Correct way to enter opening balance into check register?

chefjoanne

I want to enter the balance on December 31 2019 as my opening balance and then begin to enter transactions starting Jan 1 2020. If I enter "Opening Balance" as the "Payee", it shows up in my reconciliation. Do I then mark it as reconciled? Also, do I need to enter a category for the opening balance or leave it blank? Thank you.

Sherlock

You may mark the Opening Balance transaction as reconciled in the register or when the transaction appears in the reconcile window.  Normally, Quicken uses a self-referencing transfer for the Opening Balance transaction (the name of the register in square brackets).

Sherlock

You may mark the Opening Balance transaction as reconciled in the register or when the transaction appears in the reconcile window.  Normally, Quicken uses a self-referencing transfer for the Opening Balance transaction (the name of the register in square brackets).

Frankx

From you post, it is difficult to determine where you are in the "new Quicken account" process.  When you first started, you should have been prompted to setup a checking account and indicate the "opening balance" for that account.  Did you do that, and if so, was here some problem with that?

Generally speaking, when you setup up any account in Quicken, you are prompted to enter an "opening" or "starting" balance.  When you do that, there is no "Payee".

Please let us know exactly where you are and what you are trying to accomplish and I am sure we'll be able to help you through it.

Thanks,

Frankx

[edited for minor typos]

chefjoanne

Im sorry Franx....I missed your comment. I went too fast when I started Quicken. I hooked up all my bank accounts and naively downloaded everything. I didn't know what opening balance to enter or even where I intended to begin my 2020 bookkeeping. I came to find out that banks typically only download 90 days of transactions. This is where the dilemma began. I have enough to work with for the next couple of weeks with all the help I've received here. Thank you !