IRA Distributions

Ken MacLeod

How do I record an IRA Disribution in Quicken Premier 2019?  I've been using Quicken since 2011 and to this day can't figure out how to correctly record one.  Quicken Help was of no help at all.

J_Mike

For QWin, see this thread;

https://community.quicken.com/discussion/7072150/faq-best-way-to-handle-distributions-from-ira

Ken MacLeod

The thread tells me to handle the transaction as a transfer out.  There isn't a transfer out only withdraw and transfer which is what I've been doing.  It would be much better if Quicken had a with draw only and allowed you to record it as an IRA distribution.  Oh well Mike.  Thanks for your speedy reply.

NotACPA

A "withdraw to another account" IS a transfer. You're moving money from one account to another.

Your proposal of "draw only" would be an Expense ... which would reduce your net worth.

Ken MacLeod

A "Withdraw" would allow you to dedut the transaction as an IRA Distribution the day the withdrawal was made from the account.  Then you can add it to a checking or savings account as a deposit on the day it clears the bank.  What I'm concerned about is the transaction going to appear on my tax transctions report as a withdrawal from my IRA account.

J_Mike

Ken

One could use the the procedure you describe above - a withdrawal transaction from the IRA and a separate deposit transaction to checking. To complete this process, one would need to create a category; e.g., "IRA Distribution" and assign tax line item "1099-R:Total IRA taxable distrib." to the category. Use this category for the transactions. Quicken will "see" the deposit to checking and include it in the tax reports.

Quicken is designed to recognize (and report) a cash transfer out of a tax deferred account as a tax related event. One does this by setting the Transfers Out attribute in the Account Details dialog. Example, for an IRA distribution. the Transfers Out is set to "1099-R:Total IRA taxable distrib.".(same as the category above).

The choice is yours to make. I prefer using the transfer method as one transaction entry covers both accounts and the resulting transactions are linked through the transfer.

Ken MacLeod

Thanks for your reply Mike.  I created a category for IRA Distributions, however there is no "Withdrawal" in the drop down list for "Action" other that "Withdwx" Withdrawal & Transfer.  I entered my IRA Distribution into the register as a Withdrwx from my brokerage (E*TRADE) account and transfered it to my checking account.  When I downloaded the transaction this morning from E*TRADE I couldn't match the transaction to the Withdrwx because the download recognizes the transaction a a "Withdrawal" not a transfer which in fact it is.  This proves my original statement that Quicken should have an action for a "Withdrawal."  That way you would be able to withdraw from your brokerage as an IRA Distribution and do a separate transaction as income into your checking account bacause that's the way the transactions are download from bank/brokerage accounts.

q_lurker

a)  You can get a pure "Withdraw" action through the Enter Transactions button but not the Action Field pull-down selections.

b)  Just because Etrade sends the transaction in some form does not mean you need to accept it in that form.  If you already have the transaction properly entered for your needs, then if the downloaded version doesn't match but essentially agrees, delete the downloaded version.  (I suspect there is some reason other than Withdraw vs WithdrawX that is preventing the match; but that is conjecture on my part.)

c)  The most efficient (least number of entries) approach (and accurate IMO) is treating the transaction as a transfer.  I do it that way even though one financial institution may show the transaction on one date and the other a day or two later. 

Ken MacLeod

Prior to receiving your reply I opened my brokerage account and choose "Edit" which brought up a dialog box where I could enter the information I wanted to.   Under 'Enter transaction" the drop down list gave me the abilty to enter the transaction as a "Withdrawal."  I entered all of the information, Expenses. Brokerage:IRA Distribution and the amount I was withdrawing.  I then updated the account and was able to accept the downloaded  transaction.  This is the method that I prefer so I can accept the downloaded transactions from my brokerage. 

Thanks to all who replied to my question!

Jim_Harman

When you say you choose "Edit" do you mean the button at the right of the currently selected (highlighted) transaction? That button is usually used to modify a transaction that has already been entered, not to enter a new transaction.

The most relaible way to enter new transactions is to use the Enter Transactions button at the top left of the transaction list (register).

Ken MacLeod

Thanks Jim, I'll use that method the next time instead of Edit even though it brings up the same dialog box it makes more sense for sure!. 

Jim_Harman

Good.

One risk with using the transaction Edit button is that if you have selected an existing transaction rather than a blank one by mistake, you will be editing the existing transaction rather than creating a new one.

If you prefer keyboard shortcuts, you can hit Ctrl-N to open the new transaction dialog.

Another benefit of using the Enter Transactions button is that you get an Enter/New option which helps if you are entering a series of related transactions.