The Payments (Outgoing) tab is used to record payments made from a tenant account. This includes refunds to tenants, refunds to Local Authorities or Councils, and the return of security deposits.

Payments are recorded through the Bank area of Affinity, ensuring that both the tenant account and the selected bank account remain fully reconciled.

For payments relating to recurring tenancy charges, Affinity automatically calculates how the funds should be allocated across the various charge types. This allocation can be amended by the user before the transaction is saved.

Recording a Payment

To record a payment:

1. From the main menu, select Bank.
2. Select Tenant Transactions.
3. Select the tenant by either:
   • choosing the tenant's account number from the drop-down list, or
   • typing the tenant's account number into the search box until the correct account appears, then pressing Enter.
4. Select the Payments (Outgoing) tab.
5. Enter the payment details.
6. Review the automatically generated charge allocation (where applicable).
7. Click Submit Payment.

Payment Total

The Payment Total is the overall amount being paid.

As the payment value is entered, Affinity automatically calculates a suggested allocation across the applicable recurring charge types displayed on the right-hand side of the screen.

Transaction Type

The drop-down beside the Payment Total identifies the type of payment being recorded. The selected transaction type determines how Affinity processes the payment.

Transaction Details

Bank Account (Required)

Select the bank account from which the payment will be made.

Date (Required)

The date on which the payment is made.

The payment date is also used by Affinity to determine which charge schedule should be used when calculating the automatic allocation.

Reference

An optional reference, such as a cheque number, bank transaction reference or payment reference.

Description

Additional notes relating to the payment.

Charge Allocation

For Tenant Refund and Benefit Refund transactions, the panel on the right-hand side of the screen displays how the payment will be allocated across the tenant's recurring charge types.

Affinity performs this allocation automatically using the charge schedule that is effective on the payment date.

Each recurring charge type (for example Rent and Service Charge) can have separate amounts payable by:

• the tenant, and
• the Local Authority or Council.

The transaction type selected determines which set of charge values is used when calculating the allocation.

Tenant Refunds

When Tenant Refund is selected, Affinity allocates the payment on a pro-rata basis using the amounts payable by the tenant.

For example, if the tenant's charge schedule specifies:

a Tenant Refund of €60 would automatically be allocated as:

This ensures that each recurring charge type is refunded in the same proportion as the tenant's liability.

Benefit Refunds

When Benefit Refund is selected, Affinity allocates the payment using the amounts payable by the Local Authority or Council.

For many tenancies, benefit assistance relates only to rent. In these cases, the payment will normally be allocated entirely to the Rent charge type. However, Affinity always uses the charge schedule configured for the tenancy, allowing different charging arrangements to be supported where required.

Return of Security Deposits

Payments recorded as Return of Security Deposit are processed separately.

They are not allocated across recurring tenancy charges and are instead debited solely against the tenant's security deposit balance.

Manual Allocation

The automatically calculated allocation can be amended before the payment is saved.

Users may change the allocation between individual charge types to meet their requirements, provided that the total allocated equals the overall payment value.

Notes

• Payments update both the tenant account and the selected bank account.
• The payment date determines which charge schedule is used for the automatic allocation.
• Payments may be entered for any amount and do not need to equal the tenant's regular recurring charges.
• The Charge Allocation panel is displayed only for Tenant Refund and Benefit Refund transactions. Return of Security Deposit transactions are processed separately.
• If a Financial Lock Date has been configured, payments cannot be recorded with a transaction date on or before the lock date.