Microsoft Money 2003 Deluxe

Microsoft Money 2003 Deluxe

Microsoft Money 2003 Deluxe is a personal financial management system designed to compete with Intuit’s Quicken. MS Money is currently available in four versions; Standard, Deluxe, Deluxe & Business and Suite. System requirements to run Money Deluxe include a Pentium 166 processor, 32MB RAM and 85MB available hard drive space.

At $59.95, MS Money Deluxe is a good buy, but because it’s designed for personal financial use, the program provides limited benefit to law offices, with the exception of solo practices.

The program’s main screen is reminiscent of a Web page, with decent customization capabilities. Unfortunately, the main screen is also extremely cluttered with various options, links and additional services that are offered by Microsoft. However, clearing the screen of this unnecessary clutter is simple and will ease program navigation tremendously. You also can customize various fields to fit your needs.

Some of the features found in MS Money Deluxe include checkbook balancing, bill scheduling and vendor payment capability, budget and expense tracking, investment tracking and a tax exporting option.
New features in MS Money 2003 Deluxe include an auto-balancing function that compares system balances with electronic bank records.

You also can enter payment information, either on or offline, save the information in batches, and transmit information when convenient.

Before using MS Money Deluxe, you will need to enter all appropriate bank account information for any accounts (checking, savings, etc.) that will be used. A series of screens guides you through the setup process, which includes beginning bank balances. It will be helpful to have your bank accounts reconciled so accurate balances are reflected. This also will ensure accurate month-end bank reconciliations.

Additional features include the capability to use your bank’s online banking services with MS Money Deluxe for quicker bank access and up-to-the-minute bank balances.

Clicking on a specific income or expense category brings up a detailed screen where item history and other specifics are stored.

All vendors will need to be entered as new payees before categories are assigned. MS Money Deluxe’s default categories are generically titled, using categories such as utilities, mortgage payments, auto payments, insurance and so forth. Fortunately, all of these categories can be modified to better fit your needs.

After entering a payee’s name, just click again to enter the address, account number and other information.

A scheduling feature allows you to schedule specific transactions to be paid on the desired date. The scheduling screen also has a two-month calendar with the appropriate dates highlighted.

Once all recurring or regularly scheduled items have been entered into the appropriate areas, MS Money Deluxe allows you to review the schedule daily and have all future information ready to review at a glance.

MS Money Deluxe automatically subtracts scheduled expenses from the assigned bank account, so an accurate future bank balance always is displayed as well.

Bills also can be paid electronically using MSN’s Bill Pay Feature, which is included free for one year with MS Money Deluxe. Be aware, however, users who wish to continue must pay a fee at the end of the year. There is a good, basic cash flow report with a graph that highlights current and upcoming expenses.

Investors can enter portfolio information, update stock prices, add or change investment information and record any special activity.

Microsoft support is terrific with phone staff available 24 hours a day, as well as extensive online help options, and a decent “Help” feature included with the product.

As I mentioned earlier, MS Money Deluxe 2003 is truly designed as a personal finance tool, and it does an excellent job. Setup is quick, information is easily accessible, and personal investment information is easily tracked and monitored. Plus, MS Money Deluxe’s customization capabilities allow you to change account classification quickly.

That said, unless your firm is very small, MS Money Deluxe is probably not your best choice. MS Money Deluxe & Business 2003 might be more beneficial, since it comes with payroll, receivable and payable tracking, and custom invoice options.

If you are looking to track personal financial information, MS Money 2003 Deluxe would be an excellent choice. For business use, either look at the Deluxe & Business version of Money 2003, or look elsewhere.

Microsoft Corp.
(805) 585-2102

support.microsoft.com

www.microsoft.com

Price: $59.95

Windows 95/98/Me/NT/2000/XP

Reviewed by Mary Girsch-Bock, a technical writer and independent software consultant based in Albuquerque, N.M.

Jun/Jul '03 Issue

PROS
It does a good job of scheduling, tracking expenses and paying bills.

CONS
It’s suitable only for one- to two-person firms. MS Money is really suited for personal financial organization.

VERDICT
Although the program is good for personal financial tracking, I can’t recommend it for use in a law office environment. It might be helpful, in a limited capacity, for a one-person law firm.