AppFolio bank reconciliation won't balance: every cause and how to fix it
AppFolio bank reconciliation won't balance: every cause and how to fix it
AppFolio's reconciliation works on a triple tie-out. Three numbers have to match exactly: the Statement Ending Balance you enter manually, the Cleared Balance from the items you check off, and the Adjusted Cash Balance (ACB) that the system calculates. If all three don't match, the reconciliation won't close. Here's what each mismatch type means and where to find the problem.
The ACB formula is what trips most people up. AppFolio calculates it as: property balances, minus unreconciled deposits, minus post-period receipts, plus uncleared checks, plus uncleared ACH batches, plus voided post-period checks. Every one of those variables is a potential source of an imbalance.
When the Statement Ending Balance and Cleared Balance are off, the issue is almost always in what you checked off. Either an item was cleared that shouldn't have been, or something that cleared at the bank wasn't marked in AppFolio. Check your bank feed sync first. AppFolio auto-matches deposits by amount and date within four days, checks by amount and check number, and other items by exact amount and exact date. Journal entries are never auto-matched, so if you have any JEs they need to be cleared manually.
When the ACB itself doesn't match your bank statement, the issue is usually one of these: a transaction was backdated into a previously reconciled period, a bank adjustment was used incorrectly, or a receipt was reversed after the period closed. AppFolio has a nine-step ACB troubleshooting process built into the system. Start with the Bank Reconciliation Diagnostic report under Reports. It surfaces backdated and edited transactions immediately. From there, check bank adjustments. These should only ever be used for bank errors or pre-go-live uncleared items. Using them for bank fees, interest income, or transfers is a common mistake that throws the ACB off permanently because they affect the bank balance only, not the property balance.
If the diagnostic report doesn't surface anything obvious, unreconcile the previous period and check whether the beginning balance was edited. An edited beginning balance is one of the harder ones to catch because it doesn't show up as a transaction.
The most common single cause of a recurring ACB mismatch is a receipt that was voided after the period was already reconciled. AppFolio creates a reversal entry for the void, but if the original period is closed and the reversal posts to the current period, the two amounts live in different reconciliation windows. The current period will be off by exactly that amount until you find it.
Work the diagnostic report in order. Most imbalances resolve by step four.
AppFolio bank reconciliation won't balance: every cause and how to fix it
AppFolio's reconciliation works on a triple tie-out. Three numbers have to match exactly: the Statement Ending Balance you enter manually, the Cleared Balance from the items you check off, and the Adjusted Cash Balance (ACB) that the system calculates. If all three don't match, the reconciliation won't close. Here's what each mismatch type means and where to find the problem.
The ACB formula is what trips most people up. AppFolio calculates it as: property balances, minus unreconciled deposits, minus post-period receipts, plus uncleared checks, plus uncleared ACH batches, plus voided post-period checks. Every one of those variables is a potential source of an imbalance.
When the Statement Ending Balance and Cleared Balance are off, the issue is almost always in what you checked off. Either an item was cleared that shouldn't have been, or something that cleared at the bank wasn't marked in AppFolio. Check your bank feed sync first. AppFolio auto-matches deposits by amount and date within four days, checks by amount and check number, and other items by exact amount and exact date. Journal entries are never auto-matched, so if you have any JEs they need to be cleared manually.
When the ACB itself doesn't match your bank statement, the issue is usually one of these: a transaction was backdated into a previously reconciled period, a bank adjustment was used incorrectly, or a receipt was reversed after the period closed. AppFolio has a nine-step ACB troubleshooting process built into the system. Start with the Bank Reconciliation Diagnostic report under Reports. It surfaces backdated and edited transactions immediately. From there, check bank adjustments. These should only ever be used for bank errors or pre-go-live uncleared items. Using them for bank fees, interest income, or transfers is a common mistake that throws the ACB off permanently because they affect the bank balance only, not the property balance.
If the diagnostic report doesn't surface anything obvious, unreconcile the previous period and check whether the beginning balance was edited. An edited beginning balance is one of the harder ones to catch because it doesn't show up as a transaction.
The most common single cause of a recurring ACB mismatch is a receipt that was voided after the period was already reconciled. AppFolio creates a reversal entry for the void, but if the original period is closed and the reversal posts to the current period, the two amounts live in different reconciliation windows. The current period will be off by exactly that amount until you find it.
Work the diagnostic report in order. Most imbalances resolve by step four.
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