Navigating Client Co-Mingling Issues in QuickBooks: A Guide for New Bookkeepers
Recently, a friend faced a predicament after her assistant/bookkeeper retired, leaving her to transition from handwritten financial records to QuickBooks for the first time. I took on the opportunity to help, keen to learn the software myself. However, I quickly realized the complexity of the situation we were dealing with.
The client, whom I’ll refer to as Liz, has been using her business account for various personal expenses — including mortgage payments, utility bills, IRA contributions, gym memberships, and cable services. Until now, these transactions were simply recorded in a manual ledger, which made it all the more challenging to identify the financial discrepancies in her accounts.
For context, Liz runs a gardening and landscaping business, and her monthly expenses include:
- Bob’s Pest Control: $1,000
- Jill’s Fertilizing: $600
- Insurance Company (Home & Auto): $3,000
- Ed’s Nursery: $2,000
- Chase Bank (Mortgage): $3,500
- Comcast: $200
- AT&T: $200
- SIMPLE IRA: $4,000
As I began entering these records into QuickBooks, it became apparent that Liz’s business account was being used for both legitimate business expenses and significant personal costs. While I can easily categorize the expenses related to pest control, fertilizing, and purchasing supplies as business-related, the inclusion of mortgage payments, utilities, and even a gym membership raised a flag regarding co-mingling of funds.
A further inquiry into the SIMPLE IRA contributions revealed that these were personal contributions made from the business account, complicating the situation even more.
As a new bookkeeper, I found myself pondering the best course of action to rectify this issue. Should I simply categorize these personal expenses as “Owner Draws” in QuickBooks? Although I tried to discuss the implications of this with Liz and her retiring admin, they reacted with confusion, seemingly unaware of the potential financial repercussions of their co-mingling practice. They were accustomed to a hands-off method, recording everything in their ledger and passing it off to their accountant without question.
This raises an important question for new bookkeepers in a similar position: Am I overreacting to this situation? Is it indeed a legitimate concern? And if so, what’s the best method to account for these mixed transactions in QuickBooks?
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