Report Basics - QuickBooks Accounting Software 2002 Bonnie J. Nagayama, CPA

Transcription

1 Copyright 2002 by Bonnie J. Nagayama. Printed and bound in the United States of America. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews without written permission in writing from Bonnie J. Nagayama. Bonnie J. Nagayama, CPA McWilliams & Associates, Inc. DBA For the Love of Business 1480 Moraga Road, Suite I, PMB 385 Moraga, CA Telephone: Fax: Programs presented and publications distributed by McWilliams & Associates, Inc. are intended to assist small business owners and managers by providing current and accurate information concerning the subject matter covered. However, no assurance is given by McWilliams & Associates, Inc. that such information is comprehensive in its coverage of such subject matter or that it is suitable in dealing with a particular problem or business-related circumstance. Accordingly, information published or provided by McWilliams & Associates, Inc. should not be relied upon as a substitute for independent research of original sources of authority. McWilliams & Associates, Inc. does not assume any responsibility for updating or revising any programs or publications that it may present, distribute, or sponsor. Under no circumstances shall McWilliams & Associates, Inc. or its owners be liable for any damages, including any lost profits, lost data, or other indirect damages arising out of anything written in this document or expressed directly or indirectly by any owner, employee, or independent contractor of McWilliams & Associates, Inc. Manual written by: Bonnie J. Nagayama, CPA EasyStep, Intuit, the Intuit logo, Quicken, Qcard, TurboTax and QuickBooks are registered trademarks of Intuit, Inc. or one of its subsidiaries. Accountant s Review, Billminder, Bizminder, End Financial Hassels, Financial Calendar, Intellicharge, Intuit MarketPlace, ProSeries, QuickBooks Navigator, QuickBooks Pro, Quicken Companion, QuickFill, QuickInvoice, QuickPay, QuickScroll, QuickTour, QuickZoom, Tax Partner, TurboForms, QuickMath, and QuickReport are trademarks of Intuit, Inc. or one of its subsidiaries. Windows and Windows 95 are registered trademarks of Microsoft Inc. Macintosh is a registered trademark of Apple Computer, Inc. All other brands or products are the trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders and should be treated as such. All references to companies and persons are purely fictitious. - Page 1 -

2 Report Basics - QuickBooks Accounting Software Table of Contents Introduction... 3 Report Basics... 4 Quick Reports... 5 Financial Statements... 7 Modify Reports Customizing the Display Tab Filters Tab Header/Footer Tab Fonts & Numbers Tab Reordering Columns Memorizing Miscellaneous Tips and Tricks Creating a Cash Disbursements Journal Creating an Invoice Register Graphs Page 2 -

3 Introduction QuickBooks and QuickBooks Pro and the newest product QuickBooks Premier have been taking the country by storm. At the time of this printing, according to Intuit s web site there are 2.5 million users of QuickBooks. As small businesses continue to make the transition to QuickBooks, they will continue to demand that the professionals they choose to assist with their tax, finance and accounting decisions be well versed in the intricacies of this small business accounting software package. This trend has already seen many Accountants, Enrolled Agents and CPAs make the investment in upgrading their skills and knowledge to offer small business clients the support needed. By entering the information into the software, good business practices will be reinforced. Neither the software, nor this text, is designed to be a replacement for a competent professional. As with other areas of business, a trusted CPA or EA can help eliminate situations before they become problems. Choosing a professional with an understanding of the software will provide a valuable resource when questions arise in unique business situations. Through consulting with numerous clients, in a wide variety of industries, the tips and troubleshooting techniques contained in this book have been developed. There are numerous seminars available to learn the how to process for entering information into the software. That is not the focus here. Instead, here how to efficiently create a QuickBooks file is addressed, a brief review the data entry procedures as part of the overview of the issue is provided, and then the focus is on understanding how the software handles the transactions and various features. Tips and tricks will be offered to improve efficiency and expand the useful information available to small business owners for accurate accounting results and management decisions. - Page 3 -

4 Report Basics There are numerous standard reports in QuickBooks, all of which can be modified to meet certain reporting requirements. Increased flexibility was added with Version 5.0 to permit additional customization for business management purposes. QBRA-2002: Reports TIP: Time spent developing some familiarity with the standard reports will permits creation of custom reports more efficiently. The setup function procedures are also easier if a basic understanding of reports that will be needed once the data has been entered. The best part of the report function is that it is possible to try lots of different choices, memorize them if they seem to be useful, but the original standard reports remain unchanged. Basically, there is no way to hurt the software no matter what is done to the reports. - Page 4 -

5 Quick Reports Report Basics - QuickBooks Accounting Software In addition to the many reports available from the reports pull down menu, there are also QuickReports available throughout QuickBooks for specific customers, vendors, items, etc. by clicking on the report button on the bottom of the list. Below is just one example. QBRA-2002: Lists > Customer:jobs List > Reports - Page 5 -

6 QBRA-2002: Lists > Customer:jobs List > Reports > Quick Report - Page 6 -

7 Financial Statements Report Basics - QuickBooks Accounting Software QuickBooks will create a variety of Balance Sheet and Profit & Loss reports from the report pull down menu. The reports are based on the account order of the chart of accounts. In addition, there is a button at the top of the report that will permit the accounts to be collapsed (only see main accounts, not sub-accounts) or expanded to show all accounts. Although complete customization of the reports in QuickBooks is not possible, there are several options for minor modifications. QBRA-2002: Reports > Company & Financial > Profit & Loss Standard - Page 7 -

8 Below are some of the typical modifications that are made to the financial statements. To add the percentage of income to the profit and loss check the box as shown on the display tab under modify report. QBRA-2002: Reports > Company & Financial > Profit & Loss Standard > Modify Report > % of income - Page 8 -

9 To change the report name, remove the date prepared, or to add See accompanying Accountants Report use the header/footer tab under modify report QBRA-2002: Reports > Company & Financial > Profit & Loss Standard > Modify Report > Header/Footer - Page 9 -

10 New with QuickBooks 99 was a statement of cash flow report. The net effect of net income, operating, financing, and investing activities is available in a standard QuickBooks report. To assign the accounts to the appropriate section of the report, click on the Classify Cash button at the upper right hand corner of the report, or choose Edit > Preferences > Reports & Graphs > Company Preferences > Classify Cash. QBRA-2002: Reports > Company & Financial > Statement of Cash Flows Modify Reports New with version 2001, report modification options have been included as one button on the report. In earlier versions, various buttons were present for Header/Footer, Customize, Filter, and the like. Below is an explanation of the tabs for the modify button. Customizing the Display Tab Based on the report that has been created, there are appropriate options for customizing the way the report is displayed. Customizing reports permits you to add or delete columns - Page 10 -

11 as well as change between cash and accrual. Depending on the report, you will have different customizing options. One of the most extensive is the transaction detail report that is illustrated below. QBRA-2002: Reports > Custom Transaction Detail Report > Total By: Account List TRICK: The default on most reports is the name column. For disbursement transactions, this will be the payee if customer:job costing is not used; however, it will be the customer:job name if one has been assigned. In the latter case, the payee will be the source name. To add that column, place a checkmark before the source name field in the customize screen. TRICK: Another feature that can be useful in modifying a report is the advanced button. Open the report, click on modify report and on the display tab click on advanced then in use. This is especially helpful when filtering a general ledger report for only specific accounts. The advantage over a transaction report is that the beginning and ending balances are on the report. The disadvantage if the in use choice is not marked is that all the accounts that have not been chosen still appear on the report without any detail. - Page 11 -

12 Filters Tab QuickBooks has a detailed approach to filtering. Once you have determined the criteria for a specific report, the filters will permit you to choose only those that fit your criteria. TIP: If there are certain accounts that always seem to have coding challenges, an exception report may make the review more efficient (start with a transaction report, filter it for the problem accounts, and memorize the report for future use.) QBRA-2002: Reports > Accountant & Taxes > Transaction Detail Report by Account > Modify Report > Filters Header/Footer Tab This tab is used to modify the header and footer of the report. New with version 2001 is the default option of the time the report was prepared, as well as the basis. When working on various revisions, this can be very helpful to determine the most recent draft. It is also useful if management reports are prepared on the Accrual Basis and the tax returns are prepared on the Cash Basis. - Page 12 -

13 QBRA-2002: Reports > Accountant & Taxes > Transaction Detail Report by Account > Modify Report > Header/Footer - Page 13 -

14 Fonts & Numbers Tab Report Basics - QuickBooks Accounting Software The fonts can be changed for the various types of information contained on the report. Other presentation type changes can also be made on this tab. QBRA-2002: Reports > Accountant & Taxes > Transaction Detail Report by Account > Modify Report > Fonts & Numbers Reordering Columns New with version 2001 was the ability to change the order that columns appear on some reports. To use this feature, create a report then place the cursor over the column heading. If it is possible to change the order on that particular report, the cursor will change into a hand. Hold down the mouse button and you can move the column to the new location. - Page 14 -

15 Memorizing Report Basics - QuickBooks Accounting Software Once a report is modified as desired, memorizing it will save it for future use. What is memorized is the format, not the data. The default name used when the memorize button is clicked will be the name in the header. This name can be changed or modified TIP: Use the date descriptions rather than custom dates before memorizing the report to improve efficiency in the future. Miscellaneous Tips and Tricks TIP: List reports can be customized to serve as telephone lists or price lists. Some ways that may prove helpful include a resale number list for customers, a tax identification number list for vendors, a birthday list for employees, etc. QBRA-2002: Reports > Lists - Page 15 -

16 TIP: When printing a check register for bill payments, you will only see Accounts Payable. To see how the bills are actually coded, print a check detail report. QBRA-2002: Reports > Banking > Check Detail TRICK: To create a report to see the gross profit percentage for any given item, the type must be an inventory part. QBRA-2002: Reports > Sales > Sales By Item Summary TIP: Depending on the procedures followed in performing the period end work for your clients, the Trial Balance Report may be a helpful report to print to a file for use in a spreadsheet program as a working trial balance. QBRA-2002: Reports > Accountant & Taxes > Trial Balance TIP: When printing a General Ledger, click the fit to one page wide box on the print screen. This will permit the software to re-size the font to fit on the one page without the last column of amounts printing on a separate page. Be sure, however, to also change the page orientation to landscape or the re-sizing may make the font too small to read. QBRA-2002: Reports > Accountant & Taxes > General Ledger TIP: The journal report will show all of the journal entries for all of the transactions for a particular period. QBRA-2002: Reports > Accountant & Taxes > Journal TIP: If you wish to only see the general journal entries (as opposed to invoices, bills, etc.) then choose the journal option from the transaction type pull down menu in the filter window. QBRA-2002: Reports > Accountant & Taxes > Journal > Modify Report > Filters > Transaction Type > Journal TIP: The cash flow forecast report is based on the due dates for Accounts Receivable and Accounts Payable transaction, QuickBooks will create an anticipated receipts and expenditure schedule for cash flow planning purposes. QBRA-2002: Reports > Company & Financial > Cash Flow Forecast - Page 16 -

17 Creating a Cash Disbursements Journal A standard report in many accounting software packages is a cash disbursement journal. QuickBooks does not have a report in the format that accountants are used to working with. The check detail report works well for seeing the actual expense codes on a check that has been created through the Accounts Payable system, but that report does not, by default, have a total of all checks for the period. Below are the instructions to create a custom report that has a total of all disbursements. 1. Choose Reports > Custom Transaction Detail Report. 2. Click on the Modify Report button. 3. On the Display tab, change the date range to the appropriate period and the sort by to Num. 4. Scroll to the bottom of the columns list and add a check mark next to credit, and remove the check marks next to account, class, amount and balance. 5. On the Filters tab, choose the appropriate bank account. You will notice the date range as the same as number 3 above 6. Next, click on the transaction type, and from the pull down list, choose selected transaction types. This creates a pop out box of all the transaction types. Place a check mark next to the cash disbursement types (i.e. check, bill payment, sales tax payment, paycheck, payroll liability check.) 7. Choose the Header/Footer Tab and change the report title. 8. Click on OK. TIP: To create a cash receipts journal, follow the same steps as above except choose debit in step 4 and deposits, sales receipt, and payment in step 6. TIP: If both a cash receipts and cash receipts journal are desired, it is possible to change step 4 to be both debit and credit (i.e. a separate column for receipts and disbursements) and all transactions will be fine for step 6. Creating an Invoice Register The purpose of this exercise is to illustrate the ease of creating a report within the software. The report shown here is an invoice register, not a standard QuickBooks report but rather one that has been adapted from a transaction detail report by account. Below are the steps to create the report. 1. Choose Reports > Custom Transaction Detail Report. 2. Click on the Modify report button at the top of the report, then the filter tab (second from left). 3. Account: Accounts Receivable 4. Date: All (the very first option on the pull down list) 5. Transaction Type: Invoice (to include credit memos and invoices on the same report, choose selected transaction types and place a checkmark before each of the types) 6. Click on OK. This will give you a report with all of the information, but it is not in invoice number order. In addition, there are columns on the report that are not necessary. To clean it up, continue with the following steps. 7. Remove Memo, Class, Clr, Split, and Balance columns by placing the cursor on the diamond to the right of the column that is to be removed. Hold down the right mouse button, and move the dotted line past the diamond on the right. Use the same procedure to make the name column wider so that the customer and job names are both visible. - Page 17 -

18 8. Click on the box to the right of the Total By label and choose total only (the first option at the top of the pull down list). This will provide a secondary sort option. Choose Sort By: Document number. 9. To change the report title, choose the modify button then the Header/Footer tab. The second line down will be the report title. Graphs With the click of a button, QuickBooks will create a full color graph to show what has been happening in the business financially. These reports can the be customized to create useful tools for management purposes, which often give a quick, snap shot view of the results. QBRA-2002: Reports > Company & Financial > Income & Expense Graph - Page 18 -