Quickbooks Error?

[randyaustin]

Hello,
This is my 1st post on this board. I am currently working on a large software that includes full accounting. I am familiar with QuickBooks, and have use it for many years. I do not like the way they handle customer overpayments and I am looking for a better way. When a customer overpayment is made Quickbooks will prompt the user to either create a refund check, or a credit to be used later. If a credit is chosen, a Credit Memo is created and can be printed by the user, however this credit memo is not saved. In quickbooks an overpayment is deducted from the Accounts Recievable, which i am not a big believer in. For example lets assume no prior invoices were created, providing us with a Accounts Receivable Balance as 0.00. An Invoice for Customer is then created for 500.00, causing the AR to become 500.00. We then receive a check from the customer for a total of 600.00 and have chosen to create a Credit Memo for the additional $100.00 overpayment to apply against future invoices. In QB, they will post the entire amount ($600.00) to the AR, resulting in a -$100.00, which I feel is an inaccurate amount. Since this $100.00 is money you OWE your customer, should this $100.00 not be in a liability account, instead of the AR? What I want to do is create a Credit Memo that will put that $100.00 in a user defined liability account, then upon either issuing a check or applying this full credit amount to an invoice, will then zero out this liability account. Would this not be more accurate? Some advice would be greatly appreciated.
P.S. I am not an accounting so go easy on me if i am way off base?