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How Mass Affluent Investors Actually Track Net Worth (and why it matters!)
Why tracking net worth matters… especially now
Household balance sheets are bigger and more complex than ever. The Fed’s latest Z.1 release shows U.S. household net worth at a record $176 trillion in Q2 2025 (Federal Reserve, US households’ net worth trends), lifted by equities and real estate.
That is tailwind AND risk. When wealth grows, blind spots get expensive. You need a complete, verifiable view or you will make decisions with partial data.
What we analyzed
We surveyed 100 U.S. households with annual income of $200K+ on how they track net worth, which assets they hold, and what gets in the way.
Takeaway #1: The portfolio is broader than most tools assume
Owning public securities is common, but so are non-public assets: traded securities 80%, real estate 74%, retirement assets 59%, private investments 53%, crypto 40%.
A toolset or advisory workflow that treats “alternatives” as an afterthought will miss a big share of client balance sheets. Independent studies show retail access to private markets is rising, and may even dominate private market fundraising within a couple of years! (Wealth Management, June 6, 2025)
Takeaway #2: Major assets are often omitted when compiling net worth
Missing privates and property are the top driver of decision errors in our sample. Net worth calculations often miss private investments (27% of respondents), real estate (18%), and even brokerage / public investments (13%).
What this means
These are not rounding errors. If privates and property are missing or stale, a client will over- or under-estimate liquidity, concentration, and tax exposure. Advisors see this at renewal time when cash needs, K-1s, or capital calls appear “out of nowhere.”
What to do
Adopt a quarterly “balance sheet close” ritual. Update marks for real estate and privates quarterly unless facts change. Tie every number in your tracker to a document.
Takeaway #3: Trust beats convenience
What stops people from building a holistic view?
“Hesitant to share bank logins with app/Plaid = 42%
“Too much hassle to track down PDFs” = 26%
Comfort levels:
“Very” comfortable linking logins = 31%
“Very” comfortable uploading PDFs = 41% (the upload path has a higher “very” comfort)
Context
Consumer trust in data sharing is improving, but expectations center on safety, control, and clarity. If you want adoption, meet users where they are: start with accepting PDF documents, then offer direct bank connections.
Takeaway #4: What users value most
Top “Important” items in our sample:
No bank logins required: 50%
Every number links back to a source document: 48%
Holistic view of net worth (public + private investments): 41%
What this means
Provenance beats pretty. Users want every number tied to a document more than they want fancy charts.
Professional-looking dashboards sell, but trust features close. Users care more about the “audit trail”, and then the analytics.
Takeaway #5: How people actually track today - respect the spreadsheet
Even though half the people use wealth platforms for net-worth tracking, the other half use spreadsheets or other manual processes.
What this means
Respect the spreadsheet. It is not going away. The winning workflow embraces both: let clients upload PDFs and maintain a simple sheet, then ingest it into your system.
A short how-to you can copy today
For individuals
Monthly 30-minute net-worth update: Put bank, brokerage, mortgage, K-1s, and a property valuation in a dated folder.
Track private deals on a single page: invested, ownership, last statement date, carrying value.
Link every number to a source: In your sheet, paste a file path or link to the exact PDF page.
Run 3 quick checks: liquidity ratio (cash+near cash vs 12 months spend), single-name concentration in public assets, and property ROE.
Quick ROE refresher
Property return on equity is annual net cash flow divided by current equity in the property. If a rental nets $25,000 after all costs and you have $250,000 of equity, ROE=10%. If ROE drifts down as equity builds, consider refinance, sale, or a 1031 to redeploy equity. For many U.S. markets, an ROE of 5% is often considered good. (Willowdale Equity, December 10, 2024)
For financial advisors
No-logins intake: Offer client-side redaction and secure document upload. That removes the biggest barriers.
Make provenance clickable: Every portal figure deep-links to a statement page.
Close the privates gap: Add a lightweight private-assets worksheet and commit to quarterly refresh.
Bottom line
Bigger balance sheets raise the cost of blind spots. Our data shows the fastest path to a cleaner picture is simple and low friction. Start with documents, not bank logins. Tie every number to its source. Close the gaps in private investments and real estate quarterly. If you are a DIY household, run a 30-minute close each month and track 3 numbers that drive decisions: liquidity months, single-name concentration, and property ROE. Do these basics and your net worth stops being a guess and becomes a tool you can actually use. Then the analytics start to matter…
Disclaimer
This newsletter is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be construed as personalized financial, tax, legal, or investment advice. The strategies and opinions discussed may not be suitable for your individual circumstances. Always consult a qualified financial advisor, tax professional, or attorney before making any decisions that could affect your finances. While we strive for accuracy, we make no representations or warranties about the completeness or reliability of the information provided. Past performance is not indicative of future results. All investments involve risk, including the possible loss of principal. The publisher, authors, and affiliated parties expressly disclaim any liability for actions taken or not taken based on the contents of this publication.