[GNC] n and c?

[ToddAndMargo]

On 4/11/19 12:00 PM, Stephen M. Butler wrote:
> On 4/11/19 1:13 AM, ToddAndMargo via gnucash-user wrote:
>> On 4/11/19 1:08 AM, Colin Law wrote:
>>> On Thu, 11 Apr 2019 at 07:25, ToddAndMargo via gnucash-user
>>> <gnucash-user at gnucash.org> wrote:
>>>> ..
>>>> I will be reconciling by hand from my bank's statements.
>>>> When I find an entry, do I manually change it to "c"?
>>>
>>> Just to re-enforce what Adrien said, you don't need do this by hand (I
>>> don't think I have ever done that).  There is a Reconcile dialog that
>>> will appear if you click the toolbar button or select Actions >
>>> Reconcile which will allow you enter the closing balance from the bank
>>> statement and will then let you tick off the entries that match the
>>> bank statement.  Simple.
>>>
>>> Generally in GnuCash if it is difficult or laborious you are doing it
>>> wrong.  Unless you are trying to do something unusual at least.
>>>
>>> Colin
>>>
>>
>> I think I am trying to turn it into something it is not.
>> A howitzer when I only need a b-b gun.
> 
> 
> For a number of years I used an Excel spreadsheet to track my checking
> account.  However, as life got more complicated and the tax laws (USA)
> more convoluted the work needed to categorize the tax relevant income
> and expenses became overwhelming.   Especially when they had to be
> summarized for the CPA in order to file taxes (I've found they find
> enough extra deductions that offsets their expense).
> 
> I went looking for an accounting package and looked at one that my wife
> used in her job (she is an accountant/bookkeeper).  However, it was
> expensive and needed to be "rented" annually.  So my foray into
> GnuCash.  Thankfully, I was familiar with accounting principles and jargon.
> 
> There is this thing called "Chart of Accounts".  The way you set that up
> makes all the difference in the world about how you use GnuCash.  Here
> is my take:
> 
> Decide what you need to know/track for each of the 4 basic accounting
> types -- the 5the one will take care of itself according to accounting
> rules.
> 
> ASSETS:  These are things you own.  Cars, boats, toys, house, bank
> accounts, investments, etc.  Having lived a long life and worked a lot,
> my list is rather long.  If you rent and don't care about the cash in
> your pocket and the car is a beater, you might be interested only in the
> checking account.  You decide the level of detail you want to track.
> 
> LIABILITIES:  These are things you owe.  Like that credit card!  Here
> would go the house loan, the car loan, (boat loan), plus any other short
> or long-term debt instrument (amounts you borrowed).
> 
> INCOME:  Sources that bring you money.  Like your employer(s).  Interest
> on your bank accounts, etc.
> 
> EXPENSE:  Things for which you spend money.  Gas, rent, groceries,
> clothes, etc.
> 
> EQUITY/CAPITAL:  This is the 5th category and at it's simplest is equal
> to your net worth, or ASSETS minus LIABILITIES.
> 
> 
> You could get away with just those 5 high level accounts and lump all
> details within a category into a single account.  However, as another
> user noted, you should get more detailed than that.  If your life is
> only about the credit card (Liability) then go for it.  However, think
> about each category and ask yourself if there is something in that group
> for which you get a statement (weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, quarterly,
> annually) to which you should reconcile your information.  If so, set up
> a more detailed account under that category to track just that
> information.  Then think of the detailed lines you need to fill out for
> your taxes and set up more detailed accounts in the appropriate category
> to track those numbers.
> 
> Finally, if you use a CPA, show them what you have from the above and
> ask for their input.  They can help you organize it in a way that will
> help them when you come back next time.
> 
> --Steve
> 

Hi Steve,

Thank you for the wonderful tutorial.  I do believe my
mistake was thinking GNuCash was something other than a
bookkeeping system.  And as such, is way, way overkill
for what I need.

-T