Accrual or Cash basis balance sheet is out of balance

Legacy KB ID: 793

Question

Why is my balance sheet out of balance?

If your cash or accrual-based balance sheet is out of balance, the most likely cause is a transaction that has become damaged.

Answer

To locate the transaction and resolve the issue:

  1. Make a backup of your company file to safeguard your data. Do not overwrite an existing backup.
  2. To locate a damaged transaction, you will need to determine the first day that the balance sheet is out of balance. Use the following report:
    1. From the Reckon Accounts Reports menu, choose Company & Financial, and then choose Balance Sheet.
    2. Click Modify Report, and if it is not already selected, click the Display tab.
    3. Select All from the Dates drop-down list.
    4. Select the Report Basis that is out of balance, either Cash or Accrual.
    5. Select Year in the Display columns by drop-down list, and then click OK.
    6. Review the balance sheet to determine the first year it went out of balance.
    7. Click Modify Report and change the dates to cover the year the report is first out of balance.
      For example, from 01/01/00 to 12/31/00.
    8. Change the column display to Month, and then click OK.
    9. Review the balance sheet again to determine the first month it is out of balance.
    10. Click Modify Report and change the dates to cover the month when the report went out of balance.
      For example, from 03/01/00 to 03/31/00.
    11. Change the column display to Week, and then click OK.
    12. Review the balance sheet to determine the first week it is out of balance.
    13. Click Modify Report and change the dates to cover the first week the report went out of balance.
      For example, from 03/11/00 to 03/17/00.
    14. Change the column display to Day, and then click OK.
    15. Determine what day the balance sheet went out of balance. Leave this report open, as you may need it again.

 

When you know what day the balance sheet first went out of balance, use the following report to find the out-of-balance transaction:

  1. From the Reports menu, choose Custom Transaction Detail Report.
    1. The Modify Report window may open automatically. If it does not, click Modify Report, and then click the Display tab.
    2. Under Report Date Range, type the date that your balance sheet went out of balance in both the From and To boxes.
      For example, from 3/14/00 to 3/14/00.
    3. Select the Report Basis that is out of balance, either Cash or Accrual.
    4. In the Columns box, click Account, Split, Clr, and Class (if Class is present) to remove the checkmarks. This makes the report easier to read. If you are viewing a cash-basis report, click the Paid Amount column to select it. Click OK.
    5. The ending balance on this report will be the amount that is out of balance. Look down the Amount column on an Accrual report, or the Paid Amount column on a Cash report, for a transaction that equals the ending balance of the report. If there is a single transaction that matches the ending balance, proceed to step 4.
  2. Double-click the transaction to open it.
  3. Add ten years to the date. For example, if the date is 01/01/00, change it to 01/01/10, and then click Save & Close. Changing the date causes QuickBooks to recalculate the transaction, which often resolves the problem.
  4. Click Refresh on the Custom Transaction Detail Report, and look at the ending balance again. If it is now zero, you have located the damaged transaction.
  5. Change the dates at the top of the report to each be ten years ahead (for example, From 03/14/10 To 03/14/10), and then click Refresh. You should see the transaction with the changed date.
  6. Verify that the ending balance of the report is still zero. If it is, double-click the transaction, change the date back to the original year, (for example, back to 01/01/01), and then click Save & Close.
Check your normal balance sheet to verify that it is now in balance.

If the report in step 6 above does not have a zero balance, then you will need to fix the damaged transaction by deleting, recreating, and re-linking it to other appropriate transactions.

If the damaged transaction is a payment that was previously deposited, you will first need to delete it from its deposit before you can delete the payment itself.

Double-click the transaction to open it (from the report), and then click History at the top of the form. Then:

  1. Click the deposit that is listed, and then click Go To.
  2. Note the details of the entry, such as date, account, and total amount.
  3. Select the appropriate payment line, and then from the Edit menu, choose Delete Line.
  4. Note the new total amount, and then click Save & Close.
  5. On the payment, note the date, customer, amount, and items paid (such as invoice numbers, or other clues to help you re-create the entry), and then from the Edit menu, choose Delete Payment.
  6. Enter a new payment for the customer, using the original date, amount, and check number (if appropriate), and select the same invoice or invoices to pay. Select the option Group with other undeposited funds, and then click Save & Close.
  7. From the Edit menu, choose Find.
  8. The edited deposit should be highlighted in the results area. Click Go To to open the form.
  9. Verify that you are viewing the correct deposit, and then click Payments at the top of the form.
  10. Click the checkmark column next to the payment you reentered, and then click OK. The payment will be inserted into the original deposit.
  11. Verify that the total amount equals your original deposit amount, and then click Save & Close.

If the damaged transaction is a bill payment cheque:

  1. Double-click the transaction to open it (from the report in step 8), note the details (such as date, check number, amount, and bill or bills paid by the check), and then choose Delete Bill Payment from the Edit menu.
  2. From the Suppliers menu, choose Pay Bills. Re-create the Bill payment.



Need more help?

Ask the Reckon Community at: https://community.reckon.com/categories/reckonaccounts

Or Log a Support Ticket: https://www.reckon.com/au/support/

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