Microsoft Money/Quicken.

wotnoshoeseh

:confused: Hi all,
Not sure if this is the place for this thread, but, if not, perhaps somebody could either move the thread or let me know where to start it.

Basically I was interested in perhaps investing in one of the money management software programs such as those above. Having no experience of using these I had a few questions about them, before parting with my "hard earned".

I am hoping to draw on all of you MoneySavers' experience, and get enough feedback, to either go with the idea or kick it into touch.

My questions are:-

1. Are they worth the outlay? :beer:
2. What are the main advantages of them? :j
3. What are the main drawbacks/disadvantages? :mad:
4. How do they help with saving/managing your money?

Any feedback that you can give me will be gratefully received.

Many thanks,
wotnoshoeseh.

themaccas

I use microsoft money, got from PC world for about £12. I really like it I log all my income and expenditure but it also keeps track of your loans, cc's and other debts. Some credit card and banking sites are compatible with MS money and allow you to download your statements direct on to your MS money. It also keeps track of your spending catagories for example I spent £217 on petrol/diesel last month (!) and every month will show you your budget report telling you exactly where your money has gone. It has made me a bit retentive but I love it! It has certainly made me aware of my expenses dfar more than my spending diary used to. The only pain is remembering to list all the debit transactions although you can set regular payments ie bank loans, utilities etc to appear automatically. It was worth the money I paid for it

Sleekit

I used to use Quicken but switched to MS Money about 2 years ago when I realised Quicken were slowly withdrawing from the UK market.

Quite frankly, I don't know how anyone copes without it!!! I get paid 4-weekly so it is a godsend when it comes to managing my direct debits and standing orders, and knowing what I actually have to spend for the next 4 weeks. I can see all my account totals with one glance, and it tells me when I've overspent my budget or am near a limit. If I want to know how much my car cost me last year the information is only a couple of clicks away, and I can try out different scenarios without too much fuss and hassle (what will the interest on my cc be if I pay off an extra £50 this month...?)

I also use Pocket Money on my PDA which synchronises with my computer. It's my fancy version of a spending diary with the added bonus that I can see all my accounts.

What I would caution, though, is that the more information you give it the more useful it becomes. This can sometimes put off people starting to use it for the first time as they can't readily "see" how handy it is. There should be a free trial version kicking around the net, download it and play around - make up some dummy accounts and see how you like it as you can always start a new file.

Little_Miss_Scrimper

I couldn't live without MS money. I got mine free with my laptop but if I had to pay £12 for it like themaccas I still would. It's so handy. All my direct debits & SO's are set up so all I have to add are my other outgoings/incomings. I can see straight away what money I owe and savings I have and also what I am spending on so I can cut back on. It is shocking to see how much you can spend on 1 catagory over a period of time!! 1 of the main shockers was to see how much in cash withdrawals I made in a 3 month period but didn't know what the money went on. So that stopped me fritting my money away so easily!

dudleyboy

Microsoft Money really is worth it's weight in gold. I've been using it for the last 18 months and, as Sleekit says, I couldn't cope without it now! I agree with all of the above and will quickly say:

1. Are they worth the outlay? - yes providing you shop around and get it at a good price (true MSE style).

2. What are the main advantages of them? - know how much is coming in, what's going out, what % of money is being spent on what, historical spending, forecasts, budgeting, reminders, a variety of income/spending comparisons and monthly reports.

3. What are the main drawbacks/disadvantages? - a pain in the bum to set up (seriously it can take a couple of hours!), and an initially overwhelming interface... but that's it! once you're set up there's no looking back... and will save you plenty of time (and money) in the months ahead. i guess the only real drawback is seeing how much is actually spent on bills in true technicolour pie charts(!)... but the initial shock makes you only more determined to be an MSE.

4. How do they help with saving/managing your money? - you can see how much is actually being spent on different categories (eg cash withdrawals, groceries, petrol, utilities) and where you could perhaps cut back. allows you to compare all your accounts in one place (kinda like Egg Money Manager) and seeing where money can be shifted around to work the hardest for you.

I really can't think of a bad word against it other than the time it takes to initially set it up.

System

Does anyone know of a free MS Money type programme I can download?

Johnhowell

Those that use MS Money - which version do you have? I understand that a recent version was very poor when compared to previous version. Have they resolved this issue?

Thinking of changing from Quicken - which i could not live without!

Regards,
John

Little_Miss_Scrimper

Mines a 2002 edition, version 10.00. Not sure if that's a recent version or if I need to upgrade but it does everything I need so I am not complaining!

jaybee

I love MS Money! My partner hates it! Somehow it really works well for me (I'm the one who has all the Direct Debits etc.) and I'm a bit of a control freak where these things are concerned (could never rely on him to bay bills etc). I guess it all comes down to how organised you are with entering everything and making it work for you. Some peeps can do this admirably with a notebook and pencil (my partner is one of them!!!)

wotnoshoeseh

:T Thanks to all of you for your feedback. :T

The only negative thing I've heard is that if you buy the latest version of Money (2005 I think) the internet banking section of it only works until Sept. 2007, and then you have to upgrade the system either via download or buy a new one. Oh, and the best price I can get it for is £15 on Play.com!!

Does anyone know about this limited validity of the internet banking side of things?
Also does anyone know where I can buy it cheaper?

And again like "lennymfo" is there a free trial UK version available for download? There's a US version but this won't work in the UK!
Cheers again,
wotnoshoeseh. :beer:

j-baby-scotland

I've used many financial applications in the line of work & have held off getting one for home (manage with various spreadsheets & don't have lots of cash to spare).
Have scoured the web for free downloads of similar but all are time barred (ie/ input data, use for three months or so, then... buy or lose access). That's the best price I've come across for MS Money at Play.com, ta!

Wonder how much the upgrade would be in 2007? Any ideas?