What is the FASB?

 

The FASB is one organization that provides standardized guidelines for financial reporting. The mission of the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) is to establish and improve standards of financial accounting and reporting for the guidance and education of the public, including issuers, auditors and users of financial information.

Accounting standards are essential to the efficient functioning of the economy because decisions about the allocation of resources rely heavily on credible, concise, transparent and understandable financial information. Financial information about the operations and financial position of individual entities also is used by the public in making various other kinds of decisions. 

To accomplish its mission, the FASB acts to:

• Improve the usefulness of financial reporting by focusing on the primary characteristics of relevance and reliability and on the qualities of comparability and consistency; 
• Keep standards current to reflect changes in methods of doing business and changes in the economic environment; 
• Consider promptly any significant areas of deficiency in financial reporting that might be improved through the standard-setting process; 
• Promote the international convergence of accounting standards concurrent with improving the quality of financial reporting; and 
• Improve the common understanding of the nature and purposes of information contained in financial reports. 

The FASB develops broad accounting concepts as well as standards for financial reporting. It also provides guidance on implementation of standards. Concepts are useful in guiding the Board in establishing standards and in providing a frame of reference, or conceptual framework, for resolving accounting issues. 

The framework will help to establish reasonable bounds for judgment in preparing financial information and to increase understanding of, and confidence in, financial information on the part of users of financial reports. It also will help the public to understand the nature and limitations of information supplied by financial reporting.

What is financial window dressing?

Financial managers can do certain things to increase or decrease net income that's recorded in the year. This is called profit smoothing, income smoothing or just plain old window dressing. This isn't the same as fraud, or cooking the books.

Most profit smoothing involves pushing some amount of revenue and/or expenses into other years than they would normally be recorded. A common technique for profit smoothing is to delay normal maintenance and repairs. This is referred to as deferred maintenance. Many routine and recurring maintenance costs required for autos, trucks, machines, equipment and buildings can be delayed, or deferred until later. 

A business that spends a significant amount of money for employee training and development may delay these programs until the next year so the expense in the current year is lower.

A company can cut back on its current year's outlays for market research and product development.

A business can ease up on its rules regarding when slow-paying customers are written off to expense as bad debts or uncollectible accounts receivable. The business can put off recording some of its bad debts expense until the next reporting year.

A fixed asset that is not being actively used may have very little current or future value to a business. Instead of writing off the un-depreciated cost of the impaired asset as a loss in the current year, the business might delay the write-off until the next year.

You can see how manipulating the timing of certain expenses can make an impact on net income. This isn't illegal although companies can go too far in massaging the numbers so that its financial statements are misleading. For the most part though, profit smoothing isn't much more than robbing Peter to pay Paul. Accountants refer to these as compensatory effects. The effects next year offset and cancel out the effects in the current year. Less expense this year is balanced by more expense the next year. 

How to analyze a financial statement

It's obvious financial statement have a lot of numbers in them and at first glance it can seem unwieldy to read and understand. One way to interpret a financial report is to compute ratios, which means, divide a particular number in the financial report by another. 

Financial statement ratios are also useful because they enable the reader to compare a business's current performance with its past performance or with another business's performance, regardless of whether sales revenue or net income was bigger or smaller for the other years or the other business. In order words, using ratios can cancel out difference in company sizes.

There aren't many ratios in financial reports. Publicly owned businesses are required to report just one ratio (earnings per share, or EPS) and privately-owned businesses generally don't report any ratios. Generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) don't require that any ratios be reported, except EPS for publicly owned companies. 

Ratios don't provide definitive answers, however. They're useful indicators, but aren't the only factor in gauging the profitability and effectiveness of a company. 

One ratio that's a useful indicator of a company's profitability is the gross margin ratio. This is the gross margin divided by the sales revenue. Businesses don't discose margin information in their external financial reports. This information is considered to be proprietary in nature and is kept confidential to shield it from competitors.

The profit ratio is very important in analyzing the bottom-line of a company. It indicates how much net income was earned on each $100 of sales revenue. A profit ratio of 5 to 10 percent is common in most industries, although some highly price-competitive industries, such as retailers or grocery stores will show profit ratios of only 1 to 2 percent. 

All About Tax Deductions

Income tax time can be a dreadful season if you are not aware of all of the income tax breaks you can get through income tax deductions.  It is important to understand what is tax deductible so that you can get as large of a tax refund as possible.

Probably the most well known income tax deduction is the Earned Income Credit.  The earned income tax credit is available to those who make a minimum amount of money and can file tax as single, married, or head of household.  

The more money you made, the more your earned income tax credit is until you hit the peak, which is around $30,000.  Once you hit that peak, the earned income tax credit goes down until you reach the maximum income allowed to receive the earned income tax credit.

The second well known income tax deduction is the Child Tax Credit.  The child tax credit is available to you if you have two or more children in the home for more than six months out of the year for which you are filing tax, and if you have a tax liability.

Through the child tax credit, you receive around $1000 per child.  This total amount is then applied to your tax liability, and any amount of child tax credit left over is made a part of your income tax refund.

Another income tax deduction is for child day care, when the child day care is needed in order for one or both parents to work outside the home.  This day care income tax credit is equal to a percentage, up to a maximum amount, of the actual day care expenses paid for that tax year.  

Other expenses can also be tax deductible.  Interest paid on a mortgage for the primary residence can be claimed as an income tax deduction.  Medical expenses can also be claimed as an income tax deduction, although this is not very helpful unless you have an excessive amount of medical expenses to deduct on your income tax return.  Tax paid to another state can be used as an income tax deduction in the state that you live in.  Donations and contributions to charities, fundraisers, churches, etc. can also be tax deductible.  

If you are self-employed, you can also claim business expenses as income tax deductions.  This includes any expenses directly related to running your business.  You can take a mileage income tax deduction for any miles you put on your vehicle for business purposes.  You can also take an income tax deduction for your office space in your home if it is used only for business purposes in the form of a portion of your rent, utilities, and phone bills.  

You can also take an income tax deduction for your personal computer, printer supplies, and other office supplies as long as you have the receipts for the tax deductible expenses, and usage logs for the personal computer and other equipment to show that it is used primarily for business.

As you can see, there are many income tax deductions available to you.  If you have any questions about what is tax deductible, you should contact a qualified, certified, licensed tax accountant today.

Accounting Software for Small Businesses

If you think that starting your own business is cakewalk, you’re very wrong. Aside from developing good products and services, you still need to sell them to the market. One of the essential factors in running a business is effectively managing finances. The language of any business, whether big or small, is accounting. 

The business scene is always loaded with work pressure. Therefore, there is an unerring need for handling accounts and finances effectively. Even small businesses need to be organized to achieve success and to do this the business owner should get the appropriate accounting software.

Business units usually set long-term goals and to reach the goals, accounting management is required. If you want to be your business’ boss, you will need accounting software. Manually doing all the accounting works can lead to a lot of errors which can terribly affect any business. 

As owner of a small business, you have to know where funds come from and where it goes. If you decide to do accounting tasks manually, it can consume a great portion of your time and it will be cumbersome on your part. 

Here are some of the benefits that you will get in using an accounting software.

• You can finish all the accounting tasks promptly. You will be able to run your small business without too much problems. 

• You can be provided with correct reports as well as special tools to make accounting tasks a lot simpler. That way, you can manage all the financial data of the business effectively.

• In minutes, you can already manage the cash flow of the business.

• With the accounting software, it will now be possible to predict revenues, bills, and generating reports. 

These are some of the benefits of using an accounting software. However, don’t purchase the first accounting software that you come across. You see, there are things to consider when selecting the proper accounting software for the business. You have to determine the software’s functionalities. It should be user-friendly and most especially, it should resemble the paper counterparts so that you can run the software smoothly. Once you’re familiar with the software’s layout, you can already explore its functionalities. 

If you can find software which combines the internet and e-commerce, the better; you see, there are a great number of accounting software sold in the market. If you want to enjoy all the benefits, you must be able to choose the finest accounting software that is suited to your small business. 

In choosing an accounting software, you need to consider the number of your employees. You can find accounting software that is suited for small business with less than 25 employees. Other software is suited for large businesses with bigger numbers of employees. 

A software that is suited for small businesses helps the business owner analyze financial data, customize reports like transaction history, profit & loss, check details, reconciliation details, and many more. By simply looking at the various reports, you can already determine your business status. Some software also offers built-in features like forecasting tools. These tools can be used to manage business risks and control cost of operation. 

If you’re running a small business, it is now time to purchase accounting software. By doing so, you can secure your business’ future and you can be certain that all your financial tasks are handled effectively.

How To Find A Good Accountant

Finding a good accountant does not always end up being a simple task. There are so many  accountants that seem to appear every year, it is hard to know who to choose to put in charge of your finances. Finding a accountant is a very serious task that is never taken lightly, especially since it involves your business. Here are two simple steps of how to choose a accountant that you can trust with your businesses finances. 

The first thing you do to find a good accountant, is to build a list of referrals form credible sources. To find resources for these referrals may seem like a daunting task at first, however, it is simpler to accomplish this goal then what you think. You can go to such resources such as your local bank, any type of financial planners that you may have, and you can even talk to your current insurance agent about people they know about to be your accountant. 

If you have any contacts or affiliations with other businesses, then you can ask them for accountant referrals as well. These are all trusted resources that can provide you with some good leads on who you can trust to be your accountant. Finding accountant candidates through trusted resources such as your businesses bank, is one of the best ways to find an accountant.  Most professional referrals like this mean that the accountant has a good reputation. 

Once you have your accountant referrals, you then want to contact them and exchange information. Feel free to tell the accountant about your business as well as your accounting needs and expectations. While you give the accountant your information, also ask for theirs. Some key things you want to find out is if the accountant can handle a business in your industry and your size, as well as finding out all of the services they offer. 

Do not be afraid to look at their portfolio and get estimates for their services. Be sure you know what services the fees cover. You never want to select an accountant whose fees are to high for what you can afford. Make sure that you can maintain a good line of communication and determine if they are helpful and informative. The accountant who offers the most detail and takes the most time to not only tell you about the services they can offer you, but also listens to your concerns, is usually the type of accountant that you are looking for. 

After gathering all of the information about the accountants, then make the decision of who is the right accountant for you. Remember that you will be having a long business relationship with your accountant, so you want to select an accountant that you feel you can build a good rapport with as well as someone who will have you and your businesses best interest in mind.

By following these simple steps, you can have confidence in finding an accountant who will work hard to help you direct your company into a positive direction for financial growth and expansion.  

Accountancy Auditing Careers

Within the field of accounting, there are a lot of career choices and accountancy auditing careers is just one. Auditing is very important and it is considered as an integral part of business finances. Auditors are greatly needed to examine, analyze, and verify the business finances. 

The Bureau of Labor claims that accountancy auditors are in-demand at present and in the years to come. Employment of auditors is expected to increase eventually. If you’re still looking for an accountancy career, you might want to consider working as a company auditor. 

What is an auditor? Auditors are also accountants. However, they primarily deal with examining and corroborating financial statements. The various statements are examined closely and the auditors make sure that everything will ‘add up’. Sometimes, inaccuracies and errors occur. The task of the auditor is to determine where these inaccuracies or errors exist. Aside from that, auditors develop certain courses of action to avoid future errors. 

If you think that the task of the auditor is simply scrutinizing financial statements, you’re quite wrong. Auditors examine the various company bills and they ensure debit and credit accuracy. Errors are immediately corrected to avoid financial problems. 

Government auditors are different from non-government auditors. You see, they are the ones who examine from different perspective – the tax perspective. Some filed tax returns are suspicious and so the task of the government auditors is to conduct an audit on the individual or business entity and check if it’s accurate. A very good example is a business who filed a tax return, claiming that they incurred many expenses.

IRS auditors will then check the said expenses to ensure that it meets the tax code criteria. If it does not meet the criteria, the company can be given penalties. Most tax auditors have bad reputations but they deserve more than that. You see, being a government auditor is among the top accountancy careers because they make sure that the people are honest enough to file their tax returns and that the government will not be cheated. 

An accountancy career is technology driven. Many years ago, auditors work manually but nowadays, it’s a lot different. Present-day auditors should know how to work with computers and complicated accounting software or programs. This is the only way to keep up with technology and to stay competitive in the market. 

If you want to become a company auditor someday, you have to graduate with a bachelor’s accounting degree. Certifications are oftentimes needed although some states don’t require it. More job opportunities are open to those who earned a Master’s degree as well as some certification. 

Salary is a very important consideration when choosing a career. Auditors are earning a yearly salary of about $54,000. Senior auditors receive higher salaries which can reach as high as $80,000 per year. However, if you’re a new auditor, you can earn about $35,000 per year. You see, accountancy careers let you earn big money. 

Starting salaries are reasonable and don’t you worry because after a several years, your salary will definitely increase. If accounting is your passion, choose an accountancy auditing career. Despite the bad reputations of auditors, you should still believe in yourself and that you’re going to have a decent job that let’s you earn reasonable salary.

Who cares what other people say; the important thing is that you’re doing an excellent job.