Account Balance Rebates

Hi DSG1:

An account balance rebate can be processed either as miscellaneous revenue, or as an expense contra - say against your bank fees.  So there will be a debit to your bank account, and a credit either to revenue or expense.

Hope this helps!

That sounds logical and easy but I am not sure how to do it. I am new to Quickbooks and do not have an accounting background. I need to know the steps to follow to complete the rebate. I went to the NEW button and do not even see the word DEBIT mentioned. I know how to do a credit card credit but am not sure how to do a credit to revenue or expense.  I checked the categories that appear when I click on the transaction in the banking tab and the terms - miscellaneous revenue and expense contra do not show in my list of options. Maybe those terms are somewhere else but I am not sure where to find them.

Thanks for your clear and concise answer but I need a lot more details before I can complete the task. I appreciate your patience!

Hi DSG1,

Being able to track your transactions is a integral part of effective bookkeeping. QuickBooks Online makes it easy to create new accounts and track different balances and incomes. I'd be happy to help point you in the right direction.

To enter this balance into the correct accounts I'd recommend using a journal entry. This allows you to add and remove funds the correct accounts. You can follow the steps in this article on how to make a journal entry. As for what accounts to use I suggest contacting an accountant as they are trained on how to make these entries. If you don't have an accountant, don't worry we have your back. You can find one in your area by going to: My Accountant>Find a pro to help. 

Hope this helped.

Hi DSG1:

The terms are general accounting terms.  Much in the same way as your sales would be recorded to a revenue account (Sales), this type of transaction can be recorded to a revenue account.  Miscellaneous revenue would be useful since this isn't directly related to your normal sales operations.

Similarly, a "contra expense" just means that you're recording  it to your expense account, but in the reverse sign that you normally would to offset or reduce the expense.

Which particular account you use is somewhat of a judgement call, based on it's "materiality" or how much of an impact or how often or how large the number is.  If it's a one-time thing that you don't anticipate happening with any regularity, posting it against your expense account probably makes more sense.  On the other hand if you were considering "prompt payment" discounts for example that hopefully would happen more regularly through good management of your payables, and having that recorded as a revenue can show how often or how much  you've saved by virtue of taking advantage (and can also be used to incentivize your AP department).

I hope this helps!