VERY simple spreadsheet to track a single bank account.

Korkyb

eskbanker said:

And going back to the point about recalculating balances rather than using those provided by the bank, the fact that the sheet isn't ordered chronologically means that the final column doesn't give an accurate representation of the balance on the date in question when using the DIY approach, which may or may not be an issue, depending on how the data will be used....

That is true.

The point of the exercise is really just to give her confidence that she has a good buffer / account balance as she has been a bit reluctant to spend (even though she is financially comfortable she was worried about whether she had enough funds to buy herself new pyjamas last week).

She feels unable to navigate the actions needed to log into her account online and would prefer to keep a (rough) track on her money this way.

I'm not sure how long she will be able to keep getting paper statements but we will cross that bridge when we come to it.

My wife & I visit regularly and will help her log in to her account online just to make sure all is good.

To give a bit of context her husband (my father in law) passed away a few weeks ago and this is how he monitored their finances - she never got involved but wants to keep it going the way he did.

His spreadsheet was similar to my own effort but with no "automation" so everything was done with a calculator which meant if he made a mistake 2 months ago....  

Korkyb

eskbanker said:

Korkyb said:

She struggles to access her online banking which is why she wants to keep track of her finances on a simple spreadsheet (she reconciles the amounts using paper bank statements which she hopes she will be able to continue receiving as long as possible).

As I said PoA is in place so I really cant see the bank having any issues. (although I'm sure one could argue that "they might".

Indeed, so why take the risk - if she needs (or just wants) assistance with her financial affairs then it sounds like it would be worth activating the LPA with the bank, as that's what it's there for.

That's a good idea and one that we will discuss with her when we next see her.

She is very keen for us to keep her right financially but we don't want to disempower her or have her dependant on us before it is really required.

Would sorting things out with the bank with regards to PoA mean that we could have overwatch from a distance without completely taking over from her but able to step in if any concerns arise?

eskbanker

Korkyb said:

eskbanker said:

Korkyb said:

She struggles to access her online banking which is why she wants to keep track of her finances on a simple spreadsheet (she reconciles the amounts using paper bank statements which she hopes she will be able to continue receiving as long as possible).

As I said PoA is in place so I really cant see the bank having any issues. (although I'm sure one could argue that "they might".

Indeed, so why take the risk - if she needs (or just wants) assistance with her financial affairs then it sounds like it would be worth activating the LPA with the bank, as that's what it's there for.

That's a good idea and one that we will discuss with her when we next see her.

She is very keen for us to keep her right financially but we don't want to disempower her or have her dependant on us before it is really required.

Would sorting things out with the bank with regards to PoA mean that we could have overwatch from a distance without completely taking over from her but able to step in if any concerns arise?

Yes, LPA effectively gives the attorney(s) access to accounts as well as the donor, i.e. the donor retains their rights and doesn't lose anything.

Korkyb

Actually just had a chat to my other half and appears that the PoA has already been sorted out with the bank although I think we need to check with the bank exactly how it works in practice as it was done a couple of years ago pre-emptively.

I guess she is right when she says I don't listen to a word she says 

MACKEM99

My wife says I don't listen ....or something like that.😃

Sea_Shell

Do you need the spreadsheet to account for known DDs etc going forwards?

How do you change a "running total" simple spreadsheet to include next month's bills without having to manually include them each month.

I know how I do it...but I'd not describe it as simple.