Enter the percentage to grow each year from the Start Year to the End Year. For example, if you've entered a Start Year of 2030, an End Year of 2032, an Annual Amount of $1,000 and an Annual Increase of 10%, the amount shown in your plan will grow by 10% each year from 2030 to 2032 ($1,000 in 2030, $1,100 in 2031 and $1,210 in 2032). You can see this growth rate applied by clicking the Preview button.
You can enter a negative number to decrease the value each year instead.
If you've set "Today's Dollars or Nominal?" to "Today's," the Annual Increase will be over and above inflation. If you just wish to keep pace with inflation, enter 0.
If you've set "Today's Dollars or Nominal?" to "Nominal,", the Annual Increase will apply to the nominal, or face value, of the amount. If you enter an Annual Increase percentage that is below the inflation rate, you will see the amount decline when measured in Today's Dollars. If you enter an Annual Increase above the inflation rate, you will see the Nominal value of the annual amount increase, but it will be adjusted for inflation.
Note that the Annual Increase is only applied when you run your plan. It is not automatically applied when we "rollover" your data at the beginning of each year. So, if it has been weeks or months since you last reviewed your data, you should review all Annual Amounts to make sure they are still accurate and do not need to be adjusted to account for inflation, returns, or other adjustments.