retirement plan moved - how do I update Quicken?

enirevets

I'm probably missing something simple, but here it is:
A former employer moved its 401k from Wells Fargo to Principal. I have the old Wells Fargo account in my Quicken, but never updated / rolled over / added new account...
(not sure what the correct term is)...
...to reflect that those funds are now with Principal. What do I need to do?

[Deleted User]

@enirevets - You didn't change retirement plans so there would be no rollover or transfer necessary.  It is the same plan as always, but only with a new provider.  All you need to do is deactivate online services with Wells Fargo and then set up a new online connection with Principal.

Go to the Online Services tab in Account Details and deactivate.  Then, go to the General tab and blank out the Financial Institution Name, Account Number, and any other online information.  

To set up a new online connection, go back to the Online Services tab and click on "Set up now".  Search for the appropriate "Principal" to connect with.  I noticed that there were several "Principal" options available.  If you are unsure which one to use, I would contact Principal or your HR to confirm which one is appropriate.  During the conversion process, you should have gotten information including a timeline and the new plan website to access your retirement account.  Once you establish an online connection with your retirement plan in Quicken, it's "business as usual".

Also, when you establish a new online connection with Principal, be sure to "connect to existing" and choose your retirement plan set up on Quicken.

NotACPA

Do you hold the same investments at Principal as you did  at WF?

If NOT,  you might want to consider Selling all,  moving the cash  and then buying the current holdings.

Also, is your account now at Principal Funds OR "The Principal Financial Group"? They're 2 different entities, to Q, with differing capabilities.  I  suspect the latter, since  it explicitly supports 401k Accounts in Q.

enirevets

I deactivated the (ex-) Wells Fargo account and erased name, account #, etc from Account Details, as instructed. However when I click "Set Up Now", I don't get to "Connect to Existing". Instead it opens up a new Add Account window, and after I select Principal, I get "Add Investing Account"; then it asks if I want simple or complete investing (in the old Wells Fargo account, I had already selected complete); then it shows "Brokerage: Add your offline Brokerage account" and wants me to assign a nickname. This doesn't seem right.

Note: I am familiar with the "connect to existing", having successfully used it multiple times in the past.

Any further guidance will be appreciated.

[Deleted User]

@enirevets - we need to back up a bit.  During the conversion process there should have been a LOT of communication pieces, documentation, and educational meetings from WF, Principal and your HR.

Here are some of the key things you would need to know, and have done during the conversion - 

• Conversion Date - what is/was the last date that transactions would post at Wells Fargo?  What is the last statement date?
• Wells Fargo Online Access - After this conversion date, will you still have access to your online account at WF, and until when?  Transactions history?
• Blackout Period - What is the start date for Principal transactions?  There usually is a blackout period that you would not have access to either WF or Principal.
• Principal Online Access - do you have online access at Principal?  Transaction history?
• Fund Mapping - You should have gotten a fund mapping document that told you if your funds are remaining the same and transferring in kind, or are/were they sold at WF and purchased into new/same funds at Principal?
• Statement Balances - Do your final statements from Wells Fargo end with a zero balance?
• Do you have your first statement from Principal?  Does it start with a zero balance?
• On Quicken is your retirement account updated and reconciled fully through conversion date with WF? 
• If the last statement from Wells Fargo did not go to zero, did you, or were you able to reconcile WF ending balances with Principal beginning balances?

Your first task is to get the Wells Fargo side up to date and reconciled on Quicken with your Retirement account at Wells Fargo. Then depending on your answers to the questions above, we can move on to the Principal side on Quicken.

Ps56k2

enirevets said: I'm probably missing something simple...

is this what you wanted - re-opened

enirevets

Yes, that is the discussion I needed re-opened. Thank you (plural) for the help.

So, back to my original question. In reply to Damian's last post from July 5:
It sounds like maybe I should just forget about the Wells Fargo history, and start fresh with the account at Principal.
You’re right about “we need to back up a bit”… I guess I should explain:
- This transfer of my retirement account from Wells Fargo to the Principal Financial Group is “old news”, in that it happened a couple years ago; and furthermore, I was already a FORMER employee at that time. I left that job in 2016. (I just never rolled the 401k into an IRA, so the money was still sitting in the former employer's 401k circa mid 2020, when it was transferred to Principal.) So, I’m not sure how much info was even sent to me by HR at that point; and whatever I did receive, it’s long gone now.
- Furthermore, my Wells Fargo info in Quicken was never up to date anyway. I didn't start using Quicken until 2020. When I first tried to set up the WF account in Quicken, it DID download successfully… once... I thought (in retrospect, it may have only been a partial download. I was still pretty early in the Quicken learning curve.) After that one time, it never connected with WF again; and (after failures the next several attempts) when I eventually dug into Wells Fargo customer service the answer I eventually received was that due to some agreement between Wells Fargo and my employer’s parent company, WF would not allow connection to any “third party aggregator” (which, it is my understanding, is what Quicken is.) That sounded odd enough to me that I pursued it some depth into the Wells Fargo customer service lair, but eventually I heard back (from not 1 but 2 different supervisors, who each verified…) that was indeed correct – Wells Fargo flat-out would not allow link to my retirement plan. Ever. Period. Final answer.

So that’s why I’m thinking, forget the Wells Fargo history, start fresh with setting up the Principal account in my Quicken as a new account & just go forward from here. While any feedback would be appreciated, at this time my plan is to try that next. Will report back here if questions remain. (I don’t have time to try it right now, but hopefully tomorrow or another day soon.) Thanks for reading.

[Deleted User]

@enirevets - At this point, I would agree with you to just start fresh with your retirement account at Principal.  Long story short, Wells Fargo Institutional Retirement & Trust sold their retirement business to Principal back in 2019.  That is why Wells Fargo would no longer have any access to your retirement account history.  I am not sure when your retirement account converted over to Principal, but I think it would have been sometime in 2020.