Ability to Create One-Time Bills That Are Not Recurring (edited)

cfoxcvg
cfoxcvg Member ✭✭✭✭
edited March 7 in Feature Requests
Would like to create upcoming bills or one time bills without having to create them as a reoccurring event. I know there is a work around but I think there should be an option just to create a one time bill without needing to set an end date.
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28 votes

Completed · Last Updated

You can create a one-time Recurring Transaction, or mark an existing transaction as a one-time bill!

Comments

  • Coach Natalie
    Coach Natalie Administrator, Moderator admin
    Hello @cfoxcvg,

    Thank you for posting this suggestion to the Community!

    You may consider checking out the Planned Spending section of the Spending Plan to create a one time expense, as this may also meet some of your needs! You can find more details regarding the Spending Plan, including Planned Spending, available here. :smile:

    Thank you,

    Coach Natalie
  • cfoxcvg
    cfoxcvg Member ✭✭✭✭
    Hello @cfoxcvg,

    Thank you for posting this suggestion to the Community!

    You may consider checking out the Planned Spending section of the Spending Plan to create a one time expense, as this may also meet some of your needs! You can find more details regarding the Spending Plan, including Planned Spending, available here. :smile:

    Thank you,

    Coach Natalie
    Issue with this is that you can not set a due date. I have many bills that are not planned and do not have any set date or are one time bills. I would like to enter a bill once I receive it so I have visibility for planning and so I do not forget or overlook it but I definitely need to enter a due date so I do note go over. Currently I am entering a reoccurring transaction then I end the series the day after the due date. It works but it is very cumbersome in my opinion. 
  • JoelW
    JoelW Member
    edited September 2021
    I want to second the ability to add a one time bill. Planned spending doesn't get counted in projections. If you enter a future transaction it automatically enters into the register on the due date and this is not ideal because the actual bill may post a day or 2 later. My current work around is to create a monthly bill reminder but set the end date 25 days out. So it only posts once. 
  • +1 this. I got a bill from the dentist. Would like to add it to my bills so that I can plan for it; it's obviously not a recurring bill, but it would be good to either be able to save up to pay it or to have it allotted in my available funds
  • +1 - Create a New Manual Bill with a due date that doesn't automatically post to the register, but can then be linked to a completed transaction from the register.  (Similar to how it works in the desktop Quicken app)  and it appears on the cash flow forecast based on the entered due date.  
  • SRC54
    SRC54 Member ✭✭✭✭

    I noticed this Mark as One Time Bill, and I wanted to say Kudos to everyone. It is fast and easy and puts it in your monthly bills. It is a nifty feature, and I will use it a lot. It's good for irregular doctor visit, one-time yard work, repairs, plumbers, etc. Or irregular expenses like a new dishwasher.

    Steve
    Quicken Simplifi Since 2021
    MS Money/Quicken Classic Since 1991

  • Coach Natalie
    Coach Natalie Administrator, Moderator admin

    Thank you @SRC54!

    You're absolutely right — you can create one-time Bills in Simplifi that are not Recurring Transactions. This option is available on both the Simplifi Web App and the Mobile App from the transaction directly:

    When using this option, the item in question will be placed in the ‘Bills and income section’ of the Spending Plan as a one-time instance for just that one month.

    Let us know if anyone has any questions!

    -Coach Natalie

  • JaminZ22
    JaminZ22 Unconfirmed, Member

    While the "Mark as one-time bill" is great for transactions that have already cleared, I would still like to see an option to add an upcoming one-time bill through the bills section of the spending plan so that those can be shown in the upcoming/cash flow views.

    For example, I have a hosptial bill that is due on xx date. I want to add that to my spending plan as soon as I receive the bill, but the transaction isn't going to show up until the payment date (in my case the due date). The current workaround, which has been outlined before, is to set a recurring bill and have it end on the due date or the day after - but this isn't as clean looking as it could be.

  • ajbopp
    ajbopp Superuser ✭✭✭✭
    edited March 2023

    If you go to the Transactions page and click the + icon, you can enter a transaction that is pending and will be synced when the actual bill is paid for out of the account you specified. It is also accounted for in the Cash Flow. Is there anything about this that does not do what you want?

    Anthony Bopp
    Simplifi User Since July 2022
    Money talks. But all my paycheck ever says is goodbye

  • RobWilk
    RobWilk Superuser ✭✭✭✭✭

    @ajbopp Sometimes the transaction won't happen without manual intervention, and i'd need a transaction reminder ("like" a recurring transaction, but one time) to remind me to make the payment.

    Here's an example, let's say i like keeping my credit card balance at $0. So, I charge something and enter the charge on Simplifi. Now, I've got a small issue, and that's that my credit card won't let me issue a payment for the charge until the charge clears (might be 2 business days). So I've got to wait two days to make the payment. If I just enter a future transaction - it will look to me in simplifi like i made the payment when i didn't. If it were like a recurring reminder, I could be reminded to make the payment without the payment being auto applied to my simplifi balance.

    This is different to but similar to what @JaminZ22 gave as an example.

    This might fall under 'more recurring transaction frequencies' where a frequency option might be "Only Once" which i believe quicken had.

    -Rob


    Rob Wilkens

  • ajbopp
    ajbopp Superuser ✭✭✭✭

    I had a rough night sleeping so forgive me if I'm not understanding the difficulty here.

    If I enter a future transaction for a $100 credit card payment from the Transactions page, the transaction is in a Pending status until it is matched with an actual transaction downloaded from the bank. Simplify won't make it look like you've already made the transaction - it will remind you that in two days you're planning to make the payment.

    Another option that you may feel more comfortable with is when you enter a single transaction, you have the option to "MARK AS BILL OR RECURRING." If you do this, one of the options is to mark it as a one-time bill, which will be added to the bills in your spending plan without setting up any recurring payments.

    Anthony Bopp
    Simplifi User Since July 2022
    Money talks. But all my paycheck ever says is goodbye

  • RobWilk
    RobWilk Superuser ✭✭✭✭✭

    As i understand it:

    -Mark as bill or recurring primarily affects how the existing transaciton shows in the spending plan (i.e. other spending vs. bills)

    -A 'future' transaction, will result in me seeing on that day that the credit card balance is -zero- so i won't bother looking for "Pending" transactions. That is, i don't like pending transactions to be pending prior to them being scheduled. If I see a pending transaction, I might believe i already scheduled the payment.

    However, were it an option:

    -A scheduled one time bill will be reflected in cash flow chart but will not result in the displayed current balance changing.


    Rob Wilkens

  • ajbopp
    ajbopp Superuser ✭✭✭✭

    @RobWilk Where in the app is it going to show you the credit card balance is zero when the scheduled day is today? I don't know of anywhere in the app that it will display a specific balance for an account until that balance has been downloaded from the bank.

    Anthony Bopp
    Simplifi User Since July 2022
    Money talks. But all my paycheck ever says is goodbye

  • RobWilk
    RobWilk Superuser ✭✭✭✭✭

    My accounts download a balance from the bank and subtract manual transactions to get the balance it shows. When a future dated unmatched transaction is current, it is now a manual one.


    Rob Wilkens

  • Coach Natalie
    Coach Natalie Administrator, Moderator admin
    edited March 2023

    Hello All,

    Although the ability to mark an existing transaction as a one-time bill exists in Simplifi, I do see how having this option in other instances would also be helpful, such as when creating a manual Recurring Series, or for future-dated transactions. I'm going to reopen this topic for voting, as it sounds like we have users who would prefer some additional options here. 🙂

    -Coach Natalie

  • den4ps
    den4ps Member

    Reading this is making me feel kind of crazy… I came here looking for a way to add a single, one-time bill into my bills list with a due date. There are people actually arguing that it doesn't make sense or "how does that help" or whatever. We are just asking for a way to enter a reminder to pay a one-time bill that hasn't occurred yet, with the amount and due date, in the bills list.

    Until very recently I used Mint. In Mint, when I got a doctor bill, a tax bill, or any other random, singular, non-regularly-recurring bill in the mail, I would go to the bills section and "Add an offline bill", select the due date, then select "One Time" for the frequency. When I paid it, I went to the bill, clicked "Mark as paid" and entered the date paid (i.e. "Today") and that was it. The bill disappeared into my history as a paid bill. End of story. I just needed it listed in the bills section with the due date so I didn't forget to pay it. I am pretty sure this is all people are asking here, including me and OP, and perhaps the functionality is so basic its purpose seems to be escaping people?

    I'm not sure how marking an existing transaction as a one-time bill helps, or is even relevant, because the transaction in question only happens one time, for a specific amount, on a specific date, and therefore hasn't happened yet to mark as a one time bill… These apps are becoming so connected and presumptuous that they are losing extremely basic functionality in the name of progress, it seems.

    I actually like Simplifi, and it meets most of my needs better than any other service out there, including CK, Monarch, Rocket, Copilot, and however many other ones there are floating around now. It doesn't beat Mint, but I guess I don't have a choice in the matter for much longer.

    For now I am creating a "recurring" "series" for a one time bill, with the "Next Date" and the "End Date" set to the same date. I have just started using the service, so it remains to be seen if the bill will simply disappear into my history (which is what I want it to do) when I link it to a matching transaction (FWIW, I'd rather just have a button to mark it paid, like in Mint).

  • ajbopp
    ajbopp Superuser ✭✭✭✭

    @den4ps when you go to the Transactions page, you have the option to create a one- time transaction

    Anthony Bopp
    Simplifi User Since July 2022
    Money talks. But all my paycheck ever says is goodbye

  • den4ps
    den4ps Member

    But I don't want to add a transaction directly to the register or transaction list. I want to enter a bill that is due in the future and attach a reminder to it - which is really the whole point here, manual bill reminders - then when I pay it, mark it paid and have it entered into the transaction list when it happens.

    There appear to be multiple ways to make it so a manual transaction will ultimately appear in my transaction record as "paid", but none of them actually deliver the feature OP, me, and probably many others want, which is a system to enter a unique bill, see it as DUE in the future, get a reminder, pay it, then manually mark it as paid. I don't think we are asking for something odd or being obstinate — this is a feature in multiple other products, even Intuit products, including Mint and Quicken desktop.

  • ajbopp
    ajbopp Superuser ✭✭✭✭
    edited December 2023

    Ah, I get it now. I'm a little slow on the uptake in the mornings.

    Quicken is not an Intuit product.

    Anthony Bopp
    Simplifi User Since July 2022
    Money talks. But all my paycheck ever says is goodbye

  • This is actually possible. Here's the workaround:

    1. Manually create a recurring bill (for a future expected bill).
    2. Set an end date for the series that falls before the second occurrence.
    3. Boom! One-Time Bill. :)

    Since not all companies are compatible with bill connect, creating a one-time bill is valuable (specifically for monitoring cash flow) for incompatible companies when recurring amounts fluctuate on monthly basis (e.g., credit card payments).

  • I would also like to see Simplifi add the ability to enter future non-reoccurring transactions (Bills and Income) to my Spending Plan - so that I can see a complete picture of my (known) forthcoming cash-flow.

  • ajbopp
    ajbopp Superuser ✭✭✭✭

    Creating a one-time bill is possible from the Transactions page. Please note the last sentence in this post.

    From https://help.simplifimoney.com/en/articles/3625912-managing-recurring-transactions :

    You can also create a Recurring Transaction through the Transaction View:

    1. Hover over the panel on the left-hand side and select Transactions.
    2. Locate the transaction you'd like to make Recurring, hover over it, and then click the three dots at the end of it.
    3. Select Create new recurring.
    4. Ensure the pre-filled data is correct and make any changes that are needed.
    5. Click Create when done.

    When going through the Transaction View to create a Recurring Transaction, you'll be given a few different options:

    • Create new recurring – Quicken Simplifi will create a monthly Recurring Transaction for the same Payee, Date, Category, and Amount of the transaction; you'll be given the opportunity to make adjustments before saving.
    • Link to existing recurring –This option is useful when a downloaded transaction didn’t properly match to a Recurring Reminder. Selecting this option will allow you to link the transaction to the Reminder, and will also increase the odds that it will match correctly next time.
    • Mark as one-time bill – Marking a transaction as one-time doesn’t create a Recurring Transaction, but it does ensure that this transaction is included in the Bills total in the Spending Plan.

    Anthony Bopp
    Simplifi User Since July 2022
    Money talks. But all my paycheck ever says is goodbye

This discussion has been closed.