Our Explanation of Accounts Receivable and Bad Debts Expense helps you understand the accounting for the losses associated with selling goods and providing services on credit. You will understand the impact on the...
Our Explanation of Accounts Receivable and Bad Debts Expense helps you understand the accounting for the losses associated with selling goods and providing services on credit. You will understand the impact on the...
Payroll Accounting(Quick Test #3 with Coaching) Download PDF This Quick Test with Coaching includes a “View Coaching” button to the right of each answer box. If you choose to click the button, an explanation for the...
Our Explanation of Bonds Payable covers the recording of bonds, the accrual of interest expense, and the amortization of the discount and premium on bonds payable. You gain an understanding on why the market value of...
Our Explanation of Activity Based Costing illustrates how manufacturing overhead costs for a product will differ when costs are allocated using only the number of machine hours, as opposed to being allocated using the...
Our Explanation of Working Capital and Liquidity provides you with an in-depth look at the components of working capital and the challenges of converting current assets to cash before obligations come due. You will see...
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 Future Value of a Single Amount will show you the power of compounded interest on a single deposit. You will see how the future value tables can be useful as well as the rule of 72.
Our Explanation of Present Value of an Ordinary Annuity uses the appropriate present value factors for discounting a stream of equal cash amounts occurring at equal time intervals. An important feature is the use of loan...
Why does a bond's price decrease when interest rates increase? Definition of Bond’s Price A bond’s price is the present value of the following future cash amounts: The cash interest payments that occur every six...
What if an employee's actual vacation payment is greater than the amount that has been accrued? Let’s assume that a company’s accounting year ends on December 31 and the company has only one employee who worked the...
What is a promissory note? Definition of Promissory Note A promissory note is a written promise to pay an amount of money by a specified date (or perhaps on demand). The maker of the promissory note agrees to pay the...
What is cumulative preferred stock? Definition of Cumulative Preferred Stock Cumulative preferred stock is a type of preferred stock for which any omitted dividends must be paid before the corporation is allowed to pay a...
Are bonds payable reported as a current liability if they mature in six months? Definition of Bonds Payable Bonds payable are formal, long-term obligations that promise to pay interest every six months and the principal...
What is annualizing? Definition of Annualizing Annualizing means taking a partial year amount and converting it to a full year amount. We will use several examples to illustrate how this works. Examples of Annualizing A...
See vacation pay payable.
Our Explanation of Working Capital and Liquidity provides you with an in-depth look at the components of working capital and the challenges of converting current assets to cash before obligations come due. You will see...
What are sales discounts? Definition of Sales Discounts Sales discounts (if offered by sellers) reduce the amounts owed to the sellers of products, when the buyers pay within the stated discount periods. Sales discounts...
Where does a bond sinking fund appear on the balance sheet? Definition of Bond Sinking Fund A bond sinking fund is an investment made by a corporation that is restricted for the purpose of retiring its bonds payable,...
What is meant by accounts written off? Definition of Accounts Written Off Accounts written off is likely referring to accounts receivable that a company deemed to be uncollectible and were removed from the general ledger...
What are credit sales? Definition of Credit Sales As opposed to cash sales, credit sales (or sales on credit) allow the customer to pay the seller at a later date. Perhaps the seller allows its credit worthy customers to...
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...
How is petty cash reported on the financial statements? Definition of Petty Cash Petty Cash is a small amount of money that a company has available to pay small amounts without writing a company check. The money might be...
Also known as time-and-one-half. A term used in conjunction with overtime pay when an employee gets a 50% higher pay rate for hours in excess of 40 hours per week. The “half” is also known as the overtime...
What is a sale on credit? Definition of Sale on Credit A sale on credit is revenue earned by a company when it sells goods and allows the buyer to pay at a later date. This is also referred to as a sale on account....
What conditions cause a discount on bonds payable? Discount on bonds payable occurs when a bond’s stated interest rate is less than the bond market’s interest rate. If a $1,000,000 bond issue promises to pay interest...
How do I record a loan payment which includes paying both interest and principal? Definition of a Loan Payment A loan payment is likely to consist of three amounts: Total payment amount Interest payment Principal payment...
Our Explanation of Payroll Accounting discusses the taxes and benefits which are withheld from employees' pay as well as the taxes and benefits that are expenses for the employers. Also provided are examples of the...
Bank Reconciliation(Quick Test #2) Download PDF After you have answered all 25 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...
Our Explanation of Present Value of an Ordinary Annuity uses the appropriate present value factors for discounting a stream of equal cash amounts occurring at equal time intervals. An important feature is the use of loan...
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...
What is Construction Work-in-Progress? Definition of Construction Work-in-Progress Construction Work-in-Progress is a noncurrent asset account in which the costs of constructing long-term, fixed assets are recorded. The...
Seventeen years ago I earned an accounting degree. How should I proceed to become a CPA? To pass the CPA Exam you will need to review all that you had learned plus get current on accounting and auditing standards that...
What is standard costing? Definition of Standard Costing Standard costing is an accounting system used by some manufacturers to identify the differences or variances between: The actual costs of the goods that were...
What are the limitations of the payback period? Definition of Payback Period The payback period is a common (but not the best) tool for screening a company’s potential investments. It uses the potential investment’s...
What is a blank check? Definition of Blank Check A blank check often refers to a check that has been signed by an authorized check signer without completing the other information (date, payee, amount). A blank check...
What is a revenue expenditure? Definition of Revenue Expenditure A revenue expenditure is a cost that will be an expense in the accounting period when the expenditure takes place. Revenue expenditures are often discussed...
How do you calculate the payback period? Definition of Payback Period The payback period is the expected number of years it will take for a company to recoup the cash it invested in a project. Examples of Payback Periods...
What entry is made when selling a fixed asset? Defining the Entries When Selling a Fixed Asset When a fixed asset or plant asset is sold, there are several things that must take place: The fixed asset’s depreciation...
What is the rule of 72? The rule of 72 is a simple formula that tells you the approximate amount of time or interest rate needed for an amount to double. The formula is Years X Rate per year = 72. Here’s how it works....
Is there a difference between work-in-process and work-in-progress? It depends on the user of the terms. Definition of Work-in-Process I use the term “work-in-process” to mean a manufacturer’s inventory that is not...
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