Do You Balance Your Checkbook?

OK, confession time, do you balance your checkbook? Do you wait until the money runs out or do you wait until the end of the year? Or are you a weekly or monthly balancing type?

I confess that I really hate having to balance my checkbook. Not that it is as scary these days as it was several years ago when I became a single parent of three and there was always more month than money. When my kids were home, I only had to say that I was balancing the checkbook and they knew to give me a wide berth.

In those days, I didn’t have a computer, not that having a computer equals a new abiding love for the task, in fact, that is a love affair that is destined to never happen. But, in those days it was a daily, rather than a weekly or monthly chore, just to keep a tight rein on my finances. Instead of the computer, I used a columnar accounting book and noted each and every receipt. Not the sexiest way to keep track of finances, but it did the job.

As time progressed and I was able to invest in a computer, I used a spreadsheet instead of hand writing all of the entries. By that time I was up to the weekly balancing method. Because online banking wasn’t “the thing” to do then, I still relied on hoarding receipts and entering each one. While this method is still a good means of keeping track of expenses, it required dedication to keep it up to date. You really do not want to have to sit down and manually enter a month’s worth of receipts. There needs to be a limit to the amount of torture that is self-inflicted.

The account book or spreadsheet method to balance your checkbook is fairly easy to do with just a bit of practice. If you would like a bit of a guide on how to do it, check out my post on Using A Home Budget To Reduce Debt. Here I explain more on this process, where to get a free spreadsheet program, and give you a spreadsheet-formatting template you can download to help you get started.

As ornery as my mood gets when it is time to balance my checkbook, it sure makes income tax time a whole lot easier. In addition to the spreadsheet, which can be printed out at year-end for a paper record, I also have a 2″ binder that I store the major bills in. A good 3-hole punch and a few dividers makes this easy to do. You notice all of these items are readily available at your local office supply store and fairly inexpensive.

Tight budgets demand that you pay close attention to money going out. It is only by doing so that you are able to spot wasteful patterns and it serves as a constant reminder when you are tempted to spend money that you really shouldn’t.

As time progressed I moved to using software instead of spreadsheets to manage my checkbook. I really like using Quicken Deluxe. I have used this software for a number of years now. It gives you the ability to balance your checkbook quickly and easily compared to the other two methods.

Some advantages are:

• The ability to download transactions from your bank account to your Quicken software.
• Better organization using expense categories.
• Create a savings section without needing another bank account.
• Instant access to tax related expense totals
• Less chance of time consuming errors

Quicken Deluxe helps you set budgeting and savings goals, while allowing you the ability to see where your finances are at, at a given point in time. If you use Tax Turbo, you can export information directly, another tax time advantage. You may have guessed that tax time isn’t one of my favorite chores either.

Whichever method you choose when it comes time to balance your checkbook, your finances will benefit from the added attention they are given and it may help you weather this chore easier.

Get Quicken Deluxe Here!

Warmest regards,

SherryD