Multi-year budget workaround

[Larry]

I am a refugee from Quicken Canada in the process of converting to GNUCASH.  It is going OK so far except for some issues around budgeting. I have been reading what I can find in the Archives. If I can figure out how to run Phil Longstaff''s ytd report I think most of my issues will be resolved.
However in the course of my reading I saw that some people were looking for a multi-year budget. I would like that also. I do have a workaround that I have used in Quicken and it seems to work here as well.
I Quicken I wanted to have my net worth distributed into categories as the start of each year. I did not just bring forward the surplus or deficit in each category (although you could). I looked at my net worth and considered what things I was saving for: new roof, stereo, retirement, new computer etc. I  then opened a new account (I called it 'balances forward'). If I had closed the books as was starting anew, I would open the account with a zero balance. Then I would enter income for each of my categories (accounts in NGUCash) that I was bringing forward funds for from the previous year until I reached the  value of my net worth (assets in GNUCash I think). Then I would distribute those funds to my Accounts (Asset Accounts in GNUCash it think) in proportion to what I actually had in the Account thus establishing my Opening Balance in each Account.
If you don't close the books or start a new each year the you open your Balance Forward  Account with a negative value equal to your net worth or total of Assets. Then transfer the funds to your Accounts (Categories) in proportion to where you want to use the funds until you have a zero balance. I have not tried this in GNUCash as this is my first year, but the starting anew sceneries appears to be working so far.
I hope this works in GNUCash and perhaps it will help someone else. Maybe there is actually a better way to do it in GNUCash. If so I would like to hear it.
Thanks,
Larry


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