User Support Forum

I have just started using this software for the first time, and I know nothing about accounting.
It seems to me that there is a bit of a mess left behind for me to deal with.
We are using PCP11.55, and will probably be upgrading to PCP12 soon, but it can't come soon enough.

From reading some of this forum, it looks like I need to close out July 2017 so I can start working in Jan 2019. There are some posted transactions that were never reconciled that date back to 2016 and 2017, how do I get rid of these? If I leave them and we upgrade to v12 will I be able to re-open those months to delete them?

I was in exactly your position a year ago. Believe me, the accounting is the hard part, not the use of PowerChurch. I have spent a year learning accounting rules and how to apply them in Powerchurch. Upgrading to V 12 is not a silver bullet, but will allow you to have more months open. I don't know what kind of mess you have, but your best bet may be to restart the accounting module.

PowerChurch is a very powerfull church tool however you should have some accounting knowledge. When I became church treasurer 14 years ago I went to a community college and took the Accounting 101 class to refresh my basic accounting knowledge. The class was designed more for a business then a church however some introductory class would help you understand basic accounting. PowerChurch does offer online training video's. I have never taken them so don't know if one would help you. Good Luck.

neac wrote:I have just started using this software for the first time, and I know nothing about accounting.
It seems to me that there is a bit of a mess left behind for me to deal with.
We are using PCP11.55, and will probably be upgrading to PCP12 soon, but it can't come soon enough.

From reading some of this forum, it looks like I need to close out July 2017 so I can start working in Jan 2019. There are some posted transactions that were never reconciled that date back to 2016 and 2017, how do I get rid of these? If I leave them and we upgrade to v12 will I be able to re-open those months to delete them?

In v11.55 you can have up to 18 months open, this does mean that you need to close out July 2017 before working in Jan 2019.

About the unreconciled transactions, were they checks, deposits, something of that sort that never showed up on the Bank Statement so they could be cleared out?

If they were checks just not cleared, should be able to REVERSE them. The system will create the proper transaction, then when you post them, you can then clear the reversal (which should appear under deposits) and the original transaction under checks. This cancels them both.

I'm assuming also that these transaction keep showing up on the reconciliation report as 'unreconciled', right?

That said, you may have to wait until you install v12 in order to do this, but you can open those closed months to reverse those entries.

About knowing accounting, the Powerchurch video traning series Intro to Accounting is a very good overview about double entry accounting. The other related accounting videos are also well worth the time and cost as they do delve into the various accounting modules (Funds Accounting, Accounts Payable, etc) and how they work.

You don't need to have an accounting background, I would say the intro does do a good job at giving you what do you need for the program.

I agree with Neil. The Power Church training videos are excellent. They are also priced very cost-effectively. One of the best sources I have found for information is this forum.

NeilZ wrote: About the unreconciled transactions, were they checks, deposits, something of that sort that never showed up on the Bank Statement so they could be cleared out?

If they were checks just not cleared, should be able to REVERSE them. The system will create the proper transaction, then when you post them, you can then clear the reversal (which should appear under deposits) and the original transaction under checks. This cancels them both.

I'm assuming also that these transaction keep showing up on the reconciliation report as 'unreconciled', right?

Thanks for the response, the transactions in question were checks. The previous treasurer tried to void them in November 2018, but they never showed up to be reconciled after everything was posted, so they couldn't be cleared.

However, I have now cleared them out.

I now have a problem caused by clearing these old transactions, I only discovered it just today.
I don't remember what I did to clear the transactions but there are some VOID transactions now posted in January and are causing my income and expense report to show negative values.

neac wrote:I now have a problem caused by clearing these old transactions, I only discovered it just today.
I don't remember what I did to clear the transactions but there are some VOID transactions now posted in January and are causing my income and expense report to show negative values.

Its very possible that the voids were posted in January. In the VOID transaction you should have set the date to be either the date of the original transction that you voided or, if that was impossible because you're running an older version of PCPlus (pre v12) the month was closed, to December 31st of last year as an 'end-of-year' transaction.

You can still recover from this.

1. Do a Powerchurch backup of the Accounting files using the PCPlus backup utility under the Utilities menu.
2. REVERSE the posted void transactions in Fund Accounting. ENTER a new transaction in Funds Accounting using the exact account and amounts in that VOID, but set the date as described above (the original entry's date or Dec 31,2018). Enter a complete explanation of why this is being done in the REVERSAL transaction and the NEW transaction notes for audit purposed.
3. Post all the transactions.

Check the reports. They should now be correct.

You will probably have to check off these transaction at your next bank statement reconciliation as you'll see them in both the deposit and checks area.

The transactions all ended up on the cheque side, nothing went to the deposit side

neac wrote:The transactions all ended up on the cheque side, nothing went to the deposit side

Were these all deposit transactions then?

no, the original transactions from 2016 and 2017 were bill payments and cheques that were never reconciled nor voided at the end of the year.

the void transactions created in Jan 2019 were on the deposit side, which is how I was able to reconcile them to the original transactions.

the reversed void transactions ended up on the cheque side, as did the transactions i created as per your instructions above.

neac wrote:no, the original transactions from 2016 and 2017 were bill payments and cheques that were never reconciled nor voided at the end of the year.

the void transactions created in Jan 2019 were on the deposit side, which is how I was able to reconcile them to the original transactions.

the reversed void transactions ended up on the cheque side, as did the transactions i created as per your instructions above.

OK reversed VOIDs will show up under checks and other subtractions. The other transactions should have shown up under Deposits. Did you exactly copy the original VOID transactions (not the reversals) as I noted, and only change the DATE to Dec 31, 2018 ??

I trust you did a backup before you posted so you can back out without having to do another set of reversals.

Yes, I did a backup. I accidentally copied the original transactions instead of the void transactions
It's all good now, thanks for the help

neac wrote:Yes, I did a backup. I accidentally copied the original transactions instead of the void transactions
It's all good now, thanks for the help

Yep .. that's what it sounded like. Glad to hear its all straightened out now.