How to start monthly reconciling from Jan 2024 on after importing file into Quicken

dpitonyak

I installed Quicken and imported a file containing non-quicken transaction history from 1999 until Jan 1, 24. I then started adding transactions into quicken and have now linked my checking account and dowloaded bank transactions also.

I want to manually reconcile from the balance on 12/31/23 one month at a time using my bank statement as a guide. All transactions from 1999-12/31/23 are marked cleared. New transactions are not cleared. How do I "force" previous cleared transactions to be reconciled without starting a new file? I would like reporting, etc. to have the history from before.

jacobs

Let's clarify the difference between "cleared" and "reconciled". If you don't already have it visible in your register, add the "Clr" column. In this column, transactions which have been downloaded from a financial institution have a blue checkmark to signify they have cleared the bank, while transactions which you have marked as reconciled as part of a manual reconciliation have a green checkmark.

(You can manually click in this column to toggle between the blue checkmark and no checkmark; you can also force or remove a green checkmark by Option-clicking a blue or green checkmark, but I'd try to avoid manually marking a transaction as reconciled or not reconciled, because it will mess with your reconciliation history.)

I would start by doing a reconciliation dated 12/31/23. On the reconcile startup screen, be sure to check the "Use statement balance" in the middle, and enter the correct ending balance for that date. Click Next to go to the main reconcile screen, and click "Mark all as Cleared". Every transaction from the beginning of time through 12/31/23 will get a blue checkmark, in any don't already have it. Make sure the Difference at the top is zero, and then press Finish. This will do two things. It will change all those blue checkmarks to green reconciled checkmarks It will also make a snapshot of the date, balance, and transactions included in that reconciliation, which you can subsequently review or edit in Accounts > Reconciliation History.

Now that all your old transactions are reconciled, you can begin the march forward. With your January 2024 bank statement in hand, click Reconcile again, enter the 1/31/24 end date and balance per the bank statement, and go through checking off each item in Quicken that you find on the bank statement. (If all your transactions were imported and have blue check marks, you don't have to do anything other than verify that every checked item in Quicken is what's on the bank statement and visa versa. I actually like starting by clicking "Mark all as Uncleared" and then manually checking off each transaction in Quicken as I go through my bank statement, but you may find it sufficient to just check transactions at the end of the month which may be in Quicken but had not cleared the bank as of the ending date.) When you have the correct items checked and a $0 Difference at the top, click Finish to mark those items reconciled and record the reconciliation in your history. Then proceed to do February and then March.