Importing and syncing issues

PiousVenom

New to this. I've downloaded transaction history for my wife's account into a .qfx. I import it into Quicken, and it show's an Ending/Online balance that is the same as shown on the online account. The problem is that the online balance includes several pending transactions, which don't show up in the .qfx. How can I ensure that the Ending Balance in Quicken is correct, so that I can enter the pending transactions, and have the Online Balance matching when done?

Sherlock

The short answer is you can not.  The financial institution is not supposed to include pending transactions in QFX file or in the account balance provided in the QFX file.  If they are, I suggest you report the issue to the financial institution.  When you reconcile the account, I suggest you reconcile to a statement obtained from the financial institution as the Online Balance is not reliable.

Sherlock

The short answer is you can not.  The financial institution is not supposed to include pending transactions in QFX file or in the account balance provided in the QFX file.  If they are, I suggest you report the issue to the financial institution.  When you reconcile the account, I suggest you reconcile to a statement obtained from the financial institution as the Online Balance is not reliable.

PiousVenom

When you say they aren't supposed to include the account balance in the .qfx, what exactly does that mean?

Sherlock

PiousVenom said:

When you say they aren't supposed to include the account balance in the .qfx, what exactly does that mean?

I did not say they aren't supposed to include the account balance in the .qfx.

Financial institutions are not supposed to include pending transactions in the information provided in the QFX file.

The account balance in the QFX file is not supposed to include the impact of pending transactions.

PiousVenom

Gotcha. Though this line:

"The account balance in the QFX file is not supposed to include the impact of pending transactions."

That's what's happening. So the suggestion is to contact them and let them know?

Sherlock

PiousVenom said:

Gotcha. Though this line:

"The account balance in the QFX file is not supposed to include the impact of pending transactions."

That's what's happening. So the suggestion is to contact them and let them know?

Correct.

I also suggested you avoid using the Online Balance when you reconcile and instead rely on a statement you obtain from the financial institution.

Chris_QPW

I'm going to add my two cents here.  What the financial institution is doing is wrong on two counts.

1. Including pending transactions is wrong because pending transactions may not go through, and there isn't any system to automatically remove them if that happens.
2. The online balance should always be consistent with the transactions that are sent, and clearly that isn't the case.

PiousVenom

I think I need to clarify. The pending transactions are NOT in the .qfx.

However, the balance in the .qfx reflects the balance WITH the pending transactions. So, instead of showing say $500, it's $100.

Chris_QPW

OK, well that is "better".   But that does make the online balance in it useless for reconciling, and only they can fix that.