I have been using Quicken with First Union, Wachovia, & Wells Fargo CAP Accounts since 1995. Over the years the banks have changed their ways of interacting with Quicken and I thought that it might help someone if I would record my experiences and the current settings that I have found work best with Wells Fargo, the current bank.
The Command Asset Program (Wells Fargo's current name) or CAP is a combined Brokerage/Checking account.
First Union offered the accounts such that cash was automatically transferred between brokerage and checking. This was handled using Quicken's "linked" bank and investment accounts. Checking was the only account needing reconciliation since the balance in brokerage always netted to zero. Accessing accounts on the First Union web site provided matching information to Q.
First Union purchased Wachovia and adopted their name. CAP accounts continued but in Quicken the investment and banking accounts had to be "unlinked" because Wachovia now provided the download transactions for both. The net cash in the investment account (dividends+interest+sales-purchases) at day's end was withdrawn and deposited into checking. This could produce duplicate transactions in Q reports. Checking was the only account needing reconciliation and the balance in brokerage was supposed to match. Accessing accounts on the Wachovia web site provided matching information to Q.
Wells Fargo has taken over Wachovia (mid-March in CT) and continues the CAP. They consider a CAP to be a brokerage account that one can write checks on but NOT a brokerage/checking combination. They do NOT provide downloads of cash transactions that occur in brokerage into checking, W/F still uses the same brokerage and checking account numbers. On W/F's web site one sees that the checking balance is correct BUT brokerage in/out transactions are NOT shown. Checking transactions are in brokerage so the complete activity can only be seen in the brokerage account.
A Q checking account is no longer required and would require a lot of manual work to maintain. An investment account in Q2011 provides all of the functions of a checking account including reconciliation.
W/F's CAP customer service phone is (800)733-8812. Unfortunately most operators are NOT familiar with Q.
I am W/F customer and not affiliated with them in any other way.