrawals and balances

There are many options available in Pathfinder to control dposits, withdrawals and balances for shares/managed funds, however, if you are not able to get the results you are looking for, then support can apply a background constraint.

• The name of the case

• The scenario(s) you would like to apply it to

• The name of the investment

• What you would like the deposits, withdrawals or balance to be. Please specific exact amounts and financial years. For example, withdraw $5,000 a year (indexed by CPI) until 2030/31 (inclusive)

Cases with:

• If there are a lot of investments to adjust

• Where the adjustments are relative to other investments. For example, deposits to the shares/manged fund should be equal to extra repayments on the home loan

Keeping the balance of directly held shares/managed funds in proportion with another investment

For example, 40% international shares, 40% Australian shares, 20% cash.

• The list of investments and the proportions you want to keep them in

Additional charges may apply depending on how mcuh work it is to implement (e.g. if they are several investments)

Making a partial withdrawal from an insurance bond before it has been held for 10 years.

Before 10 years, Pathfinder can make a full withdrawal; and, after 10 years, Pathfinder can do both partial or full withdrawals.

Please send us specific details, and we can see what we can do.

Depending on the case complexity, you may need to submit the case to the Optimo Financial SDS

Jointly owned annuities

Pathfinder can only model annuities with one individual as an owner.

Ifg you would like to model a jointly owned annuity, we will suggest that you enter two separate annuities.

New personal loans

You can add a new personal loan, however Pathfinder will calculate how much to borrow, which may be too much or too little. Optimo support can enter specific borrowing amounts for you.

• The name of the case

• The name of the scenario(s) you want the change to be in

• The name of the loan you have entered

• How much you want to borrow and in which year. It is possible to set an exact or maximum amount.

Setting an exact amount to borrow in a particular year would be part of standard support.

More complex requests, such as the borrowing being relative to another asset, may require the Optimo Financial SDS .

Refinancing personal loans

You can add the existing personal loan and the new personal loan, however the borrowing on the new loan may not match the balance of the original loan. Optimo support can enter the specific borrowing amounts for you.

As a workaround, if the refinancing is simply moving the loan to a lower interest rate, you can also adjust the interest rate on the original loan.

• The name of the case

• The name of the scenario(s) you want the change to be in

• The names of the old and new loans you have entered

• The year you want the refinancing to happen

A single loan being refinanced is part of standard support.

Specify an exact amount to borrow

You are able to set exact borrowings on loans used to purchase an Investment property or Family home.

However, for other situations, the amount of a loan obtained for investments, such as properties and shares/managed funds, is optimized based on the specified ‘LVR’ (max 100%) and ‘Maximum % of asset funded by loans’.

As such, Pathfinder can sometimes borrow less than you expected, if the individuals have other available funds they can use for the purchase.

• The name of the case

• The scenario(s) you want to apply it to

• The name of the loan

• The financial year(s) in which you want the borrowing to occur

• How much you want the borrowing to be

• If the amount is not in the first year, whether the borrowed amount is in present or actual values (and if in actual values, what the indexation should be)

Borrow against an existing asset for a line of credit or as a home equity loan (unless it’s for financing another property, home or shares/managed fund in the case)

If you are borrowing against a property to fund another property, home or shares/managed fund, this is possible for you to do yourself. Please see How to enter a loan that is secured by one asset and financing another asset (e.g. home equity loan)

If you want to borrowing against an existing asset to fund renovations or other lifestyle choice, then Pathfinder may not borrow enough or too much.

• The name of the case

• The scenario(s) you want to apply it to

• The loan details:

  • The name of the loan

  • The financial year(s) in which you want the borrowing to occur

  • How much you want the borrowing to be

  • If the amount is not in the first year, whether the borrowed amount is in present of actual values (and if in actual values, what the indexation should be, if it's not in the first year)

• If the loan is to fund a property renovation, you can also ask us to increase the property value. Please tell us:

  • The name of the property

  • The financial year the property will increase in value. This is usually the year after the renovation.

  • The new property value. Please make it clear whether the borrowed amount is in present or actual values (and if in actual values, what the indexation should be)

Refinance a loan

If you add a new loan that is secured by and financing an existing asset, Pathfinder may not borrow any funds against it.

You need to add:

1. All the details for the existing loan, including the year it is repaid (as the refinance year)

2. All the details for the new loan that it is possible to include in the interface.

Please email support and tell them:

• The name of the case

• The scenario(s) you want to apply it to

• The name of the old and new loans

• The year you want the refinancing to occur

Borrowing for shares (margin loans)

Pathfinder may borrow more or less than what you require, and it may not be possible for you to control the borrowing amount in the interface.

You need to add and fill in as much as you can:

• The shares

• The loan

Please tell support:

• The name of the case

• The name of the shares and loan

• Instructions for deposits to the shares - the amounts, and the years they should apply. You can request a maximum or ask us to optimise

• The instructions for the borrowing - some examples include that the amount borrowed should be 50% of the deposit amount, or that the loan balance cannot be more than 50% of the total shares balance, or a dollar amount

Debt recycling

• The case name

• The scenarios

• The names of the assets and loans in the strategy

• What you would like the debt recycling strategy to specifically look like in terms of deposits, borrowing and repayments. It helps us if you are specific, since there are a variety of debt recycling strategies.

It may be possible for you to model the strategy yourself, however if you require something like extra mortage repayments should be equal to the amount borrowed on a loan, and the amount borrowed should be invested in a managed fund, then this will require a background adjustment.

If the case has a lot of loans or assets to adjust, or there are complicated contraints.

Assuming a different indexation rate from the Optimo default

The indexation rate for HELP Debts is part of Pathfinder’s technical database, so cannot be adjusted by users.

The indexation rate you would like to use.

This would be assessed case by case.

Enable the super guarantee for income earned after an individual retires

Salary/wages income automatically ends on the individual’s specified retirement date. It is not possible to automatically apply the super guarantee to any income earned after this date.

Please tell us:

• The scenario(s) you want to apply it to

• The name of the income you want to continue after retirement and to which you want the super guarantee to be applied

If this only needs to be applied to one income for one individual, then it would be part of standard support.

Salary packaged expenses such as meals and entertainment or a car lease

This can usually be done with a workaround.

Please tell us the specific details of the salary packaging. That is, the amounts and the years, and we’ll see what we can do.

If you require us to do research into the particular salary packaging or do calculations for you, then additional charges may apply.

Defined benefit pensions and reversionary pensions

Pathfinder cannot model these types of super funds by default, however workarounds may be available

The name of the case, and details on how the reversionary pension works. Any particular notes on how it differs from a standard super fund are helpful.

We review these case-by-case. If you require us to do the research for you, this will make the case more likely to need to be submitted to the Optimo Financial SDS .

Complex control of super investment options

There are many options already available in pathfinder, but if you’d like to do something more complex, for example, rebalancing in future years, or controlling investments in different ways, then please contact us and well see what we can do

• the case and scenarios

• the super fund and their investments, and details of what you’d like to do with them

If it’s a single adjustment on one item, then this would probably be part of the standard Optimo support.

If there are multiple adjustments, we may suggest you submit the case to the Optimo Financial SDS .

Stop rollbacks from pension to accumulation phase

Pathfinder can roll funds from the pension phase back into the accumulation phase if it will optimise the projected net wealth at the end of the analysis.

If you do not want the rollbacks to happen beacuse it makes the results look tidier and easier to implement, they can be switched off.

For some reasons as to why the rollbacks happen, please see Understanding why funds are kept in in the accumulation phase of super instead of the pension phase

• The name of the case

• The name of the scenario(s) you want it applied to

• The name of the SMSF member for which you don’t want the rollbacks to happen, and the years you don’t want the rollbacks to happen. e.g. for the entire anlaysis, from 2025/26 onwards.

We can apply this for both individuals as part of support, however if the request is more complicated than that, additional charges may apply.

More precise SMSF options for rollovers, lump sum withdrawals, when to start an account-based pension

If you would like to model something where the options are not available in the interface, then we can apply a background constraint.

• The name of the case

• The scenario(s) you want the adjustment to be in

• Which member(s) you want the change to be applied to (if applicable)

• What action should modified. e.g. lump sum withdrawals, rolling over to pension phase, rolling funds out, rolling back from pension to accumulation phase

• The financial years you want the action to be applied. e.g. all years or a specific year

• The amounts. it can be zero, or a specific amount in particular years

If it is a simple change to one or two actions, then the change can be part of the standard support. However, if the request is for a large number of actions, then additional charges may apply.

SMSF with three or four members

You can model cases with three or four members, but you should keep an eye on the results. For example, in the action items, assets may be listed as belonging to all members, rather than just the individual who owns it.

• The name of the case

• Any specific issues you want changed

If the adjustments are extensive, then we may suggest you submit the case to the Optimo Financial SDS

SMSFs with loans for shares/managed funds

Please see

SMSF assets that have a negative growth

Pathfinder can only model SMSF assets with a positive return.

That you need to submit the case to the Optimo Financial SDS . Please include:

• The name of the case

• The asset in the SMSF that has the negative return

We would need to figure out whether a workaround is possible. This would require you to submit the case to the Optimo Financial SDS, and then, if it is possible, we will provide a quote.

We will confirm whether it is possible for us to model this for you.

SMSFs that are the beneficiary of a Trust

This is not possible in the websolve, but a workaround may be possible in the SDS.

The name of the case that you would like to submit to the Optimo Financial SDS

We would need to figure out whether a workaround is possible. This would require you to submit the case to the Optimo Financial SDS, and then if it is possible, we will provide a quote.

Reversionay pensions

This is not possible in the websolve, but a workaround may be possible in the SDS.

The name of the case that you would like to submit to the Optimo Financial SDS

We would need to figure out whether a workaround is possible. This would require you to submit the case to the Optimo Financial SDS, and then if it is possible, we will provide a quote.

Starting a second pension for an individual in the same SMSF

In practice, it is possible for an individual to start a second pension in their SMSF without affecting the status of an existing 'Return of capital' account-based pension, however, this isn't possible in Pathfinder.

This isn’t possible in Pathfinder, so an alternative approach would be to add a second SMSF with the new pension and adjust the fees and assets across the two SMSFs so they don’t double up.

If you need a lot of assistance in setting up the workaround, then we may suggest that you submit the case to the Optimo Financial SDS

Unusual Trust structures

Pathfinder can handle simple, common Trust structions, although there are some limitations. If you do the modelling youself, then you should carefully check the reults, and be mindful that you may not be able to control everything yourself, and that the results may not be complete or correct.

The name of the Trust. the results you are seeing, and how you would like them to actually look. Plus, details of the Trust structure.

Optimo Standard support, can only make very simple adjustments to gifting and distributions (see below).

For changes beyong that, including Trust structures Pathfinder cannot model by default, multiple trusts, errors or more complex adjustments, it is likely that the case will need to be submitted to the Optimo Financial SDS.

Gifts into a Trust

By default, Pathfinder will calculate gifting amounts and who should do the gifting based on maximising net wealth at the end of the analysis. If you would like to adjust gifting amounts (e.g. set to zero, or set exact amounts), then Optimo Support may be able to assist you.

The name of the trust and whose gifting you would like to change.

If it is just preventing gifting for one Trust, or setting an exact gifting amount in one year (or the same amount for all years), then this is likely to be part of free support.

If there are multiple trusts, more complex reuqests, or there is a shortfall, we may suggest that you submit the case to the Optimo Financial SDS .

DIstributions from Trusts

By default, Pathfinder will calculate distributions and who should receive the distributions based on maximising net wealth at the end of the analysis. If you would like to adjust distribution amounts, then Optiom support may be able to assist you.

The nam eof the trust, the results you are seeing, and how you would like them to look.

Similar to gifts, if it is just preventing one individual from receiving distributions for one Trust, then this is likely to be part of free support.

If there are multiple trusts, more complex reuqests, or your request causes are shortfall or constraint vioation, we may suggest that you submit the case to the Optimo Financial SDS .

Trust with an SMSF as a beneficiary

This is outside the scope of the standard support, but a workaround may be possible in the SDS, if you provide specific details.

Details of what you would like the results to look like.

Any case with a Trust that has an SMSF as a beneficiary, can only be done in the Optimo Financial SDS .

Enable the super guarantee for income earned after an individual retires

Salary/wages income automatically ends on the individual’s specified retirement date. It is not possible to automatically apply the super guarantee to any income earned after this date.

Please tell us:

• The scenario(s) you want to apply it to

• The name of the income you want to continue after retirement and to which you want the super guarantee to be applied

If this only needs to be applied to one income for one individual, then it would be part of standard support.

Salary packaged expenses such as meals and entertainment or a car lease

This can usually be done with a workaround.

Please tell us the specific details of the salary packaging. That is, the amounts and the years, and we’ll see what we can do.

If you require us to do research into the particular salary packaging or do calculations for you, then additional charges may apply.

Defined Benefit pensions, including government super schemes such as PSS, CSS, military super, GESBE

Please contact us if you would like to model these types of pensions.

We may be able to help you as part of our standard support, but if the case is complex we will suggest you submit the case to the SDS.  Please note that we're not experts in these kinds of pensions, but as long as you know what the results should look like, then we're happy to work with you to find a way to get the results you need.

Scenario analysis period more than 20 years

• the case name

• the scenarios you want to change

• The number of years for the projection

Users can select an analysis period for each scenario between 10 and 20 years.

We typically do not require you to submit the case to the SDS if you just request a longer analysis time.

However, please note that if the case takes a very long time to solve with the extended analysis years, then we may not be able meet your request, or may shorten the analysis years.

Start date of anlaysis is not 1 July

That you would like to submit the case to the Optimo Financial SDS and include:

• The case name

• The start date you will like

• Support will let you know additional information that is required to model the case correctly (e.g. tax adjustments, actions already taken for the year)

By default, the analysis period begins on 1 July, because the data entry and modelling are easier to manage with full financial years.

All cases with a start year that is not 1 July can only be done in the SDS.