A quick inclusion and exclusion table
This is the guide’s broad personal-balance-sheet method. Apply your ownership share and use current values on one date. Inclusion in total net worth does not establish immediate access to cash.
| Item | Record | Do not add |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and investments | Current account or holding value | Contributions already in that value; duplicate account totals |
| Retirement savings | Current owned account balance | Future contributions or projected pension income |
| Home and other property | Current estimate of your ownership share | Equity as well as gross property value |
| Life insurance | Verified current cash/surrender value, if any; state adjustments | Death benefit, term cover, or projected maturity proceeds |
| Loans and cards | Outstanding debt as a separate liability | Credit limits, monthly instalments, or future interest |
| Expected future money | Nothing until owned under this method | Future salary, expected inheritance, or unvested awards |
Cash, savings, and deposits
Include cash and account balances that belong to you. Use the balance on the valuation date. Count a deposit once, even if it also appears in a bank’s combined account total. If an account is overdrawn, treat the amount owed as debt rather than a positive asset.
Fixed or term deposits can count toward total net worth even when access is restricted. Their current recorded value is different from a future maturity amount. Note restrictions separately when considering liquidity.
Stocks, mutual funds, and retirement accounts
Use the current value of investments, including mutual funds, stocks, and retirement account balances. Do not add lifetime contributions to an account’s current value. Contributions are already reflected in the balance.
Choose either an account total or the holdings inside it, not both. Count retirement savings in total net worth even if withdrawal is restricted. A future salary, expected inheritance, or unvested employment award is not an asset you currently own for this simple balance sheet.
Property and your home
A home can count as an asset even when you live in it. Use your share of a reasonable current market estimate, not the purchase price simply because it is easy to find. Keep the remaining mortgage as a separate liability.
If your property share is worth 300,000 and your mortgage share is 180,000, the net contribution is 120,000. Do not enter only 120,000 of equity and also subtract the mortgage. Estimated sale costs or taxes belong in a separately labelled net-sale calculation if you need one.
Does life insurance count toward net worth?
Separate today’s policy value from a benefit payable after death. The NAIC explains that term insurance generally does not build cash value, while cash-value policies may hold value available during the owner’s life. Do not enter the death benefit as an asset in this balance sheet.
For a policy you own, ask the insurer for its current cash value and cash surrender value, meaning the amount available if you end the policy. State which measure you use and any surrender charges or outstanding policy-loan adjustment. Do not subtract a loan twice if the supplied value is already net of it. Premiums paid and projected maturity proceeds are not substitutes for today’s verified value.
This is a recording convention, not a recommendation to surrender, borrow against, or replace insurance. Policy terms and local rules differ. Keep coverage planning separate from this net worth calculation.
Gold, vehicles, and business ownership
Gold and vehicles can belong in a broad personal balance sheet. Use a reasonable resale estimate that reflects condition, ownership, and selling costs where relevant. Jewellery’s purchase price may include charges that a buyer will not pay back. A car’s insured value is not necessarily its resale value.
Business ownership is harder to value. Record a supportable estimate for your ownership interest and keep the basis in your notes. Do not count the business equity and all of its underlying assets again. If no reliable estimate is available, disclose the omission instead of making up a precise value.
Small household items often add work without improving the picture. You can omit them under a stated scope. Apply that choice consistently rather than adding items only when you want the total to rise.
Mortgages, loans, and credit cards
Include the outstanding balances of home, vehicle, education, and personal loans, plus credit card amounts owed on the valuation date. Include other debts you are responsible for. The monthly payment is not the debt balance.
List debts as positive numbers and subtract them once. A credit limit is not a liability until money is owed. If using a statement balance instead of a current balance, keep that date difference visible. Do not omit card debt merely because you intend to pay it soon.
Use a few consistent valuation rules
Keep one date, one reporting currency, and the same individual or household scope. Convert foreign balances using a stated rate for the snapshot date. Recheck ownership shares for jointly held assets and debts. This personal record is not a legal assessment of responsibility for joint debts.
Net worth is not money available to spend. Restricted retirement savings, property, and business interests can increase total net worth without helping with next month’s bills. Keep a separate liquid-assets view if that is useful.
Sources and scope
These are general explanations and product instructions, not personal investment, tax, or debt advice. The examples are synthetic. Product instructions describe the current app.
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