Checkbook balancing is exactly that—making sure your records are balanced. So you take the statement the bank sends you for the month and compare it to the records you have. Mark off everything that coincides and rectify anything that doesn’t. If the two records are not equal to one another in the end, you have a problem.
Helps Accessed From the Checkbook Balancing (() Screen
Edit Help (()
Alt+J—In prior versions, when you pressed Alt+J in the bottom part of the screen, you were told to enter a check # to jump to.
Now you need only type the check # that you want displayed and press Enter. If that check # exists, it is brought up and highlighted.
File Help (()
Ctrl+P—(Use Ctrl+P only when your cursor is in the bottom part of the screen). Prints a report, either to the screen or to the printer, showing the outstanding checks and deposits. Also tells whether your accounts are in balance.
F5—exits the bottom part of the screen where checkbook balancing takes place.
Shift+F9—deletes record.
F10—Selection Screen
Load Help (()
F7—loads previous record.
F8—loads next record.
Tools Help (()
Alt+T—Use Alt+T to mark an entry without adding it to the Returned column. This is used for Transfers and other entries that are not listed on the Bank Statement.
Alt+U—If you happen to mark an entry that you didn't mean to, you can unmark it with Alt+U. The Bank Statement Date above MUST be the same date as when you marked the entry, otherwise it will not unmark the check or deposit.
Shift+F3—brings up an accountant's* calculator when your press it the first time. The second time you press it, the final calculations showing are entered into the field the cursor was on.
+ adds or totals - subtracts / divides
* multiplies ) clears ( exits calculator
= totals or equals
*If you are not familiar with an accountant’s calculator, you may want to take a little time to familiarize yourself with the differences in usage here. Figures are entered as positive or negative: i.e. 100+50-75= would be entered as 100+; 50+; 75- The answer calculates each time you press the positive or negative sign. The = sign or Enter key seldom need be used unless you are multiplying or dividing.
Checks/Debits ((.3)
Enter the amount of checks and other debits, such as bank service charges, for this period, as shown on the bank statement. Then press Enter.
Deposits/Credits ((.4)
Enter the amount of deposits and other credits for this period, as shown on the bank statement. Be sure to include any interest if it is listed separately.
When you have done this and press Enter, the checks and deposits are listed in the bottom part of the screen.
Bank Statement Date ((.6)
Enter the date from your bank statement which shows what date the statement was made.
When you press Enter, the date is automatically set to the last day of the month.
(When you do checkbook balancing for the first time, you are asked to enter the prior month's bank balance. Enter last month's ending balance or this month's beginning balance.)
Ledger Number ((.1089)
Enter the number of the ledger that has the checks you wish to balance. The ledgers are set up on the # screen and may be any number from 3 to 7.
If the Checkbook Is Out of Balance (()
After the checks and deposits have been returned, you should run the Checkbook Balance report by pressing Ctrl+P and then S for Screen or P for Printer.
At the end of that report, the program compares its checkbook balance with its Bank Statement balance, making adjustments for any outstanding checks as well as deposits and bank transactions entered after the end of the month. If the adjusted bank balance does not agree with the checkbook balance, something is wrong.
Possible causes for an out-of-balance checkbook:
1. If you have payroll, Report # 4-39, PAYROLL CATEGORY & POSTING REPORT, may not have been run after the last payroll checks were calculated. TO CORRECT this, run Report # 4-39 for the month in which the checkbook is out of balance.
2. An item from the Bank Statement may have been missed when the Deposits/Credits and Checks/Debits fields were entered. TO CORRECT this, double check the Beginning and Ending Bank Balance figures in the top left corner of the Checkbook Balancing screen to make sure that they agree with the Bank Statement. Correct the Deposits/Credits and Checks/Debits fields as necessary.
3. Information may have been changed in a prior month. Compare the Checkbook Balance reports from prior months to the current on-screen entry for the same month. Set the bank’s statement date to the date of the prior month you want to compare, run the Ctrl+P report to the screen, and compare the figures with your physical printout from that month.
Checkbook Balancing—How to Do It (()
The Checkbook Balancing screen is accessed from the Selection (F10) screen by pressing the open parenthesis (() —which is the same as Shift+9.
Enter the Ledger number and Bank Statement date. The date on the top part of the screen defaults to the last day of the month.
(When you do Checkbook Balancing for the first time, at the bottom of the screen a message asks you for the Prior Month Bank Balance. Enter last month's Ending Balance or this month's Beginning Balance. )
Copying from the Bank Statement, enter the total Deposits or Credits. Be sure to include Interest earned.
Enter total Checks or Debits. Be sure to include service charges.
At this point, check the Bank Balance Begin and End fields to be sure that they agree with the beginning and ending balances shown on the statement you received from the bank. If they do not agree, you already have a problem, either in the information you just entered or in a prior month.
When you press Enter on the Checks/Debits field, checks and deposits that have been previously entered into your ABC Accounting program, will display in a separate window. At the top of this window, there are several display options. In the main portion of the window, checks and deposits are listed.
The display options at the top of the page tell you:
1. What is “Showing” in the lower part of the screen. You can click on the Alt+F to filter what gets shown. Your options are to show All checks/deposits, Outstanding checks/deposits, or Returned checks/deposits.
2. What the Bank Date for this statement is.
3. The dollar amounts of checks/deposits/transfers that still need to be accounted for.
4. There are also several links that allow you to mark returned checks/deposits by mouse rather than the keyboard.
Compare the checks and deposits displayed on the screen with the Bank Statement checks and deposits. When you find an entry on the screen which matches an entry on the Bank Statement, highlight that entry by moving your cursor to it using the Up and Down arrows and press Enter. This adds it to the Returned column and subtracts it from the Amt to Enter column. The month number is printed in the Ret column to show that this has been done.
When you have marked all the checks and deposits for the month, the Amt to Enter column (in the top part of the screen) should be blank and the Returned column amounts should equal the Bank column amounts.
If you want to unmark a check or deposit, press Alt+U when the entry is highlighted. This will only work if the Bank Statement Date at the top of the screen is the same month that the check or deposit was marked.
When you are done with the month's checks, press Ctrl+P, using S for Screen or P to Print. Check the list for old entries, which may be a check that has been lost or some figure entered mistakenly. Check for the message "Computer is in Balance." This means that the computer balance agrees with the bank statement balance. Print a copy of the Checkbook Balance report (using Ctrl+P, P) and file it.