Why Forecasting Matters

Big life decisions don’t come with roadmaps. Should you rent or buy? Take a sabbatical or stay put? Start saving for your kids’ college—or prioritize retirement first? These questions don’t have easy answers, especially when money’s involved.

The hardest part is not knowing what’s down the road—or how today’s choices might ripple into the future—and that’s difficult to do without a plan in place. Research has consistently shown that having a tangible financial plan that provides a glimpse into the future creates better outcomes all around—from short-term savings goals to retirement planning.

That’s why we’re introducing forecasting. 

We built Origin to be your all-in-one home for money management—budgeting, saving, investing, planning, and more. Now, we’re adding another layer to help you see not just where you are, but where you're heading.

Our new forecasting tool helps you actually see where your financial life is going—before you get there. Whether you’re planning a cross-country move, saving for a house, or just curious what life might look like in 10 years, Forecasting gives you real-time clarity to explore multiple futures with confidence. You're in the driver's seat—and now, you've got a map.

Let’s break it down — how does Forecasting work?

• The forecast functionality allows users to project their net worth growth and cash flow over time based on a number of nuanced factors, like retirement goals, spending habits, liabilities, etc. With your connected accounts, Origin automatically pulls in key details like income, expenses, assets, and liabilities—so your forecast starts from a real, up-to-date foundation. From there, you’ll set your goals and choose how far into the future you want to look.

• From there, you can add big life moments to the timeline to further refine your forecast — things like buying a home, having a kid, changing jobs, starting a business, and more.

• To ensure an airtight plan that accounts for a wide variety of potential outcomes, you can also pressure test your forecast by running an advanced simulation (Monte Carlo simulation) that projects thousands of potential outcomes and how they’ll impact your odds of success in accordance with your goal.

• You’ll also get a more granular view of what your net worth is composed of over time, with the ability to filter by

  age, and each point on the timeline provides a snapshot of your assets and liabilities over time. 

How to make the most of your forecast

• Connect all of your financial accounts. The more real data you’ve added—from income and spending to investments and debt—the more accurate and insightful your forecast will be. Have a partner? Add them too. With Origin’s partner access, you can build a shared forecast that reflects both of your financial lives, helping you plan your future together with clarity.

• Get clear about your long-term financial goals. Whether it’s the ideal retirement or any life milestones you’d like to achieve along the way, the more specific you can get about these variables, the more precise your forecasts will be.

• Think realistically about your assumptions.  Our forecasting uses CFP®-grade assumptions for things like re

  turns and inflation, so you're starting from a solid place. You can always adjust based on your goals or expectations, but we’ve done the heavy lifting for you.

• Update your forecast as life changes. Landing a new job? Having a baby? Buying a house? Life rarely follows a straight path, and your forecast shouldn't either. Revisit and refresh your plan whenever a major shift happens. Want to explore a “what if” without changing your main plan? You can create and save different scenarios to see how various paths might play out—no need to overwrite your core forecast.

• Run simulations to pressure test your plan. Use the pressure testing feature to explore what happens if the market underperforms or if unexpected expenses pop up. Seeing a range of outcomes — not just the best case

  — helps you plan with eyes wide open.

Getting started with Origin and forecasting

The future might be unpredictable, but your finances don’t have to be. Forecasting with Origin helps you connect today’s choices with tomorrow’s outcomes, giving you a clearer path forward.

Create your forecast