Easy Money was originally intended for use with middle income clients, although it has also proved to be very effective for high-income or large estate clients as well. Over the years Easy Money has evolved and changed to meet the needs of our users, and today it is considered to be a standard in many planning offices around the country. Money Tree Software continues to improve and enhance all of our programs in order to meet the changing needs of our users.

It is no longer enough to prepare a simple financial planning report for clients. Client's finances are becoming more and more sophisticated, and require a plan that speaks to their financial planning requirements and is visually appealing as well.

Easy Money, the Goal-based Comprehensive Component in TOTAL Planning System, has a proven track record of success. Originally introduced in 1988, Easy Money now features:

Assisted Data Entry - Easy Money assists with data entry in a consistent, accurate manner. Assisted operations include automatic capitalization, automatic entry of specific dates, values and amounts preset by the user, displaying warning messages when dates are questionable, inserting commas and decimal points in number fields, etc. Drop-down menus throughout the data input screens provide specific choices for speeding up data entry. For example, the Asset Information screen contains a field entitled "Class" which contains the choices; Reserves, Income, Growth, Growth and Income, and Aggressive Growth.

Database Structure - All of the client information entered into Easy Money is stored in a common database. This allows global updating, searching and sorting based on specified client characteristics. Client files may also be exported as their own individual file.

Context Sensitive Help - Provides the user with helpful screen specific information throughout the program. Help is always available to answer questions regarding data entry and analysis or program operation. The help screens also include advice about various topics including investments and taxes. A Quick Start User's Manual and Client Data Questionnaire are also available for viewing or printing from the Help Menu.

The Easy Money data input screens allow users to easily navigate through the various work screens. Enter relevant client data, select "Easy Money Report" and the reports are automatically generated. The reports themselves are written in a non-technical style, and include professional graph presentations of the client's financial situation. Some of the most popular reports include:

• Net Worth Statement: Illustrates the client's financial position, including amount of assets, savings, investments, retirement accounts, and personal assets shown less liabilities, such as mortgages, loans, credit card balances, etc. Includes the graph shown below.

• Estate Taxes: Provides a snapshot of the client's exposure to income tax and estate taxes. The graph below indicates the amount of shrinkage that could be experienced both now and in the future without proper planning.

• Education Funding: Illustrates the funding options parents have for children's education needs. Provisions for education expenses may be made either by investing a single lump sum of money or by putting aside a regular monthly or annual amount. The graph below shows the annual amount needed (bars) and funding accounts for both methods (lines).

• Other Reports: In addition to the above reports, Easy Money generates up to 100 reports that help your clients visualize potential problems with their current financial plan, and understand solutions that can be implemented to overcome these problems