Estimated growth is a simplified calculation based on
recorded balances, contributions, and withdrawals. It is
not a time-weighted or money-weighted investment return
calculation and should not be treated as a detailed measure
of investment performance.
Financial Concepts
Understand the financial terms and concepts used throughout BananaBird, from assets and liabilities to liquidity, horizons, contributions, and growth.
Assets & Liabilities
Assets and liabilities are two of the basic building blocks used to describe your financial position.
Assets
Assets are things you own that have financial value. In BananaBird, this can include money held in financial accounts, investments, property, vehicles, and other valuables.
Liabilities
Liabilities are amounts you owe. Examples include credit cards, loans, lines of credit, and mortgages.
Net Worth
Net worth is a simple measure of your overall financial position:
Assets − Liabilities = Net Worth
As the values of your assets and liabilities change over time, BananaBird can use your snapshots to show how your net worth is changing as well.
Horizon
A financial horizon describes the general timeframe associated with an asset, account, or financial obligation.
Short
Money or obligations generally associated with current or
near-term needs.
Medium
Money or obligations intended for goals or needs further
into the future, but not primarily retirement-oriented or
very long term.
Long
Money or obligations generally associated with long-term
goals, retirement, or commitments extending many years.
These classifications are intended to help organize and compare your finances. They are not strict financial planning rules.
Liquidity
Liquidity describes how easily the value associated with an account or asset can generally be accessed or converted into usable funds.
Liquid
Funds or value that are generally readily accessible, such
as cash or money held in everyday banking accounts.
Semi-Liquid
Funds or value that can generally be accessed, but may
require selling investments, transferring money, or
accepting some inconvenience or consequence.
Illiquid
Value that is not normally available for immediate use
without significant effort, delay, or financial consequence.
Locked
Funds that are subject to significant restrictions on when
or how they may be accessed.
Liquidity is a general classification. The actual accessibility of a particular account or asset can depend on its specific terms, restrictions, market conditions, or other circumstances.
Contributions & Withdrawals
A contribution is money added to an account, while a withdrawal is money removed from it.
Tracking these separately from the account balance helps distinguish money you moved into or out of an account from changes in the value of the account itself.
Net Contributions
Net contributions represent the overall amount of money added to an account after withdrawals are taken into account:
Contributions − Withdrawals = Net Contributions
A positive result means more money was added than withdrawn during the period. A negative result means withdrawals exceeded contributions.
Balance Change
Balance change is the difference between an account's ending balance and its starting balance over a period:
Ending Balance − Starting Balance = Balance Change
By itself, balance change does not tell you why the balance moved. Contributions, withdrawals, and changes in value can all affect the result.
Estimated Growth
When contribution data is available, BananaBird can estimate how much of a balance change came from changes in value rather than money being added or withdrawn.
Balance Change − Net Contributions = Estimated Growth
For example, if an investment account increased by $5,000 and you contributed a net $2,000 during the same period, BananaBird would estimate $3,000 of growth.
Percentage Changes
BananaBird may also express balance change or estimated growth as a percentage of the starting balance.
These percentages provide another way to compare changes across different periods or accounts, but they are based on the same simplified calculations described above.
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