Use a single budget to manage two accounts

Question

I am the treasurer for a community service club. International bylaws require all clubs to maintain two checking accounts, one for administrative expenses (member dues, meeting meal costs, international dues/fees), and a second for service programs (fundraising proceeds, expenditures related to community service activities, charitable donations, scholarships, etc.). I have the two accounts created in Quicken with their won unique charts of accounts. Is it possible to create a Quicken budget that combines both accounts, or is this easier to manage using Microsoft Excel?

Hodgie · Answer

NotACPA - Let me rephrase my original question a little bit. I have two existing Q data files, one for each bank account. If I combine the accounts into a single Q account, I lose the ability to have independent bank reconciliations, which is required by our bylaws. If I am thinking correctly, each data file is stand alone and I cannot use the budgeting function in one data file as a master budget and automatically pull actuals from the second data file. I can export the budget report which contains the activity of one datafile to Excel, then run a fiscal YTD activity report from the second data file and manually update the budget report. In the long run, it may be easier to create a master Excel budget and update it with the actuals from both Quicken data files. Am I off base here?

NotACPA · Answer

Those 2 accounts  should be in a  single Q data file.  So what you're asking is  YES, create a single budget.

The budget function in Q is per data file … not per account.

And, you don't need 2 Charts of accounts.  That single Q data file can have a combined Chart that encompasses both accounts.