The Investment section of ZhanPlan lets you track all your investment holdings — stocks and ETFs, real estate, and crypto — in one place. Investment values feed directly into your Net Worth, giving you a complete picture of your total financial position.
Investment Categories in ZhanPlan
ZhanPlan organizes investments into four sections:
- Portfolio — stocks, ETFs, mutual funds, and other securities in your brokerage or retirement accounts
- Stocks — individual stock holdings with ticker symbols and share counts
- Real Estate — investment properties, REITs, and other real estate assets
- Crypto — cryptocurrency holdings
How to Add Investment Holdings
In each investment section, click Add Holding or Add Asset. For a stock or ETF:
- Ticker symbol — the stock's exchange abbreviation (e.g., AAPL, VTI)
- Shares held — how many shares you own
- Purchase price — what you paid per share
- Current price — the current market price (update this periodically)
- Account — which account holds this investment (optional label)
For real estate:
- Property name or address
- Current estimated value
- Remaining mortgage balance (for net worth calculation)
- Monthly rental income (if it is an investment property)
For crypto:
- Asset name (e.g., Bitcoin, Ethereum)
- Units held
- Current price
- Cost basis (what you paid)
Updating Investment Values
Investment values change constantly. ZhanPlan does not pull live prices automatically — you update them manually. This takes about 5 minutes per month:
- 1Open each investment section
- 2Update the Current Price or Current Value for each holding
- 3Your total investment value updates immediately
- 4Your Net Worth on the Net Worth page updates to reflect the new values
Update your investment values at the start of each month when you review your net worth. You do not need real-time precision — a monthly snapshot is enough to track your investment growth over time.
How Investments Connect to Net Worth
When you add investment holdings, they appear as assets in your Net Worth calculation. The total value of your investment portfolio (minus any investment loans or margin debt) flows directly into your net worth.
This is why net worth is more complete than just tracking savings — it captures the wealth you are building in markets, real estate, and other investments alongside your cash savings.
Reading Your Investment Summary
The Investment section shows:
- Total portfolio value — sum of all holdings at current prices
- Total cost basis — what you paid for all holdings
- Unrealized gain/loss — the difference between current value and cost basis
- Return percentage — your overall return across the portfolio
- Asset allocation — rough breakdown by type (if you have multiple investment types)
What ZhanPlan Investment Tracking Is Not
ZhanPlan is a personal finance dashboard, not a brokerage platform. It does not execute trades, provide real-time market data, or connect to brokerage APIs. It is a tracker — you update values, it shows you the picture.
For detailed investment analysis, portfolio rebalancing, and tax-loss harvesting, you will want to use your brokerage's tools alongside ZhanPlan.
Should I add my 401(k) here or in Savings & Retirement?
Add your 401(k) and retirement accounts in the Savings & Retirement section and on the Net Worth page. The Investment section is primarily for taxable brokerage accounts, individual stocks, real estate investments, and crypto.
How do I track an S&P 500 index fund like VTI?
Add it as a Portfolio holding with the VTI ticker, your share count, and update the current price monthly. Index funds held in a brokerage account are tracked here; index funds inside a 401(k) or IRA are tracked in Savings & Retirement.
Does ZhanPlan calculate capital gains?
No. Capital gains calculations for tax purposes require detailed cost basis tracking across lots and dates. Use your brokerage's tax reporting tools for capital gains. ZhanPlan shows you total gain/loss for awareness, not tax filing.