---
name: Portfolio Syncing
slug: portfolio-syncing
category: Automation
description: Portfolio Syncing refreshes positions and balances from SnapTrade into family_office.db and then validates the snapshot against safety thresholds. Use it when you need current holdings, cost basis, settled cash, or margin before analyzing a portfolio.
github: "https://github.com/AojdevStudio/Finance-Guru/tree/main/.claude/skills/PortfolioSyncing"
language: Python
stars: 318
forks: 109
install: "npx degit https://github.com/AojdevStudio/Finance-Guru/tree/main/.claude/skills/PortfolioSyncing ~/.claude/skills/PortfolioSyncing"
installs_to: ~/.claude/skills/PortfolioSyncing
source_path: .claude/skills/PortfolioSyncing/SKILL.md
collection_size: 17
category_size: 1754
collection_url: "https://dirskills.com/collections/AojdevStudio/Finance-Guru"
added: 2026-09-03T06:03:31.952Z
last_synced: 2026-09-03T06:03:31.952Z
canonical_url: "https://dirskills.com/skills/portfolio-syncing"
---

# Portfolio Syncing

Portfolio Syncing refreshes positions and balances from SnapTrade into family_office.db and then validates the snapshot against safety thresholds. Use it when you need current holdings, cost basis, settled cash, or margin before analyzing a portfolio.

**Install:**

```bash
npx degit https://github.com/AojdevStudio/Finance-Guru/tree/main/.claude/skills/PortfolioSyncing ~/.claude/skills/PortfolioSyncing
```

## README

# PortfolioSyncing

Refresh positions and balances from SnapTrade into `family_office.db`, then validate the snapshot against safety thresholds before anyone reasons off it.

`family_office.db` is the system of record. The Google Sheets DataHub was retired 2026-07-31; there is no spreadsheet to push to and no gdrive MCP configured.

## Step 0: Refresh (sync-first, mandatory)

Positions and balances come from the local DB, refreshed FIRST so it can never be stale. Follow the shared **[Sync-First + DB-Read](../_shared/SyncFirstDbRead.md)** pattern.

```bash
uv run python -m src.integrations.snaptrade.sync_db          # writes positions + balances
uv run python -m src.integrations.snaptrade.sync_db --show   # read back the snapshot
```

Completion criterion: _the `positions` and `balances` tables carry this run's `synced_at`._ Everything downstream reads the DB, not a CSV.

To refresh positions, transactions, and bank expenses together:

```bash
uv run python -m src.integrations.refresh_all
```

## Account Routing

`config/snaptrade-accounts.yaml` declares each account's `role` and `enabled` flag. An account with no declared role refuses to sync rather than guessing. Cash-management accounts belong to SimpleFIN (`TransactionSyncing`), not here, so brokerage margin math stays clean.

## Safety Gates

> ⚠️ **Capture the "before" state first, or these gates cannot fire.** `sync_db`
> is a current-state store: it deletes each account's prior position rows and
> overwrites its single `balances` row (which is keyed on `account_id`). No
> history survives the refresh, so read the existing snapshot **before** running
> Step 0 and hold it in the session to diff against. There is no
> `position_history` table to fall back on.

```bash
# BEFORE Step 0 — capture the prior generation
sqlite3 family_office.db \
  "SELECT symbol, quantity, average_purchase_price FROM positions ORDER BY symbol;"
sqlite3 family_office.db "SELECT * FROM balances;"
```

**STOP conditions** (require user confirmation):

1. Fewer tickers than the previous snapshot (possible sales)
2. Any quantity change > 10%
3. Any cost basis change > 20%
4. Margin balance jumped > $5,000 (unintentional draw)
5. SPAXX discrepancy > $100 against the balances row

**FLAG conditions** (alert but proceed): SPAXX off by $1-$100; pending activity off by more than $100.

**When STOPPED**: show a clear diff table, ask the user to confirm, proceed only after explicit approval.

## Cash Position Logic

- Do NOT use the `SPAXX` position value; it shows only settled money market.
- Use **"Settled cash"** from the balances row for the SPAXX figure.
- If settled cash is 0, SPAXX is $0 (all funds invested or in margin).
- "Cash market value" is NOT cash; it is the value of positions held in the Cash account rather than the Margin account.

## Price Freshness: SnapTrade marks lag one session

**A successful sync does not mean current prices.** SnapTrade publishes `price` on
each position from the prior session's close, so `account_equity` and
`gross_market_value` are stale by one trading day even when `synced_at` is the
current timestamp. Verified 2026-08-04: two syncs, at 17:46 and 17:53 CT (well
after the 15:00 CT close), both returned Aug 3 closes on all six spot-checked
tickers. PLTR read 23% below its actual Aug 4 close.

What this means in practice:

- **Structurally reliable**: holdings, quantities, cost basis, settled cash,
  margin debt. Use the DB for all of these.
- **Lagging**: `price`, `account_equity`, `gross_market_value`, and every ratio
  derived from them (equity-to-debt, gross-to-debt, position weights).

**On any day with a material move, mark to market before reasoning off the
snapshot.** On 2026-08-04 the as-synced equity understated the real figure by about 8%,
and equity-to-debt read 2.206x when it was actually 2.392x.
That is the difference between "still in breach" and "approaching the gate".

Check freshness by comparing a couple of DB prices to the live close:

```bash
uv run python -c "
import sqlite3, yfinance as yf
c = sqlite3.connect('family_office.db')
for s in ['PLTR','VOO']:
    p = c.execute('SELECT price FROM positions WHERE symbol=?', (s,)).fetchone()[0]
    live = yf.download(s, period='2d', progress=False, auto_adjust=False, multi_level_index=False)['Close'].iloc[-1]
    print(f'{s}: DB {p:.2f} vs live close {float(live):.2f}')
"
```

## Layer Classification for New Tickers

Dividend funds → Layer 2, growth → Layer 1, hedges → Layer 3. If a new ticker does not clearly match a pattern, mark it `UNKNOWN - Manual Review Required` and ask the user rather than guessing.

## CSV Fallback

CSV import is a fallback and re-verification path only, not the primary flow. The `IngestPositions` workflow archives `Portfolio_Positions_*.csv` and `Balances_*.csv` from `~/Downloads` into `imports/`. Use it when a live source is down or the user explicitly wants an archive.

Classifier for Fidelity position exports: a header containing `Ex-date` is the dividend view; a header containing `Average Cost Basis` is the regular view. The dividend view and transaction history CSVs are still consumed by `dividend-tracking` and `TransactionSyncing`.

## Pre-Flight Checklist

- [ ] SnapTrade account is enabled and routed in `config/snaptrade-accounts.yaml`
- [ ] `SNAPTRADE_*` keys are present in `.env`
- [ ] `DATABASE_URL` is set in `.env`

## Reference Files

- **User Profile**: `user-profile.yaml`
- **Account routing**: `config/snaptrade-accounts.yaml`
- **Sync-first pattern**: `.claude/skills/_shared/SyncFirstDbRead.md`

---

**Skill Type**: Domain (workflow guidance)
**Enforcement**: BLOCK (data integrity critical)
**Priority**: Critical