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T
timbrockett
December 27, 2024
Question

Invoices or Statements - which is better for Quarterly Service Fees?

  • December 27, 2024
  • 1 reply
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We run a Homeowners Association and are using Quickbooks Desktop 2020. Assessments are $480.00 a year and may be paid in full every January or spread over 4 quarters with payments of $120.00 each.  We currently send statements to all members in January. Those who decide to pay in full never see another statement until the following January. But those who pay quarterly must be sent statements every quarter. We would like to add a $5.00 service fee to people who pay quarterly. It is designed to be an inducement for them to pay in full in January and cover the extra costs we incur processing quarterly payments. I know how to offer a discount for early payment, but that would reward everyone who already pays in full in January.

 

My question is, how can we automatically get Quickbooks Desktop to include the $5.00 fee and account for it? Should we switch to invoices, or can we accomplish this with Statements?

Any and all advice is appreciated. If we need 3rd party software, that could work too.

 

Many Thanks for any and all replies.

Best Regards,

Tim

1 reply

K
KimberlyS
December 27, 2024

You can create separate invoices to add quarterly service fees on your customer statements, Tim. I'll be glad to discuss this further to keep you on the right path.

 

In QuickBooks Desktop, a statement provides summaries of a customer's account by listing recent invoices, credit memos, and received payments. The option to automatically add a service fee to statements is currently unavailable.

 

Therefore, you need to create separate invoices to account for the service fee for each customer who decides to pay their balances quarterly. It will be included when you create and send your customer statements.

 

To begin with, let's make a service fee item. Here's how:

 

  1. Head to the Lists menu, then pick Item List.
  2. Select the Item dropdown, then click New.
  3. Choose either the Service or Non-inventory Part for the item type.
  4. Enter the name of your item and fill out the remaining fields.
  5. Click OK.

 

 

After that, proceed to the steps outlined in this material for guidance on producing an invoice for the quarterly service fees: Create an invoice in QuickBooks Desktop.

 

Alternatively, consider utilizing a third-party application to collect and manage customer service fees. Visit this link to explore your options:  Apps for QuickBooks Desktop.

 

Moreover, ensure that you document customer payments as soon as they settle their balances. It will associate the payments with the corresponding invoices, helping to maintain accurate account balances for reporting purposes.

 

We’re always ready to assist you with additional concerns regarding service fees and statements in QuickBooks Desktop. Please tag us in your reply on this thread to notify us in the Community.

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