Your case 1, 2, and 3 are exactly the same functional entry--just different
in terms of how you get there. Microsoft invented #2 just to confuse people
into thinking it was somehow different from #1 and #3. It isn't

See http://umpmfaq.info/faqdb.php?q=62 as to why Money works this way.

Budget Planner tries to help you manage your current expenses and income.
Paying off a pre-existing credit card balance is not current spending. Just
the interest is current spending. That's what BP is designed to help with,
like it or not. (There actually is some reason to their madness, but it
escapes a lot of people, so I don't spend a lot of time preaching it.)

So, basically, you cannot get Money to track the credit card payment as an
expense since it's not an expense. The one alternative to this is if you do
not want to keep track of the credit card account--then just set it up as
category Bills and budget for category Bills. This doesn't work for most
people who are not cutting up the cards at the same time.

For the exact same reason, excluding expenses for things you charge to a
credit card from the budget is pretty self defeating. That money has to come
from somewhere someday, no? You spent $100 on clothing this month. Does it
really matter what vehicle (account) you used to do it? Either way, the
money is gone--and if you'd only allowed yourself to spend $50 on clothing
this month, the fact that you used a credit card to do so doesn't make your
situation better. Since you may have to pay rent on the money on the credit
card, I'd argue you made the situation worse--not only did you overspend
your budget, you are paying rent on the money to do so. This kind of
thinking is exactly why Money BP doesn't consider the transfer an expense
but the actual spending--at the point you spent it from the account you
spent it--is,

If you REALLY want to get the expenses on the credit card out of the budget,
go into the credit card account details and set the account to be excluded
from Budget Planner. If you are trying to use Budget Planner to help manage
your getting richer or poorer, this is not advised.

What you may want to track is really cash flow (how much money will I have
in which account x months from now), not budget (am I going to get richer or
poorer over time if I have income and expenses according to a plan).

"RLM" <rlm[at]virtualrevolution.net> wrote in message
news:b9ae01c437af$ae95e4c0$a101280a[at]phx.gbl...
- quote -

I am trying out Money and would like to buy it except for
one little thing... I am keeping track of two checking
accounts, a savings account, and a credit card. When I
make a payment to my credit card, I can efficently see the
reduction in debt and in my balance by doing one of 3
things.

#1 Set the catagory to Transfer To: Credit Card
#2 Set the catagory to "Special" Credit Card Payment
#3 Use the Transfer tab

Unfortunately, Money will not track these in my budget. I
want it to include and track the payments I am making on
my credit card.

At first, I would enter the one transaction separately
into both accounts. I could get Money to track it that
way, but it is inefficient. There is a catagory
for "Transfers out of budget accounts", but I can't seem
to add anything to it. I keep re-doing my budget, hoping
that Autobudget will catch on, but it hasn't.

So, how can I get my Money budget to track the transfer as
an expense out of my checking account.

On a related note, how can I get Money to exclude from my
budget Catagory information I enter into my Credit Card
account. I really only care, at this point, to track
expenditures and income in my first Checking account with
my budget. If I buy clothes on my credit card, I don't
want Money to think I'm over my budget.

If I can resolve these two issues, I will be thrilled.