QuickBooks Tips & Tricks

Why do I have Accounts Receivable/Accounts Payable balances on my cash basis balance sheet (CBBS)? There are several reasons this may occur. If you have a transaction that is linked to a balance sheet account instead of an income or expense account, that transaction will appear as an open invoice or bill in Accounts Receivable or Accounts Payable. If you enter an invoice or bill and then enter a deposit without a payment or write a check instead of creating a bill payment, the transactions will not have a link to clear their balance and these transactions will also appear on the cash basis report as open transactions.

To fix these problems there are some reports you can run that will identify the transactions that need to be cleared.

Open Invoices report

1. Choose Reports > Customers & Receivables > Open Invoices.
2. Click the Date drop-down arrow and select the correct date.
3. Click Modify report, Advanced, and then click As of Report Date.

The payments that appear on the report (included in the CBBS) have been received but not applied to an invoice.

Unpaid Bills report

1. Choose Reports > Vendors & Payables > Unpaid Bills Detail.
2. Click the Date drop-down arrow and select the correct date.
3. Click Modify report, Advanced, and then click As of Report Date.

The bill payment checks that appear on the report (included in the CBBS) have been entered but not applied to a bill.

Customer Transaction Detail report

Each customer with a nonzero subtotal is affecting your A/R balance. To identify customer transactions that are causing an A/R balance to show on your CBBS, run the following report:

1. Choose Reports > Company & Financial > Balance Sheet Standard.
2. Click Modify Report.
3. On the Display tab, for Report Basis select Cash.
4. Delete the From date, keep the To date, and click OK.
5. To bring up the Transactions by Account report, double-click (QuickZoom) the A/R amount.
6. Click Modify Report.
7. On the Display tab, delete the From date and keep the To date.
8. Click Advanced, select the Open Balance / Aging Report Date option, and click OK.
9. Select Customer in the Total by field.
10. Click the Filters tab:
           a. In the Filter list, click Account.
           b. Click the Account drop-down arrow and select All Accounts Receivable.
           c. Select No for Include Split Detail.
           d. In the Filter list, select Paid Status, select Open, and then click OK.
           e. (Optional) Click Memorize to save this report to use again.

Vendor Transaction Detail report:

Each vendor with a nonzero subtotal is affecting your A/P balance. To identify vendor transactions that are causing an A/P balance to show on your CBBS, run the following report:

1. Choose Reports > Company & Financial > Balance Sheet Standard.
2. Click Modify Report.
3. On the Display tab, for Report Basis, select Cash.
4. Delete the From date, keep the To date, and click OK.
5. To bring up the Transactions by Account report, double-click (QuickZoom) the A/P amount.
6. Click Modify Report.
7. On the Display tab, delete the From date and keep the To date.
8. Click Advanced, select the Open Balance / Aging Report Date option, and click OK.
9. In the Total by field, select Vendor.
10. Click the Filters tab:
       a. In the Filter list, click Account.
       b. Click the Account drop-down arrow and select All Accounts Payable.
       c. For Include Split Detail, select No.
       d. In the Filter list, select Paid Status, select Open, and then click OK.
       e. (Optional) Click Memorize to save this report to use again.

Please call any of our QuickBooks ProAdvisors at (850) 435-8300, if you would like more detail on these tips or if you have any QuickBooks questions.