These folders asks you to specify information concerning your family's housing finances and any plans you have to change your primary home or vacation home. For each home you must first specify whether you rent or own. If you rent, type in the monthly rent and other monthly rental expenses such as parking fees, lawn care, cleaning, and snow removal. If you own your home, you must specify its current market value as well as the annual amounts you pay in property taxes, homeowner’s insurance, and maintenance. Please make sure to enter property taxes in the property tax field, since these tax payments are used in ESPlanner’s tax routines in calculating itemized deductions if it turns out that itemizing deductions is in your interest.

For each home that your family owns, you must specify the number of loans, including primary and secondary mortgages, personal loans, and other loans. For each loan you need to specify the current balance, the monthly payment, and the number of years remaining on the loan. Note that your monthly mortgage or other loan payments on your homes may include property taxes or homeowner’s insurance. In this case you need to subtract monthly property taxes and homeowner’s insurance from your monthly payment prior to entering the amount in the monthly payment field. Monthly payment means mortgage only.

The second and third tabs of the primary and vacation homes folders asks about your family's moving plans. Your family can specify up to two moves from both the primary and vacation homes as well as when these moves will take place. If you expect to own or rent another primary (vacation) home after a specified move from your primary (secondary) home, indicate you would own or rent by clicking on the appropriate circle next to Rent or Own. If you select Rent, specify the anticipated monthly rental payment and other monthly rental expenses. If you select Own, specify the price of the home you intend to purchase and the percentage of the purchase price they intend to cover as a down payment. Also, specify the annual property taxes, homeowner’s insurance, and maintenance expenses you expect to pay on your future home. If you intend to finance a portion of the new home, indicate the length of the anticipated new mortgage.

Purchasing a vacation home in the future? To model this future purchase, use the "first change of vacation home" panel to enter the costs associated with this purchase. Leave the "current vacation home" blank since you don't currently have a vacation home.

ESPlanner treats all housing expenses as “off-the-top” expenses in calculating the amount a household can afford to spend through time on its living standard. Housing expenses include rent payments, other rental expenses, mortgage payments, property taxes, homeowner’s insurance, maintenance, and down payments to purchase new primary and vacation homes less the equity obtained from the sale of primary and vacation homes.