Adding a change order to an estimate on QB Premier Plus

Hello, @myingling13. 

You'll need to go back to the actual company file to update the estimate. After that, set up your QuickBooks to create an Accountants copy. See the following article to know more about this: 

Create an Accountant's Copy of your company file in QuickBooks Desktop. 

Check the following article to know more of what you can and can't do in Accountant's Copy: Use the Accountant's Copy. 

Also, here's more information on how to create an estimate. Then, create progress invoices from the estimate: Set up and send progress invoices in QuickBooks Desktop.

Let me know if there's anything that I can help. I'm always here to assist. Have a great rest of the day!

MaryJo

By "actual company file" you mean the original estimate created for that client or not the Accountant's copy? So, while the Accountant's copy is in use, the change order box will not show up?  Even before the Accountant's copy the Change Order box did not appear. Is there a preference setting to turn that on? 

Hello there, @myingling13.

Yes, you can change the original estimate created by your client. The option to turn on the Change Order box window is unavailable in QuickBooks. It will automatically pop up when there are changes made in the estimate.

Please the screenshot below.

I've attache this great resource that you can use for reference: Use and customize form templates.

To learn some tips and tricks on managing your QuickBooks Desktop (QBDT) software, you can check our Help articles page for reference.

You can come back in this thread if you have further questions. I’ll be more than happy to help you out.

Hello,

what do we do if the change order box does not populate?

Hi! 

We recently figured this one out at our business. We are using QB Premier. When you install QB on your computer you need to choose 'Contractor Edition' rather than 'General Business' in the set up process. This will activate added features for contractors including Change Orders. You may need to re-install QB. 

Hope that helsp! 

Hi,

Thank you for the helpful message.  However, when I make a change in QB desktop 2021 the change order box does not pop up.  What do I need to change so the change order box will pop up?

Thank you!

Hi @Knight107,

Thank you for joining the thread. 

As stated by my peers above, the Change Order window automatically appears when you make changes to an estimate. With that said, there isn't an option to enable or disable it. 

In your case, I suggest you run the Verify and Rebuild Utility tools to ensure there isn't any data corruption in your company file. 

If the issue persists, I suggest you contact our Technical Support team for further assistance. See this article for the steps: Contact QuickBooks Desktop support. It includes their hours of operation, so you know when they're available. 

Have other questions in mind about this process in QuickBooks Desktop? Post a comment below, and I'll answer it for you. 

I have to respond to this topic, because a lot of people have most of this wrong and it will lead to horrible errors.

You don't make an accountant's copy. You don't "go back" to the original file. You don't change a Template. You don't rebuild or verify. None of this is the issue.

The issue is: Desktop QB comes in many flavors. Only the Contractor Edition, an installation option for Premier and Enterprise, includes the change order function.

There is no automatic pop up of a function that doesn't exist in your Edition (flavor) of a program. QB Pro never had this function. Retail editions do not have this function.

While the Accountant Edition seems to include all functions, it is "almost all" and you can use the Accountant Edition to "toggle" to appear and act like the other editions, so Toggle to Contractor, if you use the QB Accountant Edition of Premier or Enterprise.

Sure hope that helps, and prevents more confusion.

How do you add a change order to an existing PO restricted by Accountant's Copy?

Thank you!

It's an honor to assist you today, DioChi.

I'm here to help add a change order to an Estimate with Accountant's Copy.

Since your access is restricted, you'll want to ask your accountant to remove the accountant's copy restrictions. You can share the instructions below on how to remove the Accountant's Copy Restriction

1. Go to the File menu, then select Send Company File.
2. Choose Accountant's copy, then Client Activities.
3. Select Remove Restrictions.
4. Click Yes, I want to remove the Accountant's Copy restrictions, then OK.

Then, you can start adding a change order. When you make changes to your estimates, the Add Change Order box will pop up after the Recording Transaction window appears. I'll show you some screenshots below:

This is the Recording Transaction pop-up. Just click Yes and the Add Change Order will automatically appear.

This is the Add Change Order box. Click Add to save the changes made.

You can have this article handy for more information about creating estimates in QuickBooks Desktop: Create an estimate.

Once done, you can start importing an accountant's changes. More about importing accountant's changes into your company can be found here: Import your accountant's changes into your company file in QuickBooks Desktop.

All you need to know about managing Accountant's Copy can be found in the following resources:

• Create an Accountant's Copy of your company file in QuickBooks Desktop

• Export accountant's changes

• Use the Accountant's Copy

You know where to go if you need help with managing an accountant's copy in QBDT. Have a great day!.

Thanks for your quick response - just wanted to make sure that there wasn't a work around for non-posting items restricted under Pending Accountant changes! Have a great day