Simplifi program counts 401k and other paycheck deductions as expenses (edited)

chicago89

HI,

Today I spilt the paycheck so that I have all the deductions (tax/401k and medical insurance) . In the spend plan I see them as expenses. What I am trying to figure out is what I actually need each month so that I can start saving towards an emergency fund. However the Simplifi program counts the 401k and other paycheck deductions as expenses. How do I see what my spend is so that I get an idea of how much I need to put in my emergency fund?

DannyB

Hi @chicago89

First of all, is it absolutely needed in your situation to track all your payroll deductions?

Second, if it is, did you see this support article about tracking payroll deductions?

How to Track Pre-Deposit Paycheck Deductions | Quicken Simplifi Help Center

A couple of thoughts:

• If you have done the entries correctly (i.e. one of the splits is your gross pay before any deductions followed by all the actual deductions) then the amount you see in the Spending Plan/Income after bills & savings/Income will show your gross pay but only your net pay will be reflected in the Spending Plan and in your "available."
  • Example: I have one deduction I add to one of my incomes and this is how it works out for me: Net income (deposit transaction amount = $1992.00; I open the transaction detail page and split the transaction as first split =+$2177.00; second split = $185.00. The amount of the transaction remains the same, but in the Spending plan this income transaction now shows as +$2177. The $185.00 deduction shows up in my Spending Plan as a Planned Spending expense because of the way I have categorized it and added a planned spending category for this particular deduction.
• You should be able to select a transfer category for your 401(k) deduction which is handled differently in QS then actual expenses.
  • You can use the built in "Transfer" category.
  • If you have connected your 401(k) account to QS, it should be listed as a sub-category of Transfer, and you can select the actual account.
  • If you don't have your 401(k)-account connected but you want a record of those contributions, you can create a manual savings or investment account which will then be listed as a sub-category of Transfers.

All-in-all, if you have used the method described in the support article and you have included all your recurring bills, subscriptions, and have set realistic amounts for your Planned Spending categories, your "available" should give you a fairly accurate picture of what you have left to save.

If you set up a savings goal for your emergency fund that you include in your Spending Plan, the monthly contribution amount will also be deducted from your income and change the "available" for the month.