Saturday, August 25, 2012

Accounting ch. 2 notes, pt 2

The accounting equation (assets = liabilities + owner's equity) has to be in balance after every transaction.

The concept of 'a going concern': the business will continue to operate indefinitely, ie not planned to be liquidated.

Cost principle: transactions are recorded at their original, historical cost value, regardless of increases in the market value of the asset.

Matching concept: expenses should be deducted from revenue within the same time-period. Don't compare this year's revenue to last year's expenses.

Accrual accounting: Revenue is noted at the time of sale, not the receipt of payment. Expenses are noted when they're incurred, not when they're paid for.

Full disclosure: financial reports should include all pertinent information to prevent the reader from being misled.

Materiality: Financial statements don't need to be technically precise as long as any rounding is done to increase understanding, not to obscure or mislead.

Materiality is relevant because some accounting techniques require estimation, for instance depreciation, where you must estimate the expected lifespan of the equipment, and also its expected salvage value. So the amount depreciated = purchase cost - salvage value. The cost of servicing any warranties is another are where you can only estimate the liability incurred.

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