Tracking Reimburseable Expenses in Monarch Money
When it comes to managing personal finances, tracking reimbursable expenses can be a challenge. Monarch Money, a budgeting software, provides users with various options to track and manage reimbursable expenses and income. In this article, we will explore different scenarios and methods for tracking reimbursable expenses in Monarch Money.
Scenario 1: Sending Venmo or Zelle Payments
When sending Venmo or Zelle payments back and forth for each expense, it is essential to categorize reimbursements as the same category as the original charge. For instance, if the original charge was categorized as "Groceries", the reimbursement should also be categorized as "Groceries". This is crucial because categorizing reimbursements as income will inflate expenses and affect end-of-year data.
Importance of Connecting Venmo to Monarch
If you don't connect Venmo to Monarch, it is vital to send reimbursements from Venmo to your bank account as soon as possible. This ensures accurate categorization and avoids lump payments. However, if you do connect Venmo to Monarch, ignore this advice and follow the video on handling Venmo transactions.
Scenario 2: Rent and Roommate Expenses
When splitting expenses with a roommate and receiving reimbursements, categorize them as the same category as the original charge. For example, if the original charge was categorized as "Rent", the reimbursement should also be categorized as "Rent". This is because reimbursements are not income and should not be tracked as such.
Alternative Method for Long-Term Committed Partners
If you're sending Venmo or Zelle payments back and forth with a long-term committed partner for every little expense, consider an alternative method for separating bills and expenses. This can help maintain independence and avoid the hassle of sending payments back and forth.
Additional Tips
If you're using Venmo not connected to Monarch, make sure to send reimbursements to your bank account as soon as possible. If you're using Venmo connected to Monarch, ignore the above advice and follow the video on handling Venmo transactions.
Handling Reimbursement Income in Monarch
Creating a Separate Income Category
Instead of splitting reimbursements into multiple categories, create a separate income category for reimbursement income. This can be especially helpful if you receive reimbursements from the same person multiple times a week or month. This method is optional, and you can choose to split expenses into different categories if you prefer.
Splitting Reimbursements
If you do decide to split expenses, you can assign each reimbursement to a specific category (e.g., rent, utilities, groceries). However, this method can be tedious and time-consuming, especially if you're handling recurring reimbursements. You can't split transactions while they're pending, which can make it difficult to keep track of expenses.
Creating an Income Category for Reimbursement Income
If you don't want to split expenses, you can create an income category for reimbursement income. This means that you'll be recognizing the full amount of the reimbursement as income, even if it's being used for specific expenses. This method can be easier to manage, but it does mean that your expenses will be inflated. You'll need to make sure that you're not mixing this reimbursement income with other sources of reimbursement income.
Tracking Reimbursement Income
It's essential to keep track of your reimbursement income to ensure that it's being used correctly and that the split is still equitable. Make sure to separate reimbursement income from other income categories and track it separately. You can use this method to review your expenses at the end of the year and make sure that the reimbursement income is being used correctly.
Common Challenges
The hardest part about managing reimbursement income in Monarch might be keeping track of multiple transactions and splits. Make sure to create a separate income category for each reimbursement income source to avoid confusion. It's also important to review your expenses regularly to ensure that the reimbursement income is being used correctly.
Creating a Reimbursable Expenses Category
Create a new category in your budgeting software for reimbursable expenses. This category should include all charges that you should be getting reimbursed for. If your reimbursement process is automated and streamlined, you can keep this category towards the bottom of your budget. However, if you need to manually apply for reimbursement, it's best to put this category at the top of your budget so it's a priority.
Creating a Reimbursable Income Category
Create a new category in your budgeting software for reimbursable income. This category should include every time you receive a reimbursement for expenses. If your paychecks are lumped in with your reimbursements, consider splitting them out to ensure you don't mentally consider your paycheck larger than it actually is. Be aware that there may be a time lag between when you incur an expense and when you receive reimbursement, which can affect your budgeting.
Managing Reimbursable Expenses and Income
If you have a significant time lag between when you incur an expense and when you receive reimbursement, consider using a strategy to track expenses and income. Create a category for reimbursable expenses and track the income and expenses separately. If you're living paycheck to paycheck, it may be difficult to manage reimbursable expenses and income, and you may need to adjust your budgeting strategy accordingly. Consider excluding the reimbursable expenses category from your budget to simplify your budgeting process, but still track the expenses and income separately.
Notes
It's essential to track reimbursable expenses and income separately to ensure you're accurately accounting for these transactions. Consider splitting out reimbursable income from your paycheck to ensure you're not mentally considering your paycheck larger than it actually is. Be aware that reimbursable expenses can be difficult to manage if you're living paycheck to paycheck, and you may need to adjust your budgeting strategy accordingly.
Handling Reimbursement Expenses in Monarch
Option 1: Hiding Transactions from the Budget
You can hide individual transactions from your budget without affecting the cash flow report. This is useful when you have an expense that is not in your budget, but you still want to track it and make sure you get a reimbursement. The hidden transaction will not affect the cash flow report, but you can still see it in the budget as a budgeted expense.
Option 2: Categorizing Reimbursement Expenses
You can categorize the reimbursement as the same category as the expense, so all the reimbursable expenses are labeled as "Reimbursable Expenses". This makes it easy to track the reimbursements and see how much you still need to receive. The cash flow report will only show the net amount of expenses, so you won't see the inflated income. This is useful when you have roommates or are doing expenses for work and need to manually enter them and track down the funds.
Pros and Cons of Each Option
Hiding transactions:
- Convenient for tracking individual expenses
- Can be hidden from the cash flow report
- But also hides the expense from the budget, which may not be desirable
Categorizing reimbursement expenses:
- Easy to track reimbursements and see how much is still owed
- Can be useful for tracking down funds
- But may not be suitable for all situations, and you may still want to hide some transactions
Importance of Accurate Tracking
Accurate tracking of expenses and reimbursements is essential for making informed decisions about your personal finances. It's useful to have a clear picture of your actual expenses and income to make sure everything is equitable and squared away. Monarch is a tool that can help you do this, and it's essential to use it in a way that makes sense for you and your financial situation.
Conclusion
Handling reimbursement expenses in Monarch requires some creativity and flexibility. You can use either of the options above, or a combination of both, to track your expenses and reimbursements. The key is to find a system that works for you and helps you make informed decisions about your personal finances.