Troubleshooting: Bank reconciliations

If the link to undo your bank reconciliation does not appear in the bank reconciliation form:

• A bank reconciliation has not been completed for this bank account yet.

• The last bank reconciliation for this bank account has been undone. Up until July 2013, Buildium only remembered the most recent bank reconciliation for each bank account. The software remembers everything now.

  If you're looking for an older report, it may not be available.

In both cases, the bank account will need to be reconciled.

If the bank reconciliation report page does not offer a report to download:

• A bank reconciliation has not been completed for this bank account yet.

• The last bank reconciliation for this bank account has been undone.

  It is recommended to print or save each reconciliation report immediately after reconciling your bank account.

In both cases, the bank account will need to be reconciled.

Buildium can completely remove all of the reconciliation flags from a specific bank account. This removes all of the Rs from your bank account transactions and gives a blank slate. Once this is done, you can reconcile the bank account from the beginning.

You can undo the most recent reconciliation performed. This option is not available when there is a pending reconciliation.

1. Go to the Accounting menu.
2. Go to the Banking page.
3. Click the name of the bank account for which you'd like to correct.
4. Click the Reconciliations tab.
5. Click Undo last reconciliation.

Don't worry. All of the transactions remain in your bank account. Only their reconciled status is removed.

Up until July 2013, Buildium only remembered the most recent bank reconciliation for each bank account. If you'd like to erase all bank reconciliations from a bank account but cannot access reconciliations completed before July 2013, submit a support ticket. Include the name of the bank account, account number. Mention that you understand that you'll be starting from the beginning.

This occurs when:

The bank reconciliation includes a transaction it shouldn't. Examples include a duplicate transaction or a transaction that has a typo in it. It's also possible that something is missing from the selected transactions.

To fix, compare the total payments and total deposits in Buildium to the numbers on your bank statement. If they do not match, figure out what's off and try again.

The cleared balance when you began the bank reconciliation is incorrect. To fix:

1. Run a bank reconciliation report for the bank account to get the most recent report.

2. Write down the report's Ending balance.

   

3. Open the reconciliation window for the bank account.
4. Uncheck all of the transactions in your bank reconciliation so that none of the current transactions affect the cleared balance calculation.

5. Compare the report's Ending balance to the window's cleared balance.

   

   If they match, great!

   If they do not match, then that means that a previously reconciled bank transaction has been edited or deleted. Use the audit log to figure out what was changed.

   The audit log has an option to only view reconciled transactions. Using this filter will make short work of your search.

   When you find the transaction, change it back to what it was when it was reconciled the first time. If the transaction was deleted, add it back in using the guidance below (I deleted a reconciled transaction and need to put it back). Remember, there may be more than one transaction that adds up to the total discrepancy.

It is always best to get the bank reconciliation correct to the penny. Sometimes, it isn't worth the time and energy to find why you're a few cents off in your reconciliation. If this situation applies to you, here's how to work around the bank reconciliation validation.

Warning! This is an advanced accounting concept and could lead to trouble on reports, filing taxes, or in audits. Check with your accountant before proceeding.

1. Write down the variance between your cleared balance and your bank statement ending balance.

   For example, my cleared balance is $0.43 cents larger than my bank statement ending balance.

2. Add an other bank transaction to your bank account for that amount. Use an expense account for this explicit purpose.

   We recommend you create an expense account on your chart of accounts called Reconciliation expense for this purpose.

   If your difference amount is positive, have the other bank transaction increase the bank account balance.

   If your difference amount is negative, have the other bank transaction decrease the bank account balance.

   Which property? It depends. Most of the time, you'll want to keep the reconciliation expense as a general office expense. Check with your accountant.

3. Reopen your bank reconciliation and include the reconciliation expense to finish it.

For example: January's bank reconciliation included three transactions: check #101, check #102, and a January 15th's bank deposit. Check #101 was accidentally deleted. You've added it back, but it no longer has the R reconciliation flag in the bank transactions nor is it included in your cleared balance.

To add the transaction back into the cleared balance, there are a few options:

1. If the recreated transaction is from your most recent bank reconciliation, undo it and then complete that reconciliation a second time.

2. Recreate the transaction and include it in your next month's reconciliation.

3. This option will cause the transaction to appear in two bank reconciliations. If you choose this option, you should leave a note for your auditor. It's best if you only follow the guidance in this step once in a while.

4. Recreate the transaction and complete a bank reconciliation that only includes this single transaction. Then, complete the next bank reconciliation as normal.

5. This option requires that you create an adjusted ending balance to complete the interim bank reconciliation. Once this interim reconciliation is complete, Buildium will mark the transaction as reconciled and include it in all future bank reconciliation cleared balances.

6. This requires a bit more work, but it's a cleaner option in the long term. The transaction that you're adding back into the bank reconciliation is probably included in a previously saved report. By handing its recreating as a one-off, it will not be included in the second report; thus avoiding a conversation with an auditor.

To note, as of February 2014, to prevent errors on past and future reconciliations, the amounts of reconciled transactions cannot be edited.

Individual details, like dates, properties, and accounts can be changed.

Why is this? Buildium's cleared balance calculation relies on the reconciled transactions in your bank account. Changes here have an immediate impact.

For example, let's say that you completed January's bank reconciliation without issue. This report included check #101 to Hank the Handyman for $450 for "repairs". He cashed the check for $450 and it appears on your real world bank statement.

If you change the memo from "repairs" to "big repairs," no harm is done. February's cleared balance will find a $450 check and the opening balance should match January's closing balance.

If you change the amount from $450 to $350, then we have a problem. Your bank cashed check #101 for the higher amount and now your Buildium bank account doesn't match the real world. When you begin February's reconciliation, Buildium will find a check for $350. Even if everything else in February's reconciliation matches, you'll still be off by $100 because the opening cleared balance was incorrect.

To change the amount, delete or void a reconciled transaction, you will need to unreconcile the bank account to the statement period in which the transaction occurred.

There's a limit to how many transactions Buildium can show at once, and 5000 records is pretty much our cap. Web browsers can only process information so quickly, so even though we serve up the data immediately, it takes a really long time for your computer to recognize that.

This message doesn't happen often. If it does, it's usually because you're catching up on several past bank reconciliations. Once you've caught up, you won't see this message again.

If you see this message, you have two options:

1. If the message appears when you're beginning your bank reconciliation, it's because there are too many transactions leading up to your statement end date. Reconcile an earlier month instead.

   For example, if you were hoping to reconcile a year's worth of data all at once, try reconciling it month by month instead.

2. If the message appears next to the Show all uncleared transactions, it's because there are too many transactions in the future, after your statement end date. To fix this, either assume your missing transaction is truly missing and add it into Buildium with the proper date or save your work, find your transaction, change it, and then resume.

   Adding a new transaction makes the most sense when you're pretty sure it wasn't entered in the first place. If you later find that this transaction does exist, delete it.

   Saving your work makes the most sense when you're sure the transaction must be in Buildium somewhere.