Using a negative balance account

My bank combined my line-of-credit (LOC) debt with my checking account (in order to reduce the amount of interest I’m incurring on the LOC). How should I set up my accounts?

For example, if my LOC is for $10,000 and I’ve used $6000 of the LOC as debt, this would show -$6000, showing I’m overdrawn by $6K. My checking account, if I kept it separate, let’s say has $2000 in it. When my bank combined the accounts, my account would be showing -$4000 (i.e., I’m only $4K overdrawn because I’ve “paid back” a portion of the debt I owe.

Hi Cheryl - Thanks for your question!

Even though your bank has combined your checking and LOC in real life, I would suggest tracking them separately in Goodbudget. You’d keep your Checking Account listed as such, and then track your LOC as a Debt Account with a starting balance set to what you currently owe (6000).

Any withdrawals you make against your LOC can be recorded as a ‘New Charge’ against your LOC Debt Account. Then, you’d record an Income for the same amount to your Checking Account, so your withdrawal is available for you to spend.

Let me know if you have questions about this!