Savings Goals "Ahead"/"Behind" dates may be miscalculated

RobWilk

I've been trying to find a good example, and this is the best I could find.

I have one goal which is due in about 24 months, and is set at $2.01 per month where it says I am "7 months ahead" but if i change it to $2.00 per month it says i'm one month behind. 1 penny times 24 months is less than a dollar which shouldn't make the difference of 8 months make sense.

Here are the screenshots:

This one is $2.01 "Target" (Monthly) and on right you see "Ahead 7 months"

and the second:

This one the target (monthly) is $2.00 and it's behind 1 month.

Something is not right.

(p.s. after posting screenshots, I caught a typo in the domain name I am renewing in 2 years shown above, you don't need to know the right spelling, but i corrected it in my simplifi dataset)

Coach Natalie

Hello @RobWilk,

Thank you for posting to the Community regarding this issue, although I'm sorry to hear that you're experiencing this behavior in Simplifi.

Using the details from your screenshots, I created a couple of Goals — I used a total amount of $54, one with a monthly contribution amount of $2.00 and the other $2.01, and then I contributed $2.08 to both Goals. When doing so, I did notice that the Goal for $2.01 a month is showing "Ahead 8 months", however, the other Goal shows that it's on track.

Would you mind providing more details as to the setup for this specific Goal so we can better understand the use-case, please? Other than the one issue I outlined above, I'm having a hard time narrowing down specific behavior or any issues with the second Goal. Please provide us with the steps that you took while creating the Goal, when the Goal was contributed to, the amount of that contribution, when you noticed the issue, etc., so we can get a clear outline of what's going on and how to reproduce what you're seeing.

Thanks in advance!

-Coach Natalie

RobWilk

We're apart on both by 1 month which might be explained by the goal start date, mine is probably march, yours is likely april. Regardless 1 penny a month over about 24 months should not be 8 monthsx$2.00 or 8monthsx2.01 different. Your trial shows the same issue.

Incidentally the $2.08 i contributed up front was the auto suggested amount based on date.

I have like 30+ goals like this for occasional bigger expenses.

Coach Natalie

Hello @RobWilk,

Thanks for posting back!

Unfortunately, your comment doesn't provide a whole lot of additional insight. So far, the only issue I've been able to narrow down pertains to Goals that are set with an uneven dollar amount for the Monthly Contribution as described above. I'm not seeing any other issues, and have been unable to identify any further patterns.

With that said, if you're seeing something other than what I'm seeing, you'll want to provide specific examples of how the Goals are set up, the steps to reproduce, and any patterns that have been identified. We do need to have a clear picture of what's going on and any identifiable patterns so we can attempt to reproduce the behavior and provide the Product Team with a step-by-step process.

I hope this helps to clarify!

-Coach Natalie

RobWilk

IF I start with $2.08 and goal is $54, $51.92 remains — $51.92/24 months = $2.16-$2.17/month. If I were to contibute $2.01 a month it says i'm 7 (or you're seeing 8) months ahead, $2.01x24 months = $48.24 + the initial 2.08 = $50.32 which wouldn't reach my goal on time. This isn't the only time it was incorrect, it was just a good example of it.

EDIT: If I did math wrong and there are 25 months, we're still looking at $51.92/25 = $2.07-$2.08/month (original) 2.01x25=$50.25+$2.08=$52.33 which wouldn't meet my goal and yet is claimed as being 7-8 months ahead,

My main goal is not to have to do this math myself each time, to compute is to calculate, so the job of a computer is….

It's not clear what specific additional information you need.

Coach Natalie

Hello @RobWilk,

I went ahead and got what I'm seeing reported, which is that the 'Ahead/Behind/On Track' chip is incorrect when contributing to a Savings Goal with an uneven Monthly Contribution dollar amount. I'll be sure to let you know as soon as an update is received.

-Coach Natalie

SIMPL-15783

RobWilk

@Coach Natalie That may be enough (or better) of a description of the issue… If it turns out ther problem I"m reporting here still persists after the fix for that concern is released, then I'll let someone (you, unless you quit and someone else takes over) know and we can try again.

altChristopher

@Coach Natalie Would it be possible just to post the math that is being used on that particular calculation? Super helpful to display in a tooltip on hover.

I would think:

TM = # of Months (Goal End Date - Goal Beg Date) No Rounding
RM = # of Months (Goal End Date - Today) No Rounding
GT = Target Dollars
GC = Contributed Dollars
MD = Delta Months Ahead or (Behind) - negative being behind.

I think this works
MD = ((GT / GC) - ((TM - RM) / TM)) x TM) Round to whole number (I might always round down)
Obviously you still need to mark complete if GC = GT

There may be a way to simplify but my mind is not sharp this AM.
Anyone feel free if there is a mistake to correct me!

Currently when setting up Goals you are allowed to setup goals that are not setup to be achieved. You get a prompt on the lower left of goal setup that tells you to adjust finish date or contribution but the "Continue" button is not grey. In scenarios where the goal is not setup properly I would have that button grey and not able to be clicked as well as the goal card for existing improperly setup goals to simply display "Goal Needs Adjusted" so they can be corrected.

Coach Natalie

Hello @RobWilk,

Great news! It looks like a fix for this issue is expected with the 3.75.0 Web Release.

@altChristopher I'd suggest submitting your request as an Idea post so other users can vote on it and our Product Team can review it.

https://community.simplifimoney.com/discussion/998/creating-and-voting-for-ideas-in-the-community

-Coach Natalie

RobWilk

Great news!

Also

I think the formula might have more logic than simple math... for example, it would need to know if some or all of this month was contributed, then either factor in completing this month or consider that this month is done and then start with the next month... and break it down by month not days.

ajbopp

@Coach Natalie I'm confused about what request I shared that should be turned into an idea post….

RobWilk

@ajbopp I believe (looking above) they meant @altChristopher who made the suggestion about showing the formula…. As I write this, i know @Coach Natalie typically shows up in these forums around 10am ET or in about 45 minutes… But may not respond right away…

Coach Natalie

Yes, that comment was meant for @altChristopher. My apologies for the confusion!

-Coach Natalie

altChristopher

@Coach Natalie - Thanks!

Coach Natalie

Hello @RobWilk,

It looks like a fix for this issue is expected with the 3.75.0 Web Release. Since the issue is also occurring on the Mobile App, they will be implementing a fix there as well, however, I don't currently have a fix version to provide for that. I'll keep you both in the loop as new information becomes available. 🙂

-Coach Natalie

Coach Natalie

Hello @RobWilk,

The fix version for the Mobile App is currently set for the 4.4.0 release. 🙂

-Coach Natalie

Coach Natalie

@RobWilk, is this issue resolved for you now on the Simplifi Web App?

-Coach Natalie

RobWilk

It's a lot better.

But I have a goal with $40 in the goal now out of $150, if i set the goal date to September, it auto-fills $22 as the monthly contribution… But then i save the goal and it says i'm one month behind. My guess is this has something to do with the current month's contribution already passed.

Good news is if i go back to edit savings goal it remembers the date now.

Coach Natalie

@RobWilk, yes, the Target Goal Date missing when editing a Savings Goal has been fixed as of 3.75.0. 🥳

Let's just keep an eye on things and see if the issue pops back up determinedly, or if a new issue may be present, etc. The issue that was reported/fixed was: 'Ahead/Behind/On Track' chip is incorrect when contributing to a Savings Goal with an uneven Monthly Contribution dollar amount.

Fingers crossed that things are working correctly now, though!

P.S. The 4.4.0 fix version for the Mobile App for the reported issue was removed from the ticket and there is no fix version currently set. However, I know you don't use the Mobile App often, so I'd say at this point that it's been reported for mobile as well, and will be fixed in a future release.

-Coach Natalie

RobWilk

By all appearances, this is fixed. I took one random goal, which I believe was wrong before, and now it says "On Track" where "On Track" means I will reach the goal on the target month. Using the mac calculator, I can tell the target month will be $1 ahead of schedule for this parrticular goal (on a $22 monthly contribution). Go ahead and close the ticket if you need to.

RobWilk

But i just discovered a new problem with Savings Goals ("target goal date" toggle issues) which i will report separately.. This one's a bit of an issue to work-around.