Sudden balance increase / online access

rlinsk33

I use the Quicken Windows program to keep track of banking activity, and I routinely download transactions every week or so. Several weeks ago, my reported credit-union checking balance in Quicken suddenly jumped from about $3-4K to the 120K neighborhood. Don't congratulate me. It's not real. I can't figure out what happened. Thoughts? Known issues?

Boatnmaniac

https://community.quicken.com/discussion/comment/20370596#Comment_20370596

That transfer-in transaction probably came in from your credit card account. When you deleted the transfer-in transaction in your checking account it would have also deleted the linked transfer-out transaction from your credit card account.

Do you have a backup file from before you removed that transfer-in transaction in checking? If so, you should be able to see what that transfer-out transaction in your credit card account was (i.e., payee, date, dollar amount, etc.). Hopefully you will then be able to figure out what that transaction was for so in your main data file you can then manually enter it back into your credit card account register and properly categorize it.

If you don't have that backup file then perhaps it might just be easiest/best to simply enter an account balancing transaction in your credit card account and be done with it.

Greg_the_Geek

Have you checked the opening balance? Quicken has a bad habit of changing it.

Boatnmaniac

The first thing I would do is check to make sure the register is sorted by date by clicking on the Date column header.

If that is not causing the issue: Did this happen when you had deactivated/reactivated, reauthorized or changed the connection with your CU?

rlinsk33

Greg, looking into this — what would I change the opening balance to — zero? I don't remember what I deposited to start the account.

Boatnmaniac - it may have coincided with such changes by the CU. Not sure.

Boatnmaniac

Restore an old backup file if you have one….one from before this issue was first observed. It can be months or years older than that if it will have your CU account in it. Make note of what the Opening Balance transaction dollar amount is in that restored file.

Then open your main data file, again, and check to see if the Opening Balance transaction there is different from what is in the restored backup file. If it is different, change the dollar amount to be the same as what is in that restored backup file. Also enter and save that dollar amount into the Memo field of that transaction so if it ever happens again it will be easy to see what it should be and to fix.

Let us know what you were able to find out.

Ps56k2

what did you find concerning the Opening Balance ?

@rlinsk33

rlinsk33

I found an odd transfer-in at the start of my current checking account history, removed it, and am now back in the ballpark regarding the balance. But then my credit card balance went out of whack, so now trying to figure that out. Thanks,

Boatnmaniac

https://community.quicken.com/discussion/comment/20370596#Comment_20370596

That transfer-in transaction probably came in from your credit card account. When you deleted the transfer-in transaction in your checking account it would have also deleted the linked transfer-out transaction from your credit card account.

Do you have a backup file from before you removed that transfer-in transaction in checking? If so, you should be able to see what that transfer-out transaction in your credit card account was (i.e., payee, date, dollar amount, etc.). Hopefully you will then be able to figure out what that transaction was for so in your main data file you can then manually enter it back into your credit card account register and properly categorize it.

If you don't have that backup file then perhaps it might just be easiest/best to simply enter an account balancing transaction in your credit card account and be done with it.

rlinsk33

I deleted the humongous transfer in, and the balance was pretty close to what I see on the credit card's web site. I may be sorry I did it that way, but I was too tired to spend a ton of time on it. Thanks.