So the Process of Converting Finances Over to GnuCash is Different

So here I am, half way through the process of converting my Financial information to GnuCash.  GnuCash is a double entry bookkeeping system that is free, has a very active community, and has been known to be used for Business, Side Business, Personal, and Retirement financial tracking.  Two of the things about the program that I am interested in using is the Budgeting feature and the custom report generating capability.  GnuCash should allow me to also keep track of Investments and Retirement accounts as well as what is in my wallet at any given time, provided I keep the information up to date.

I am not that familiar with QFX / QIF files, but I am learning.  To date, I have been successful in downloading all of the banking accounts as QFX files and getting them into GnuCash.  The thing that was stuck in my craw was how to balance out the amounts in each account.  That was accomplished by inputting an Opening Balance amount in the account, tied to a corresponding opening balance under the equity account.  GnuCash follows the general accounting equation: Assets + Expenses = Liabilities + Equity + Income.  I am still learning the basics, but I am starting to understand how the program behaves with different situations.

One area that I will have some trouble with is when I start putting in the Liabilities into the mix.  I do have some credit cards and entry by QFX will be easy, however I do have times that I have pushed random amounts to the credit cards from my checking/savings accounts that will have to be matched up with the corresponding items in the liability account.  Once I have that completed, I should be able to perform double entry bookkeeping very easily.  This is also going to be roughly equivalent when I deal with loan accounts.  This is all in a push to keep track of everything financial in GnuCash.

It should be easy enough to form up a process for all of the above changes, however I also need to figure out how to setup the budget accounts to be populated when I receive any income.  Also key on the list of things to do is how to deal with a budget for an item that will be purchased in the future.  If I can keep accurate records, I should be able to keep a mindful eye on how much I am spending in retirement.