How to Use the Detailed Cash Flow Forecast Screen

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Table of Contents

 

Detailed Cash Flow Forecast Overview and Purpose

The Detailed Cash Flow Forecast screen provides comprehensive projections of balances or cash flows for multiple bank accounts and credit cards, supporting detailed financial analysis and decision-making.

 

Unlike other screens that typically show an overall balance, this screen allows you to view forecasts for individual accounts in detail. This makes it particularly useful when you need to analyze the projected financial situation of specific accounts.

 

Accessing the Screen

You can access this screen by:

  • Clicking the 'See long-term forecast' link on the Summary screen
  • Selecting it from the Cash Short Predictor screen menu

 

Understanding the Balance/Cash Flow Forecast per Bank Account

The table at the top of the screen displays a detailed forecast for each bank account or credit card over 14 months, weeks, or days, depending on the selected Display Type (Monthly, Weekly, or Daily). Each row in the table represents a different bank account or credit card. Each cell in the table represents the projected balance or cash flow for a specific account at a given point in time.

 

The leftmost column shows a binoculars icon, indicating whether the account is being monitored. Monitored status can be set in the Bank Accounts screen. If an account is not monitored, it will be excluded from Overall Balance Forecasts in other screens (like Summary or Cash Short Predictor), but remains visible in this screen.

If set, the Credit Line for each account is displayed. This can also be configured in the Bank Accounts screen.

 

Switching Display Options

The screen offers flexible display options to suit various analysis needs:

Balance and Cash Flow Views

Users can toggle between 'Balance' and 'Cash Flow' views using the radio buttons at the top of the table. This allows for a comprehensive view of either the account balances or cash flow projections over time.

 

Display Type (Time Range)

The 'Display Type' dropdown menu offers three options:

  • Monthly (14 months)
  • Weekly (14 weeks)
  • Daily (14 days)

Select the appropriate option to adjust the time frame of the forecast display.

 

Warning Indicators

A warning icon in the table indicates potential issues with account data.

When present, it may display a message like: "Bank balance is available up to 9 Apr 2024. Please make sure your bank statements in your accounting system are up to date and are synced properly." This suggests that there hasn't been account activity for a while, potentially due to outdated data in your accounting system. However, it's also possible that there truly hasn't been any activity, so this is just a cautionary warning.

 

Cash Flow Forecast Transactions

Clicking on a cell opens a pop-up window with detailed transaction information for that period.

 

The forecast incorporates:

  • Transactions imported from the accounting system
  • Automatically generated transactions based on budget entries (if the budgeting feature is used)
  • Automatically generated transactions based on the scheduled payments (See below)

 

Overdue Transactions

The 'Overdue' at the top of the screen shows the total amount of overdue transactions.

 

Clicking the 'Overdue' link in the top-right corner displays a list of currently overdue transactions.

 

When there are overdue transactions that do not need to be monitored, they can be removed from the monitoring list. See Can I hide unnecessary overdue transactions? for details.

If it's an overdue 'Cash In,' you can use the Invoice Reminder Email Generator by clicking the email icon on the right to create AI-generated email content for chasing. Please see Quick Guide for Invoice Reminder Email Generator for more details.

 

Tips for effective use

  • Regularly compare patterns across different time periods to identify trends.
  • Focus on specific account rows for project-based financial management.
  • Monitor available credit against projected balances for optimal credit line utilization.

 

Use Cases: Leveraging Detailed Cash Flow Forecasts

  1. Monthly Financial Planning:
    • Set Display Type to 'Monthly'
    • Review projections for each account over the next few months
    • Identify months with potential cash shortages and consider adjusting unscheduled payments
  2. Large Project Financial Management:
    • Focus on the row for the project-specific account
    • Check weekly or daily cash flow during the project period
    • Identify periods of potential cash shortage and consider adjusting payment schedules or securing additional funding
  3. Optimal Credit Line Utilization:
    • Check available credit on cards or overdraft facilities
    • Identify periods when projected balances may go negative
    • Plan credit line usage as needed

 

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