Transfer of investment accounts to another firm

Nalgas

Hello
I have to transfer all of my investment accounts to a different brokerage firm. These accounts are quite old and have a lot of dividends.
What is the best/correct/proper way to record the transaction so that the previous history is kept (purchase and historical prices of the transactions)?

I already moved my stock account, and I handled that one by:
Removing all the shares from account A, and Adding them in account B. However, to look at pricing history, I have to unhide account A and look at it. I feel that doing it like that is wrong or nor the best way.
Thanks

Tom Young

"What is the best/correct/proper way to record the transaction so that the previous history is kept (purchase and historical prices of the transactions)?"

The mechanism provided by Quicken in this case is to use the "Shares Transferred Between Accounts" action.  This results in one "Removed" action for each security in the "from" Account and multiple "Added" actions in the "to" Account, one for each tax lot.  The transactions themselves reside in the old Account, reflecting the facts of the situation.  The old Account is still available to you for all "performance" or "transaction history" reports, even if hidden.  You simply include the old Account when you run the reports, without needing to un-hide them.

If the "old" Account has been taken over by a new firm but is otherwise intact another approach is to disconnect the old Account from downloading and then rename the Account and reconnect the Account to the new firm.  With this approach everything - transactions and holdings - stay within one Account in Quicken.

Tom Young

"What is the best/correct/proper way to record the transaction so that the previous history is kept (purchase and historical prices of the transactions)?"

The mechanism provided by Quicken in this case is to use the "Shares Transferred Between Accounts" action.  This results in one "Removed" action for each security in the "from" Account and multiple "Added" actions in the "to" Account, one for each tax lot.  The transactions themselves reside in the old Account, reflecting the facts of the situation.  The old Account is still available to you for all "performance" or "transaction history" reports, even if hidden.  You simply include the old Account when you run the reports, without needing to un-hide them.

If the "old" Account has been taken over by a new firm but is otherwise intact another approach is to disconnect the old Account from downloading and then rename the Account and reconnect the Account to the new firm.  With this approach everything - transactions and holdings - stay within one Account in Quicken.

q_lurker

If you can make that second option work for you, I think that would be my recommendation.  It is possible that some of the real-world transfers might take some time, and that might be an issue reconciling one account.  Your choice in that aspect.  There may also be some funds sold by the old firm (intra-firm funds) and transferred as cash. That too, should not be a problem with the second (or first) option.

Re the Shares Transferred approach, that does not transfer either cash or short positions.  Cash is just another XOut or Withdraw transaction.  Short positions need to be covered in the old account and recreated in the new account.  

Nalgas

Tom Young said:

The mechanism provided by Quicken in this case is to use the "Shares Transferred Between Accounts" action.  This results in one "Removed" action for each security in the "from" Account and multiple "Added" actions in the "to" Account, one for each tax lot.  The transactions themselves reside in the old Account, reflecting the facts of the situation.  The old Account is still available to you for all "performance" or "transaction history" reports, even if hidden.  You simply include the old Account when you run the reports, without needing to un-hide them..

thank you Tom and @q_lurker
I like the cleaner look of one transaction for Adding all the shares, but it is important to preserve the pricing history. Your method is the correct one, but it adds soooo many added shares statemens - one per lot.

I also ask the proper way to record the exchange of mutual fund shares for another.
How should that be recorded, as a sale and then a purchase? Or a removal and then an addition? Or either one?
thanks again