If cash and a note are exchanged for a plant asset, is the amount of the note used in the depreciation calculation? A plant asset’s cost is depreciated, unless the asset is land. Cost is defined as the cash or cash...
If cash and a note are exchanged for a plant asset, is the amount of the note used in the depreciation calculation? A plant asset’s cost is depreciated, unless the asset is land. Cost is defined as the cash or cash...
What is the difference between a bookkeeper and an accounting clerk? I envision a bookkeeper as a person employed by a smaller company and being responsible for recording nearly all of its transactions. Hence, the...
What is carriage outwards? Definition of Carriage Outwards Carriage outwards refers to the transportation costs that a seller must pay when it sells merchandise with the terms FOB Destination. Carriage outwards is also...
What is a lease? Definition of a Lease Typically, a lease is a written agreement between an owner of property (land, building, equipment, vehicle, etc.) and a person or business that will use the property for a stated...
What are balance sheet accounts? Definition of Balance Sheet Accounts Balance sheet accounts are one of two types of general ledger accounts. (The other accounts in the general ledger are the income statement accounts.)...
Why is a product that sells for $50 reported in inventory at its cost of $40? Generally, items in inventory are valued at their cost—not their selling prices—because of the cost principle. Another reason for not...
Why will some asset accounts have a credit balance? Definition of Asset Account Balances In accounting, asset accounts normally have debit balances. That is, the general ledger accounts for assets typically have their...
How do you record a deposit on utilities? Definition of Deposit on Utilities A new customer of a public utility (electricity, natural gas, telephone, etc.) may be required to pay a refundable amount known as a utility...
What is FIFO? Definition of FIFO In accounting, FIFO is the acronym for First-In, First-Out. It is a cost flow assumption usually associated with the valuation of inventory and the cost of goods sold. Under FIFO, the...
What is a bond? There are several business definitions for bond. A bond could be a formal debt instrument issued by a corporation or government and purchased by investors. This is the meaning when we say that a public...
What is a recurring journal entry? Definition of Recurring Journal Entry A recurring journal entry is a journal entry that is recorded in every accounting period. Some recurring journal entries will involve the same...
What is the chart of accounts? Definition of Chart of Accounts The chart of accounts is a listing of the names and account numbers for the general ledger accounts available for recording amounts. However, the chart of...
How do I learn more about the CPA Exam? You can learn more about the Uniform CPA Exam at our free Accounting Career Center. Within our Accounting Career Center are direct links to the state boards of accountancy, CPA...
What causes a corporation's market value to be greater than its book value? One cause of a corporation’s market value being greater than its book value is the accountant’s cost principle. In order for an item to be...
What is a post-dated check? Definition of a Post-dated Check A post-dated check (or post-dated cheque) is a check written with a future date. In other words, the date that appears on the check is after the date when the...
How do you calculate an asset's salvage value? Definition of Asset Salvage Value In accounting, an asset’s salvage value is the estimated amount that a company will receive at the end of a plant asset’s useful life....
What are payroll withholding taxes? Definition of Payroll Withholding Taxes In the U.S. payroll withholding taxes are the taxes that an employer is required to deduct from its employees’ gross wages, salaries, bonuses,...
What is ERP? Definition of ERP In accounting, ERP is the acronym for enterprise resource planning. ERP could be described as a database software package that supports all of a business’s processes and operations...
What is Notes Payable? Definition of Notes Payable In accounting, Notes Payable is a general ledger liability account in which a company records the face amounts of the promissory notes that it has issued. The balance in...
What are gross sales? Definition of Gross Sales Gross sales are the amounts a company earned from selling its products. The amounts originate from the company’s sales invoices but the total will be adjusted to the...
What is the difference between an adjunct account and a contra account? Definition of Adjunct Account An adjunct account is a general ledger account that is related to another general ledger account. The combination of...
What is the effect on financial ratios when using LIFO instead of FIFO? Definition of Effect of LIFO Instead of FIFO During periods of significantly increasing costs, the LIFO cost flow assumption instead of the FIFO...
What is an escrow payment? An escrow payment is an amount deposited with another party and it is to be released only for its specified purpose. The following is one example of an escrow payment. A borrower and lender...
How does one prepare a company's first bank statement reconciliation? To prepare a bank reconciliation for a company that never prepared one previously, I would first make a list of outstanding checks. For example, if...
What is a fringe benefit rate? Definition of Fringe Benefit Rate A fringe benefit rate is a percentage that results from dividing the cost of an employee’s fringe benefits by the wages paid to the employee for the...
What is the difference between a cost and an expense? Definitions of Cost and Expense Some people use cost interchangeably with expense. However, we use the term cost to mean the amount spent to purchase an item, a...
What is EBITDA? EBITDA is the acronym for earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. Take our Financial Ratios Exam. Join PRO to Track Progress Mark the Question as Read Must-Watch Video Learn How...
Why are some expenses deferred? Definition of Deferred Expenses Under the accrual basis of accounting, an expense is a cost that is used up, has expired, or is directly related to revenues reported on a company’s...
Where are accruals reflected on the balance sheet? Definition of Accruals The accrual of expenses and liabilities refers to expenses and/or liabilities that a company has incurred, but the company has not yet paid or...
Is depreciation expense an administrative expense? Definition of Depreciation Expense Depreciation expense is the systematic allocation of a depreciable asset’s cost to the accounting periods in which the asset is...
Why isn't a key employee reported as an asset on the balance sheet? While an employee could be an organization’s most valuable asset, accountants record past transactions that can be measured. Since an employee is not...
What is the book value of bonds payable? Definition of Book Value of Bonds Payable The book value of bonds payable is also known as the carrying value of bonds payable. The book value of bonds payable is the net or...
Reconciling the Bank Statement When preparing a bank reconciliation, you may find the following tip to be helpful: “Put it where it ain’t.” My now deceased neighbor (Herb) insisted that I share this tip, which he...
What is the meaning of sundry and sundry debtors? Definition of Sundry Sundry can mean various, miscellaneous, or diverse. Definition of Sundry Debtors Sundry debtors could be referring to a company’s customers who...
Why does an inventory error affect two periods? Definition of Inventory Error An inventory error could be the result of any of the following: Omitting some items when physically counting inventory Double counting some...
How do I calculate depreciation using the sum of the years' digits? Definition of the Sum-of-the-Years’-Digits Depreciation The sum-of-the-years’-digits depreciation (SYD depreciation) is one method for calculating...
What are the various types of adjusting entries? Types of Adjusting Entries Adjusting entries, which are required in order to have a company’s financial statements comply with the accrual method of accounting, are...
What is the difference between a land improvement and a leasehold improvement? Definition of Land Improvement A land improvement is a long-term (long-lived) asset resulting from a physical addition to a company’s land....
Is there a difference between the accounts Purchases and Inventory? Purchases Account Under the Periodic Inventory System The general ledger account Purchases is used to record the purchases of inventory items under the...
What is a condensed income statement? A condensed income statement is one that summarizes much of the income statement detail into a few captions and amounts. For example, a retailer’s condensed income statement will...
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