The Detailed Timing section is accessed from the Data List and from the Time/Finance section. It allows you to specify individual timescales for each cost and sale heading unlike the Time/Finance section that deals only with overall timescales. The maximum extent of timescale available is 300 months i.e. 25 years.
The Detailed Timing display lists all relevant sales and cost headings currently used in your appraisal in each case showing the Start Date, Duration and End Date. Initially the values will be set according to any overall timescales already provided in the Time/Finance section. For example if you have already set an overall construction timescale then initially all building cost entries in the Detailed Timing section will be set to that timescale. If no overall timescales have been provided then all of these dates will be set to month one.
It is important to understand that you do not necessarily need to set up overall timescales in the Time/Finance section prior to using Detailed Timing. If you set up a new appraisal with no overall timescales then all the detailed timescales will be set to month one so you can enter them directly as required. What you will need to remember is that every time you set up a new sale or cost heading in the Data List then you will need to check that its timing is correct. Using the overall timescales in the Time/Finance section can be helpful here as it does provide a default timescale for each item (whether used or not) whereas the Detailed Timing screen will only display information for costs and sales headings that are already have values. You can specify an overall debt interest rate within the Detailed Timing section but you will still need to use the Time/Finance section to enter variable or accrual rates, interest options and equity.
The Detailed Timing display
Each relevant cost and sale heading used in your appraisal is displayed along with its Start Date, Duration and End Date. Each of these three entries can be edited, note that if you edit the Duration then the End Date will be updated accordingly; similarly editing the End Date will change the Duration. For instance if you enter a construction timescale starting in month 7 and lasting 12 months then the End Date will be set to month 18; if you then amended the End Date to month 21 then the Duration will be set to 15 months. (Note that the timescales work monthly in advance so a timescale commencing in month 7 and lasting 12 months ends in month 18 because month 7 is inclusive).
How the timescales are applied
With the exception of investment values and annual project income all other values are spread evenly over the timescale used. For instance a building cost of £120,000 starting in month 7 and lasting for 12 months will result in the cost being spread as 12 equal payments of £10,000 over months 7 to 18 inclusive. To enter a single one-off timescale simply make sure that the Start Date and End Date are the same (i.e. a duration of one month). For example if site survey fees are to be paid in month 2 then set the Start Date to month 2 and the Duration as 1 month.
Investment values
The timing of investment sales is treated differently in that the Start Date is the rental commencement date and the End Date is the point at which the investment is sold, the rent being receivable on a quarterly (or monthly) basis in the interim. If you are using advance income then you can use these timescales to account for any occupational income received prior to the investment sale date. This works in conjunction with the advance income facility (described elsewhere in this manual) and the way in which the Start Date and End Date work is similar to the 'Commence Rental' and 'Investment Sale' entries in the Time/Finance section. Whereas the Time/Finance timescales only provide one setting for all rents and yields, the Detailed Timing section allows you to set differing rental commencement and investment sale dates for each of the investment yields used in your appraisal. All you have to do is ensure that each investment 'parcel' is separated out. For instance if you have a retail and office development and you wish to deal with the timing of the retail and office elements individually then ensure that each component is capitalised at a separate yield. This will result in two separate capital values allowing you to provide individual timescales for each.
By default the setting for advance income is quarterly meaning that it will be received in advance on each quarter day (Mar, June, Sept, Dec). You can set advance income receipts to monthly by selecting the Advance-Income-Settings menu found at the top left of the Detailed Timing display.
Project income
These items can be entered either as a total amount or an annual income. If entered as a total amount then the Detailed Timing settings will work as for other entries in that the value is equally spread over the duration set. If treated as an annual income then the duration will determine the total value for that project income item. For instance if the project income is £50,000 per annum and the duration is set to 18 months then the total figure will be 75,000. This works in the same way as the overall project income timescales in the Time/Finance section.
Automatic / Re-Timed timescales
Although these are not specifically referred to in the Detailed Timing section it is important to understand the differences between ‘Automatic’ and ‘Re-Timed’ timescales if you plan to use the Cashflow-Edit section (described later in this manual) to further refine your cashflow timing. When you use the Time/Finance section to specify overall timescales then these are referred to within Prodev as 'Automatic’. Where timescales are entered or amended within the Detailed Timing section they are referred to as 'Re-Timed' meaning that they override any existing overall timescales for the cost or sale item in question. When you edit or review timescales using the Cashflow-Edit section you will notice that any entries or amendments made in the Detailed Timing section will be set as 'Re-Timed'.
Timescales that have been edited in the Detailed Timing section are highlighted in yellow. Any timescales highlighted in grey cannot be edited here as they have either been set as Manual or have been graphed (re-profiled) the Cashflow-Edit section.
Detailed Timing commands
Overall Debt Interest %pa
Here you can enter the overall debt interest rate per annum for the entire project. This is the same as the overall debt interest edit function within the Time/Finance section. If you wish to enter variable or accrual rates, interest options and equity you will still need to use the Time/Finance section for this purpose.
<-Month / Month-> buttons
These two buttons will either increase or decrease the value for the currently highlighted timescale entry. The use of Control cursor left/right has the same effect (i.e. holding down the Control key then using either the cursor left or right keys).
Reset button
This will reset the timescale for the highlighted sale or cost item to its default value (i.e. the timescale specified in the Time/Finance section). If you are resetting an entry highlighted in grey then an appropriate warning message will display. This is because these items have been edited using the Cashflow-Edit facilities where more detail may have been provided.
Close button
Exits the Detailed Timing screen and returns either to the Data List or the Time/Finance section depending upon which of these originally accessed the Detailed Timing section.