QuickBooks Tip #24 - Adding a New Vehicle to Track

Here’s how to add a new vehicle in QuickBooks to allow mileage tracking.
To track mileage for a vehicle, you must add it to the Vehicle list.

If you already have the Enter Vehicle Mileage window open, you can Quick Add a vehicle by clicking "Add New" on the Vehicle dropdown list.

• Go to the Company menu and click Enter Vehicle Mileage.  
• In the Enter Vehicle Mileage window, click Vehicle List.
• Click the Vehicle menu and choose New.
• Enter a name for the vehicle and an optional description.
• The vehicle name might be the model and year of the car, the license number, or a specific number that you've given to a vehicle.
• Click OK.

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QuickBooks Tip #23 - The Importance of Tracking Mileage

Here’s why Tracking vehicle mileages can be important:

 

Many small business owners miss out on deducting their business-related mileage. By tracking your vehicle mileage, you can enter, sort, and print lists of your vehicles and the mileage you've driven for work-related tasks. You can use this information for your tax deductions and for billing your customers.

 

Limitations: You cannot use this feature to reimburse employees or vendors for mileage. You cannot track specific vehicle expenses, such as gas, tolls, etc. with this feature. However, you can track these types of expenses by entering bills for them as the expenses are incurred by your employees. Also, if you converted your data from a Quicken file, your vehicle mileage information does not transfer to QuickBooks.

 

In general, you can use one of the following for figuring out your vehicle mileage expenses:

- Standard mileage rate
- Actual expenses

Important: Consult with your tax advisor or accountant to determine if you can deduct the costs of operating and maintaining your vehicle and which method you should use.

• Go to the Company menu and click Enter Vehicle Mileage.  
• Select the vehicle (or add a new vehicle) for which you want to enter a mileage record.
• Enter the start and end dates for the trip.
• Enter the mileage from the odometer start and end readings. QuickBooks will calculate the total mileage for you, based on these numbers.
• (Optional) If you plan to bill a customer, select the Billable checkbox.
• If you selected to bill a customer for the mileage, click the Customer: Job, Item, and Class (if class tracking is turned on and it is applicable to this record) drop-down lists and choose the appropriate items.
• Save your mileage record.

For more QuickBooks Tips, explore http://bit.ly/TipSeries. If you have any questions about this tip or any other tips, please email Marketing@CoverRossiter.com or call 302-656-6632. Visit our website at www.CoverRossiter.com/ for more information about our firm and its services.

Credit Card Reward Programs

With the economy the way it is today, every little bit helps.  So look to something that you most likely use-the credit card!  Reward programs have become a common feature with credit issuers.  They have a wide variety of benefits and can be easily found.  All it takes is a little research to find the perfect credit card for you and your family.

The most popular type of reward card is the cash back card.  These cards reward you for using them with cash back incentives.  With many cards, the return is between one and five percent of your total purchases.  Credit cards with cash incentives usually require a “good” to “excellent” credit rating for approval.  Most of these cards offer higher payouts for spending at certain places, such as supermarkets or at the gas pumps.  Usually there are caps on these accelerated rewards and they can vary significantly, so be aware of those caps when looking for a cash reward card.
A couple of other popular reward cards are the points reward cards and travel credit cards.  Points reward credit cards feature the ability to earn reward points for card purchases.  Reward points can be redeemed for a variety of things including merchandise, gift cards or cash back.   The travel credit cards offer airline or hotel rewards.  You can earn frequent flyer miles or rewards points when you travel or when you spend.  The miles or points can be redeemed for airline discounts, free flights, or free nights at hotels.  If you’re a frequent flyer, an airline or travel credit card could help you save on travel costs.

Whatever credit card you choose, keep in mind that additional fees may be tacked on, such as annual fees, late fees or interest charges.   Make sure the rewards outweigh the expense of having the card.
And make sure to pay off your credit card balance on a monthly basis so that you don’t incur any interest charges!

If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact:
Jan Snow
302-656-6632
JSnow@CoverRossiter.com

QuickBooks Tip #22 - Mileage Charges for Customers

QuickBooks Tip #22 - Setting up mileage charges for customers in QuickBooks.
If you plan to charge your customers for your mileage expenses, you must do the following:

• Create a service item or an 'other charge' item for the mileage expense. You can use either item type, depending on how you like to set up your expenses in QuickBooks.
• When you set up either item, you can:
• Set a fixed rate to charge your customers, such as for a fixed delivery fee
• Leave the rate blank if you will charge varying fees for a reimbursable expense, such as only charging the actual mileage expense.

For more QuickBooks Tips, explore http://bit.ly/TipSeries. If you have any questions about this tip or any other tips, please email Marketing@CoverRossiter.com or call 302-656-6632. Visit our website at www.CoverRossiter.com/ for more information about our firm and its services.

QuickBooks Tip #21 - Assessing an Overdue Balance

Here’s how to Clear the asterisk (*) next to a Customer’s name so you can assess finance charges for overdue balance.

In the Assess Finance Charges window, customers and jobs marked with an asterisk (*) have credits in the form of payments or credit memos that you haven't yet applied to an invoice or statement charge. The overdue balance displayed in the window does not reflect these credits. You need to apply the existing credits before assessing finance charges on overdue balances.

• Go to the Customers menu and click Receive Payments.
• Select the customer or job against whose balance you want to apply the credits.
• Click Discount & Credits. (Make sure the customer's payment is marked in the detail area of the form.)
• Save the payment.
• If the customer still has an outstanding balance, return to the Assess Finance Charges window to enter the finance charges.

For more QuickBooks Tips, explore http://bit.ly/TipSeries. If you have any questions about this tip or any other tips, please email Marketing@CoverRossiter.com or call 302-656-6632. Visit our website at www.CoverRossiter.com/ for more information about our firm and its services.

QuickBooks Tip #20 - Using Statement Charge to Assess Finance Charges

If  you are using the Statement Charge feature in QuickBooks and need to assess finance charges for past due customers balances, here’s how to do it:

•    When you assess finance charges, QuickBooks creates an invoice for each customer's finance charge and increases the accounts receivable for that customer.
•    If you use billing statements, don't print the finance charge invoice that QuickBooks creates. When you send your next statement after assessing finance charges, the finance charges will be reflected on the statement along with any other statement charges.
•    It is critical when entering statement charges in the register that you set a due date for the charge. Without the due date the statement charge will not access a finance charges or age the statement from the current status on an Accounts Receivable Aging Report.
•    When you assess finance charges, QuickBooks creates an invoice for each charge.

Step #1: To set up QuickBooks to assess finance charges. Only the QuickBooks Administrator can do this.

Open the finance charge preferences.
•    Go to the Edit menu and click Preferences.
•    In the Preferences window, click Finance Charge in the list on the left.
•    Click the Company Preferences tab.

•    Enter your annual interest rate, minimum finance charge, and grace period.
•    Enter the name of the account you use to track income from finance charges. Usually, this is an income account.
•    (Optional) If you don't want QuickBooks to assess finance charges on overdue finance charges, clear the checkbox for assessing overdue finance charges.

Important: Laws vary about whether you can charge interest on overdue interest payments. Confirm with the appropriate jurisdiction that you are in compliance with that jurisdiction's lending laws.
•    Indicate the date (due date or invoice/billed date) that you want QuickBooks to calculate finance charges from.
What these two dates mean.
•    Due date: Starts the day the invoice or statement is due.
For example, if a customer is 5 days overdue on an invoice that was due in 30 days, QuickBooks assesses finance charges on the 5 overdue days, but not the original 30 days.
•    Transaction date: Starts the day you wrote the invoice or statement.
For example, if a customer is 5 days overdue on an invoice that was due in 30 days, QuickBooks assesses finance charges on the full 35 days (the 30 days to pay plus the 5 overdue days).
(Optional) To be able to print all your finance charge invoices in a single operation, select the Mark finance charge invoices as To be printed checkbox.
•    If you send statements, leave this checkbox cleared. QuickBooks will include the finance charges on the next statement to the customer.
•    Click OK.

Step #2: Set up Associate Payment Terms with Customers
•    Click Customer Center.
•    Double-click the customer you want to apply the terms to.
•    Click the Additional Info tab and enter the terms you want to apply.

These terms will always be associated with the customer and will automatically fill in whenever you create a sales form for this customer.

Step #3: Assess Finance Charges.

Go to the Customers menu and click Assess Finance Charges. 

•    Select the customers and jobs for which you want to assess finance charges.
o    To select an individual customer or job, click in the Assess column opposite the customer or job name.
o    To select all the customers and jobs listed, click Mark All.
o    To clear everything you've selected, click Unmark All.

Important: Customers and jobs marked with an asterisk (*) have credits in the form of payments or credit memos that you have not yet applied to an invoice. The overdue balance shown in the Assess Finance Charges window does not reflect these credits.

•    (Optional) Change finance charge amounts by typing over the amounts shown in the Fin. Charge column.
•    To change the interest rate, click Settings and enter the new rate.
•    (Optional) If you plan to print the finance charge invoices to send to customers, select the Mark invoices to be printed checkbox.
•    If you send statements, leave this checkbox cleared. The finance charges will be included the next time you print statements.
•    Click Assess Charges.


For more QuickBooks Tips, explore http://bit.ly/TipSeries. If you have any questions about this tip or any other tips, please email Marketing@CoverRossiter.com or call 302-656-6632. Visit our website at www.CoverRossiter.com/ for more information about our firm and its services.