Quicken For Contractors
Table of Contents

Introduction | Preview A Chapter | Back Cover

Introduction, vii

1. The Right Tool for the Job, 1

Quicken Overview, 1

Check Register, 2

Accounting Methods, 4

Budgets (Estimates), 5

Checkfree and Intuit’s Online Banking, 5

Investments, 6

Links to Tax Software, 6

Hardware and Software Considerations, 7>

Hardware, 7

Software, 8

The Role of Your Account, 9

What You Get in This Book and the Companion Diskette, 10

Custom Quicken Data Files, 10

Sample Forms and Templates, 11

 

2. Using Quicken Categories, Accounts and Classes, 13

Installing Quicken, 13

Using the Quicken Data Files, 13

Copying the Quicken Data Files, 15

Using Categories and Supercategories, 15

Types of Categories, 15

Category Lists for Quicken, 16

Working with Categories, 26

Supercategories, 32

Accounts, 35

Using Quicken’s Online Banking Features, 36

Creating New Accounts, 43

Modifying Existing Accounts, 63

Deleting Existing Accounts, 68

Classes (Jobs), 68

Creating New Classes, 69

Modifying Existing Classes, 70

Deleting Existing Classes, 71

 

3. Customizing Quicken, 73

Quicken Program Options, 75

QuickTabs Tab, 75

General Tab, 79

Settings Tab, 80

Register Options, 82

Display Tab, 82

Miscellaneous Tab, 84

QuickFill Tab, 86

Check Options, 88

Checks Tab, 88

Miscellaneous Tab, 89

QuickFill Tab, 90

Report Options, 92

Account Display, 92

Category Display, 92

Default Report Date Range, 93

Default Comparison Report Date Range, 93

Skip Create Report Prompt, 94

Use Color in Report, 94

Quick Zoom to Investment Reports, 94

Decimal Digits of the price and Shares, 94

Graph Options, 94

Use Patterns Instead of Colors, 95

Create All Graphs in Separate Windows, 95

Draw in 2D, 95

Show the Customize Bar, 95

Reminder Options, 96

Reminder Options, 96

Billminder Options, 97

Internet Connection Options, 99

Prompt me to update Quicken 98 on startup, 99

Prompt me to close my connection after XX minutes of no activity, 100

Keep my Internet connection open after updating Quicken 98, 100

Save Desktop, 100

Save Desktop on Exit, 101

Save Current Desktop, 101

Customize Iconbar, 101

New, 102

Edit, 103

Delete, 103

Reset, 103

Show Icons, 103

Show Text, 104

 

4. Entering Transactions in Quicken, 105

Writing Checks, 105

Assigning Classes, 107

Writing a Check to Pay a Job Expense, 108

Printing Checks, 110

Tracking 1099 Venders and Subcontractors, 116

Entering Deposits, 118

Customer Payment on Invoice, 118

Customer Deposits, 120

Customer Advance on Job, 121

Invoicing, 122

Entering Payroll Transactions, 122

Using Payroll Services, 123

Using Intuit’s QuickPay Plug-In, 123

Entering Payroll Transactions in Quicken, 124

Using Scheduled Transactions, 124

Creating New Scheduled Transactions, 124

Modifying an Existing Scheduled Transaction, 126

Deleting an Existing Scheduled Transaction, 126

 

5. Job Costing and Estimating with Quicken, 131

Estimating (Budgeting), 132

Setting Up a Budget, 133

Job-Cost and Budget Reports, 135

Job-Cost Reports, 135

Budget Reports, 139

 

6. Using Memorized Transactions, 143

Why Use or Create Memorized Transactions? 144

Working in the Memorized Transaction List Window, 145

Using a Memorized Transaction, 146

Memorized Transactions Included on the Companion Diskette, 147

Special Transactions, 148

Deposits, 149

Non Job Payments (NON JOB PMTS.), 152

Job Vender Payments, 153

Memorized Transactions for Payroll Functions, 157

Creating a New Memorized Transaction, 165

 

7. Using Memorized Reports, 169

Memorized Report Basics, 169

Memorized Reports Included in the Quicken Data Files, 172

1099 Detail Report (Vender 1099 checks), 175

Budget Report-Job___(Budget-vs-Acctual), 177

Cash Flow Report by Month(Summary by Category), 178

Income & Expense by Quarter (Summary by Category), 180

Job Detail Report-Job___(Job Income_Expense), 181

Job Summary Report-Job___(Activity by Month), 183

Jobs Summary (Activity by Job), 185

P/R Expense Report (Summary by Month), 186

P/R Withholding Report (Summary by Month), 188

Payroll Employee Report (Wages_withholding), 189

Payroll Expense Report (Summary by Employee), 191

Payroll Tax Report, 192

Transaction History by Name (All transactions), 194

Unprinted Checks-Detail by Job (Job unprinted checks), 195

Unprinted Checks-Detail by Vendor (All unprinted checks), 197

Unprinted Checks-Summary by Vendor (All unprinted checks), 198

Wage & Burden Allocation (Detail by Category), 199

Creating a New Memorized Report, 201

 

8. End-of-Month Procedures, 203

Reconcile the Checkbook(s), 203

Ensure Accuracy of Data Entry, 208

Printing Financial Reports, 208

Profit & Loss Statement, 210

Profit & Loss Comparison Report, 212

Balance Sheet, 214

Job-Cost Reports, 214

Back Up Your Data File, 215

Working with an Accountant, 216

 

9. Backing Up Your Quicken Files, 217

Backup Strategies, 218

Archiving Your Quicken Files, 219

Archiving Data Files, 220

Starting a New Year, 220

Conclusion, 221

Index, 223

Introduction | Preview A Chapter | Back Cover