My wife and I keep our finances separate. However, we maintain a joint checking account from which we pay for shared expenses. We each contribute equally to this account. I’m trying to figure out the best way to track this shared asset and shared expenses in Quicken.
Here’s my approach:
- I’ve created a bank account called JOINT CHECKING
- I’ve created an other liability account called WIFE’S SHARE
- When I deposit money into this account, I record it as a transfer from my PERSONAL CHECKING account into the JOINT CHECKING account
- When my wife deposits money into this account, I record it as a transfer from WIFE’S SHARE account into JOINT CHECKING account
- When making a shared expense from the JOINT CHECKING, I record it as a split (so, a $100 grocery expense is split as $50 Grocery expense (reflecting my share of the expense) and $50 transfer into WIFE’S SHARE account)
All clear so far. But here’s my question:
If I make a payment for a shared expense from my PERSONAL CHECKING (or PERSONAL CREDIT CARD) account, and then reimburse myself for that expense from the JOINT CHECKING account, how do I record this so that half the expense counts as my own expense, and the other half counts as my wife’s expense?
