Is depreciation a temporary account? Definition of Depreciation Accounts There are two types of general ledger accounts in which depreciation is recorded: Depreciation Expense which is a temporary account since it is an...
Is depreciation a temporary account? Definition of Depreciation Accounts There are two types of general ledger accounts in which depreciation is recorded: Depreciation Expense which is a temporary account since it is an...
What is bad debts expense? Definition of Bad Debts Expense Bad debts expense is related to a company’s current asset accounts receivable. Bad debts expense is also referred to as uncollectible accounts expense or...
What is the difference between bad debt and doubtful debt? Definition of Bad Debt and Doubtful Debt In accounting, the terms bad debt and doubtful debt usually refer to the amounts owed by a company’s customers who...
Is the provision for doubtful debts an operating expense? Definition of Provision for Doubtful Debts Some companies use Provision for Doubtful Debts as the name of the contra-asset account which is reported on the...
Is depreciation a source of funds? Definition of Depreciation Depreciation is the systematic allocation of the cost of a business asset to expense over the useful life of the asset. The accounting for depreciation is a...
What is the direct write-off method? Definition of Direct Write-off Method The direct write-off method is one of the two methods normally associated with reporting accounts receivable and bad debts expense. (The other...
Should trademarks be included on the balance sheet? Definition of Trademark In the U.S. a trademark could be a word, phrase, logo, etc. registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. If a company purchases a...
What is the entry when a contract is signed? Accounting Entry When Signing a Contract Merely signing a contract does not by itself require a journal entry. In other words, signing a contract for a future transaction does...
Is depreciation an operating expense? Depreciation Could Be Either an Operating Expense or a Non-operating Expense Depreciation is an operating expense if the asset being depreciated is used in an organization’s main...
What is the journal entry to record a one-year subscription for a magazine? Ways to Record One-Year Subscriptions Let’s assume that the cost of the one-year subscription for a monthly trade publication is $120. Let’s...
What is prepaid insurance? Definition of Prepaid Insurance Prepaid insurance is the portion of an insurance premium that has been paid in advance and has not expired as of the date of a company’s balance sheet. This...
What is double-entry bookkeeping? Definition of Double-Entry Bookkeeping Double-entry bookkeeping refers to the 500-year-old system in which each financial transaction of a company is recorded with an entry into at least...
What is the entry for the down payment from a signed contract? Definition of Down Payment on a Contract A down payment on a signed contract means a company has received money in advance of doing the work specified in the...
What is the conservatism principle? Definition of Conservatism Principle In accounting, the conservatism principle (or accounting constraint) directs an accountant, who is faced with doubt between two possible...
What is a bond sinking fund? Definition of Bond Sinking Fund A bond sinking fund is a corporation’s noncurrent asset that is restricted for the purpose of redeeming or buying back its bonds payable. Bonds that require...
Accounts Receivable and Bad Debts Expense Accounts Receivable Accounts receivable refers to a company’s unsecured claim for money it is owed by a customer or client for goods and/or services the company had provided on...
Our Explanation of Accounts Payable provides insights on the bill paying process in a large company. Included are discussions of the three-way match, early payment discounts, end of period accruals, and more.
Our Explanation of Stockholders' Equity covers the unique terminology for a corporation's paid-in capital, retained earnings, treasury stock, and accumulated other comprehensive income. Included are cash dividends, stock...
Debits and Credits(Quick Test #1) Download PDF After you have answered all 30 questions, click "Grade This Quick Test" at the bottom of the page to view your grade and receive feedback on your answers. Note: Some of the...
Income Statement (Word Scramble) Download PDF To see each answer, press or click on the blue "Unscramble" button. If you have difficulty answering the following questions, learn more about this topic by reading our...
What is the accrual basis of accounting? Definition of Accrual Basis of Accounting Under the accrual basis of accounting (or accrual method of accounting), revenues are reported on the income statement when they are...
How do you estimate the amount of uncollectible accounts receivable? Definition of Estimating Uncollectible Accounts Receivable When a company sells goods and/or provides services on account (on credit) using the accrual...
What is an unsecured creditor? Definition of Unsecured Creditor An unsecured creditor is often a vendor or supplier that: Shipped goods to a customer as part of a sale on credit Has not been paid Does not have a lien on...
What are accounting ratios? Definition of Accounting Ratios Accounting ratios, which are also known as financial ratios, are one part of financial statement analysis. Accounting ratios will often relate one financial...
What is a lien? Definition of Lien A lien is a legal document filed by a creditor (lender) in order to record its claim on certain assets of the debtor (borrower). The lien is likely filed at the county government office...
Are liabilities always a bad thing? Definition of Liabilities Liabilities are a company’s obligations and are usually defined as a claim on the company’s assets. However, liabilities (and stockholders’ equity) can...
What is stockholders' equity? Definition of Stockholders’ Equity Stockholders’ equity (also known as shareholders’ equity) is reported on a corporation’s balance sheet and its amount is the difference between the...
What is a nonprofit organization? A nonprofit organization is an organization without commercial owners and which addresses the needs of society. Nonprofit organizations are also known as not-for-profits, NFP’s or...
The balance sheet and income statement are connected. Definition of Balance Sheet and Income Statement The balance sheet reflects the accounting equation: Assets = Liabilities + Owner’s (Stockholders’) Equity When a...
Adjusting Entries(Quick Test #2) Download PDF After you have answered all 30 questions, click "Grade This Quick Test" at the bottom of the page to view your grade and receive feedback on your answers. Note: Some of the...
Improving Profits For multiple-choice and true/false questions, simply press or click on what you think is the correct answer. For fill-in-the-blank questions, press or click on the blank space provided. If you have...
Our Explanation of Debits and Credits describes the reasons why various accounts are debited and/or credited. For the examples we provide the logic, use T-accounts for a clearer understanding, and the appropriate general...
Current assets minus current liabilities.
What is the difference between the accounts rent receivable and rent revenue? Definition of Rent Receivable Rent Receivable is the title of the balance sheet asset account which indicates the amount of rent that has been...
Are repairs to office equipment an expense? Repairing and maintaining office equipment is an immediate expense. This is true even if the repair cost is a very large amount. If a large expenditure is made to improve...
What is a real account? Definition of a Real Account A real account is a general ledger account that does not close at the end of the accounting year. In other words, the balances in the real accounts are carried over to...
In accounting this means to defer or to delay recognizing certain revenues or expenses on the income statement until a later, more appropriate time. Revenues are deferred to a balance sheet liability account until they...
A gain from holding an asset and the gain has not yet been reported in the financial statements. As an example, assume that a company purchased land many years ago and continues to hold the land. The land was purchased...
A dollar adjusted for inflation. If an asset such as land was purchased for $10,000 many years ago when the consumer price index (CPI) was 100 and today the CPI is 400, today’s constant-dollar amount would be...
A gain that occurs by holding an asset. For example, if a company bought land for $20,000 many years ago and today the company continues to hold the land and its value is now $175,000, the company has a holding gain of...
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