Since I first learned about recording transactions, I have always dated a transaction on the date I wrote the check; similarly, when entering credit card transactions, I use the date that I actually used the credit card.
Recently, however, I was having a discussion with a friend and he said that he uses the bank or credit card date of entry for all of his transactions. I thought this was strange - probably because it is different from the method I've used all of my life. Perhaps I am the odd one... or perhaps it's merely a matter of choice, so I thought I'd bring it up to this list to see what people think about it. >From (a very brief) research about this topic, perhaps this is the difference between cash basis accounting and accrual accounting? After thinking about it for a bit, one issue with using the date that the transactions occur is the reports, especially if one has repeating transactions. For example, if the satellite service bill is paid each month on the 28th, using my method, I record a transaction on the 28th. My friend will see it on the 29th or 30th, but if the weekend or holiday hits just right, it can be the 1st or 2nd before he sees it. In the long run everything should be the same, but the monthly sub-totals can look odd. Checks can be even worse... someone may hang onto one for weeks. I'd appreciate thoughts on the topic. -- _________________________________ Richard Losey rlo...@gmail.com Micah 6:8 _______________________________________________ gnucash-user mailing list gnucash-user@gnucash.org To update your subscription preferences or to unsubscribe: https://lists.gnucash.org/mailman/listinfo/gnucash-user ----- Please remember to CC this list on all your replies. You can do this by using Reply-To-List or Reply-All.
