Unable to modify the opening balance in a savings goal

ChrisProto

I manually deleted old records in a savings goal. Now I want to fix the ending balance by modifying the opening balance in the savings goal. I get an error that says "you need to go to the parent of the transfer and change the transaction from there". Since the category of this entry is the savings goal itself, there is no parent. This bug makes it impossible to fix the savings goal balance.

Is there a fix for this or a work-around?

Quicken Anja

Hello @ChrisProto,

Thank you for reaching out to the Community and telling us about your issue, though I apologize that you are experiencing this and for not having received a response yet.

If you haven't already, I suggest that you please try validating and/or super validating your data file. However, I do recommend that you first save a backup file prior to performing these steps.

Validate: 

1. File
2. Validate and Repair File...
   
3. Validate File
   
4. Click OK
5. Close the Data Log
   
6. Close Quicken (leave it closed for at least 5 secs)
7. Reopen Quicken and see if the issue persists.

Super Validate:

1. File
2. Hold CTRL + Shift and click Validate and Repair File...
   
3. Super Validate File
4. Click OK
5. Close the Data Log
   
6. Close Quicken (leave it closed for at least 5 secs)
7. Reopen Quicken and see if the issue persists.

I hope this helps!

Chris_QPW

@Quicken Anja I tested this in a new data file and can confirm that the behavior is a bug, not anything to do with the data file.

I highlighted bug because I'm not 100% sure the developers would consider it a bug since I have no idea what the underline ramifications are of the opening balance on a savings goal is.  But you certainly can't change it.

Quicken Anja

@Chris_QPW thank you for confirming this.

I will go ahead and attempt to replicate it myself as well. In the meantime, if you don't mind, could you please provide screenshots of the issue so we have supporting documents?

Thank you!

Chris_QPW

Here you go.


Enter increase of 100.

Select Yes.

Chris_QPW

Note a "concerned party sent me this":

Unable to modify the opening balance in a savings goal

 

Found at:

https://community.quicken.com/discussion/7904523/unable-to-modify-the-openin

g-balance-in-a-savings-goal

 

You can change the Savings Goal amount, but not by modifying the Savings Goal account opening balance. When you create a Savings Goal, the Goal amount is not recorded in the Savings Goal account register: it's kept separately (the Savings Goal opening balance is always $0.00).

 

To change the Goal amount:

Go to Planning > Savings Goals and click on "Edit goal" for the appropriate Savings Goal. In the resulting dialog, key the desired amount in the "Goal amount" field and click OK.

ChrisProto

@Chris_QPW, thanks for verifying this. @"Quicken Anja", I had already validated and super-validated my file.

@Chris_QPW, I don't think changing the Goal amount is a good choice for me, unless I'm misunderstanding something. I have several savings goals defined that I use to set money aside for things like taxes and insurance. Thus, it is not like I'm saving up for a car or something like that. These savings goals never end. I put money into them whenever I get paid, and then remove money from them to pay estimated taxes or insurance bills.

Once I deleted the old records I just need the ending balance to be correct again. I would definitely call this a bug.

q_lurker

@ChrisProto Why do you want to change the Ending Balance?

The balance in the Saving Goal account can only be the net total of what you have contributed to and withdrawn from the goal.  When you deleted the old records (contributions and withdrawals, I suppose), did the ending balance not change accordingly?

As noted, the Opening Balance must be $0.  Unlike a real account where the Opening Balance represents what you started with pre-Quicken, the Savings Goal account only exists within Quicken.  It is an imaginary Quicken account.  The money in the Savings Goal account MUST exist in a 'real world' Quicken.             

Chris_QPW

I want to say, that mostly all I did when I saw this is verify that Quicken behaves this way, and I did mention I thought that there might be a reason it works this way and isn't a bug.  With what @q_lurker said, now that I think about it, he is right and there isn't a bug.  The error message could be clearer, but that is about it.

As @q_lurker says this is a "sub account/imaginary account" money only comes and goes from it from "real accounts", so it seems to me the solution for your problem is to create another real account (offline cash) like "Hide" and make it "separate" and hidden and transfer what you need to balance the account to/from there.  Note enter it in the "Hide" account.