About adding property and debt accounts
To get a complete picture of your net worth and to assist with long-term planning, be sure to add property and liability accounts.
Property accounts track the value of anything you own; debt accounts track the total amounts that you owe. In some cases, you have a matching property and debt. For example, if you take out a loan to buy a home, you'd track the home value in a property account and the mortgage in a debt. When you do this, Quicken can calculate the total impact on your net worth.
Which property and debt accounts should I add?
| Quicken account | Real-world account |
|---|---|
House(Tell me how) | The value of your homeEnter the purchase date, the purchase price, and the balance adjustments for any capital improvements or market value changes. You can use the Zestimate feature (This feature is not available in Canada) to get the current estimated current value of your home. When you sell the property, the selling price minus the purchase price represents the gain. NotesWhen you add a house account, Quicken also helps you add a loan to track the payment schedule, principal, and interest. When prompted, click Yes and follow the on-screen instructions. |
Vehicle(Tell me how) | The value of a car, truck, or motor vehicleIf this is a business vehicle, you can add balance adjustments to calculate depreciation. NotesWhen you add a Vehicle account, Quicken can also help you add a loan to track the payment schedule, principal, and interest. Just click Yes when you're prompted. |
Other Asset | Things you ownUse this for valuable assets such as art, collectibles, or capital equipment. As a rule of thumb, decide whether you consider the item to be truly an investment or a saleable item. Do you consider its value and appreciation to be part of your overall net worth? If you use it in your business, do you intend to track its depreciation? |
Loan(Tell me how) | Money you oweQuicken uses a loan account, which tracks the payment schedule, principal, and interest. Except in the case of a House or Vehicle account, it's usually simpler to add the loan first, and then add the asset account when Quicken prompts you to do so. NotesTo track a standard line of credit (not a home equity line of credit), use the credit card account type. |
Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC)(Tell me how) | Your line of creditQuicken uses a special loan account. It can be linked to your House account to better reflect your net equity and helps you track a changing balance of withdrawals and payments. |
Other Liability | Other money you oweUse this account type to track informal liabilities, for example, the money you have borrowed from friends or family that does not have an interest rate or term associated with it. |