Eliminate Confusion on Accounts Listed in Spending Plan Transfers/Credit Card section (edited)

Ed Rizzolo

I am new to Simplifi and have found the way it works to be very intuitive EXCEPT for this feature. It is very counter intuitive how the Spending Plan shows the 2 sides of the transfer in a way that makes it extremely difficult to tell what account is doing the sending and what account is doing the receiving. See example below that a Simplifi coach sent me:

To me, the way it is displayed makes it look like the Visa account sent money and went down by -$3.40, and the Checking account Received money and went up by +$3.40. This is the exact opposite of what really happened. The checking account sent the money and went down by -$3.40, and the Visa account received money and was credited the +$3.40. It was pointed out to me that the way Simplifi shows the category here is consistent with how categories are shown throughout the product, but since this section only involves accounts (a special type of category) it really should be treated differently. I would suggest that is shows the From Account on one line (in this example checking), and the To Account on the second line (in this example the Visa), rather than the category. Please vote for this!

UrsulaA

You got my vote @Ed Rizzolo

ajbopp

Just to point out this would require a very complex redesign of this aspect of the system. Not that it couldn't - or shouldn't - be done, but it wouldn't be a simple thing.

All transactions are basically transfers. The difference in this case is whether you own both sides of the transaction. That may seem trivial but it requires an entirely new implementation in the UI and back end, and I can't even imagine what database changes would be needed. The point is that transfers was created within the existing framework of the application, and this request asks for an entirely new framework to support the feature. That is, what is being asked for "under the covers" is a way to distinguish transfers from transactions, so that they be treated differently.

I suppose it might be easier just to change the UI to include a header on the table to show what each column means, and I would vote for that. But making transfers a separate and distinct feature set seems like over-elegance to me, not to mention doubling the amount of code that has to be maintained between transactions and transfers.

UrsulaA

You raise good points @ajbopp - I was thinking of a simpler fix. To show the source account on the spending plan to look like the transaction list.

I am voting for the idea to be implemented in a similar way that you are proposing. Changing the UI to show a header and the source account in the spending plan.

Ed Rizzolo

I agree that a simple UI change should to the trick. The only place the UI really needs to change is in the "Transfers and Credit Card Payments" section of the Spending Plan. Since everything in that section is an Account, just replace the display of the Category Name with Account Name on each line. No complex re-design needed s all of the behind-the-scenes stuff in the app can remain the same.

Before (as is):

After (to be):

See how much better it communicates that the money is being transferred out of the checking account and into the credit card account. Even the little down arrow on the left side makes more sense.

RobWilk

I voted for this, but am surprised there were 2 other down votes….

Ed Rizzolo

With the change that I suggest above, here is how it looks in the spending plan when a transaction comes through:

Before (as-is):

After (to be):

The Sent and Received labels make much more sense on the completed transactions. It clearly shows that the checking account sent the money and the Macy's account received it.

RobWilk

I agree 100% with that.

They set it up so that the "category" (target transfer account) is displayed where the category is usually displayed. However, that category only makes sense there if you know the source account.

UrsulaA

Yes, we need the source account displayed.

Ed Rizzolo

The only change I am proposing in my screen shots above is a simple UI change in the "Transfers and Credit Card Payments" section of the Spending Plan. Since everything in that section is an Account, I replaced the display of the Category Name with the Account Name. All the behind-the-scenes stuff in the app can remain the same.

ajbopp

It looks like a good idea, and I'm not saying I don't support it, but everything in that section is not an Account. The field after the "Sent" and "Received" element is a Category, just like everywhere else in the Spending Plan. What makes it confusing in the Transfers case is that the Category also happens to be named exactly the same thing as an Account.

Intuitively, it seems like a miniscule thing to replace Category with Account, but it would actually require significant behind the scenes work.

Ed Rizzolo

I believe that everything in the Transfers and Credit Card Payments section IS an Account and must use the Transfer or Credit Card Payment category. If you use a different category, the planned item shows up in the recurring Bills/Subscription section, not in the Transfers and credit cards section. If it helps, could label with the word "Account".

UrsulaA

For me, the fix will be - add account name to the left

Make it look for like the existing transaction list

No need to invert accounts, tamper with the category in the linke transfer, or mess with the transfer linking feature. Linked transfer work well for me.

EL1234

I have transfers excluded from my spending plan, since they almost never represent actual spending (ie: paying a credit card bill - that money was already spent and is listed and categorized already. Transferring money to savings also isn't spending.)

I don't remember where I found that setting but I wonder if it would help you here.

I also agree that we need to be able to show more columns in the Spending Plan transactions list, there's a place to vote for it somewhere I believe.

EL1234

See (and vote for) this post:

https://community.simplifimoney.com/discussion/5441/customizable-columns-in-the-spending-plan-edited