Bookkeeping For Dummies E-Book

Lita Epstein

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2014

Seitenzahl: 456

Beschreibung

The fast and easy way to master the art of bookkeeping If you're a business owner or an employee who manages finances, the latest edition of Bookkeeping For Dummies is for you. This handy guide gives you clear and concise information on how to keep track of accounts, prepare balance sheets, organize ledgers or journals, create financial statements, and so much more. Packed with the most up-to-date bookkeeping practices, tax information, and small-business laws, Bookkeeping For Dummies is an accessible, invaluable resource you'll turn to again and again. Accurate and complete bookkeeping is crucial to any -business owner--but jumping in headfirst without knowing your accounts from your balance sheets can confuse even the most astute businessperson. That's where Bookkeeping For Dummies helps! Written in the familiar and friendly tone that has defined the For Dummies brand for more than twenty years, this clear and comprehensive guide covers everything you'll encounter as you set out to tackle your company's books, ensuring you're on the right track and saving you tons of headaches along the way. So what are you waiting for? It's time to hit the books! * Offers easy-to-follow instructions to keep track of your business' financial well-being * Covers managing assets and liabilities * Includes updated QuickBooks screenshots and Excel spreadsheets * Provides guidance on producing balance sheets and creating financial statements Whether you're just starting out with bookkeeping--or a bookkeeper who needs to brush up on your skills--Bookkeeping For Dummies sets you up for success.

Leseprobe

Bookkeeping For Dummies®, 2ndEdition

Published by: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774, www.wiley.com

Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey

Published simultaneously in Canada

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Library of Congress Control Number: 2014945057

ISBN 978-1-118-95036-4; ISBN 978-1-118-95037-1 (ePub); ISBN 978-1-118-95038-8 (ePDF)

Manufactured in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Bookkeeping For Dummies®

Visit www.dummies.com/cheatsheet/bookkeeping to view this book's cheat sheet.

Table of Contents

Introduction

About This Book

Foolish Assumptions

Icons Used in This Book

Beyond the Book

Where to Go From Here

Part I: Basic Bookkeeping: Why You Need It

Chapter 1: So You Want to Do the Books

Delving into Bookkeeping Basics

Picking your accounting method

Understanding assets, liabilities, and equity

Introducing debits and credits

Charting your bookkeeping course

Recognizing the Importance of an Accurate Paper Trail

Maintaining a ledger

Keeping journals

Computerizing

Instituting internal controls

Using Bookkeeping’s Tools to Manage Daily Finances

Maintaining inventory

Tracking sales

Handling payroll

Running Tests for Accuracy

Proving out your cash

Testing your balance

Doing bookkeeping corrections

Finally Showing Off Your Financial Success

Preparing financial reports

Paying taxes

Chapter 2: Getting Down to Bookkeeping Basics

Bookkeepers: The Record Keepers of the Business World

Wading through Basic Bookkeeping Lingo

Accounts for the balance sheet

Accounts for the income statement

Other common terms

Pedaling through the Accounting Cycle

Tackling the Big Decision: Cash-basis or Accrual Accounting

Waiting for funds with cash-basis accounting

Recording right away with accrual accounting

Seeing Double with Double-Entry Bookkeeping

Differentiating Debits and Credits

Chapter 3: Outlining Your Financial Road Map with a Chart of Accounts

Getting to Know the Chart of Accounts

Starting with the Balance Sheet Accounts

Tackling assets

Laying out your liabilities

Eyeing the equity

Tracking the Income Statement Accounts

Recording the money you make

Tracking the Cost of Sales

Acknowledging the money you spend

Setting Up Your Chart of Accounts

Part II: Keeping a Paper Trail

Chapter 4: Ledgers: A One-Stop Summary of Your Business Transactions

The Eyes and Ears of a Business

Developing Entries for the Ledger

Posting Entries to the Ledger

Adjusting for Ledger Errors

Using Computerized Transactions to Post and Adjust in the General Ledger

Chapter 5: Keeping Journals

Establishing a Transaction’s Point of Entry

When Cash Changes Hands

Keeping track of incoming cash

Following outgoing cash

Managing Sales Like a Pro

Keeping Track of Purchases

Dealing with Transactions that Don’t Fit

Posting Journal Information to Accounts

Simplifying Your Journaling with Computerized Accounting

Chapter 6: Computer Options for Your Bookkeeping

Surveying Your Software Options

Bookkeeper 2014

Sage 50 Pro

QuickBooks Pro

Setting Up Your Computerized Books

Customizing software to match your operations

Converting your manual bookkeeping to a computerized system

Chapter 7: Controlling Your Books, Your Records, and Your Money

Putting Controls on Your Business’s Cash

Checking accounts

Savings accounts

Petty cash accounts

Cash registers

Keeping the Right Paperwork

Creating a filing system

Figuring out what to keep and for how long

Protecting Your Business Against Internal Fraud

Facing the reality of financial fraud

Dividing staff responsibilities

Balancing control costs

Insuring Your Cash through Employee Bonding

Part III: Tracking Your Day-to-Day Operations with Your Books

Chapter 8: Buying and Tracking Your Purchases

Keeping Track of Inventory

Entering initial cost

Managing inventory and its value

Buying and Monitoring Supplies

Staying on Top of Your Bills

Chapter 9: Counting Your Sales

Collecting on Cash Sales

Discovering the value of sales receipts

Recording cash transactions in the books

Selling on Credit

Deciding whether to offer store credit

Recording store credit transactions in the books

Proving Out the Cash Register

Tracking Sales Discounts

Recording Sales Returns and Allowances

Monitoring Accounts Receivable

Accepting Your Losses

Chapter 10: Employee Payroll and Benefits

Staffing Your Business

Completing government forms

Picking pay periods

Determining wage and salary types

Collecting Employee Taxes

Sorting out Social Security tax

Making sense of Medicare tax

Figuring out federal withholding tax

Settling up state and local withholding taxes

Determining Net Pay

Surveying Your Benefits Options

Tax-exempt benefits

Taxable benefits

Dealing with cafeteria plans

Preparing Payroll and Posting It in the Books

Calculating payroll for hourly employees

Doling out funds to salaried employees

Totaling up for commission checks

Depositing Employee Taxes

Outsourcing Payroll and Benefits Work

Chapter 11: Employer-Paid Taxes and Government Payroll Reporting

Paying Employer Taxes on Social Security and Medicare

Filing Form 941

Knowing how often to file

Completing Unemployment Reports and Paying Unemployment Taxes

How states calculate the FUTA tax rate

Calculating FUTA tax

Filing and paying unemployment taxes to state governments

Carrying Workers’ Compensation Insurance

Maintaining Employee Records

Part IV: Preparing the Books for Year’s (or Month’s) End

Chapter 12: Depreciating Your Assets

Defining Depreciation

Knowing what you can and can’t depreciate

Figuring out the useful life of a fixed asset

Delving into cost basis

Reducing the Value of Assets

Evaluating your depreciation options

Tackling Taxes and Depreciation

Section 179

MACRS

Setting Up Depreciation Schedules

Recording Depreciation Expenses

Chapter 13: Paying and Collecting Interest

Deciphering Types of Interest

Simple interest

Compound interest

Handling Interest Income

Delving into Loans and Interest Expenses

Short-term debt

Long-term debt

Chapter 14: Proving Out the Cash

Why Prove Out the Books?

Making Sure Ending Cash Is Right

Closing the Cash Journals

Finalizing cash receipts

Finalizing cash outlays

Using a Temporary Posting Journal

Reconciling Bank Accounts

Tracking down errors

Using a computerized system

Posting Adjustments and Corrections

Chapter 15: Closing the Journals

Prepping to Close: Checking for Accuracy and Tallying Things Up

Paying attention to initial transaction details

Summarizing journal entries

Analyzing summary results

Planning for cash flow

Posting to the General Ledger

Checking Out Computerized Journal Records

Chapter 16: Checking Your Accuracy — By Trial and Hopefully No Error

Working with a Trial Balance

Conducting your trial balance

Dealing with trial balance errors

Testing Your Balance Using Computerized Accounting Systems

Developing a Financial Statement Worksheet

Replacing Worksheets with Computerized Reports

Chapter 17: Adjusting the Books

Adjusting All the Right Areas

Depreciating assets

Allocating prepaid expenses

Counting inventory

Allowing for bad debts

Recognizing unpaid salaries and wages

Testing Out an Adjusted Trial Balance

Changing Your Chart of Accounts

Part V: Reporting Results and Starting Over

Chapter 18: Developing a Balance Sheet

What Is a Balance Sheet?

Gathering Balance Sheet Ingredients

Dividing and listing your assets

Acknowledging your debts

Naming your investments

Ta Da! Pulling Together the Final Balance Sheet

Account format

Report format

Financial Position format

Putting Your Balance Sheet to Work

Testing your cash

Assessing your debt

Generating Balance Sheets Electronically

Chapter 19: Producing an Income Statement

What Is an Income Statement?

Formatting the Income Statement

Preparing the Income Statement

Finding Net Sales

Finding Cost of Goods Sold

Drawing remaining amounts from your worksheet

Gauging your Cost of Goods Sold

Deciphering Gross Profit

Monitoring Expenses

Using the Income Statement to Make Business Decisions

Testing Profits

Return on Sales

Return on Assets

Return on Equity

Branching Out with Income Statement Data

Chapter 20: Completing Year-End Payroll and Reports

Year-End Employee Reporting

Filing W-2s

Sending in wage reports

Producing 1099s for Vendors and Contractors

Filing Year-End Summaries

Chapter 21: Satisfying the Tax Man

Finding the Right Business Type

Sole proprietorship

Partnership

Limited Liability Companies (LLCs)

Corporations

Tax Reporting for Sole Proprietors

Filing Tax Forms for Partnerships

Paying Corporate Taxes

Reporting for an S corporation

Reporting for a C corporation

Taking Care of Sales Taxes Obligations

Chapter 22: Prepping the Books for a New Accounting Cycle

Finalizing the General Ledger

Zeroing out income statement accounts

Carrying over balance sheet accounts

Conducting Special Year-End Bookkeeping Tasks

Checking customer accounts

Assessing vendor accounts

Deleting accounts

Starting the Cycle Anew

Part VI: The Part of Tens

Chapter 23: Top Ten Ways to Manage Your Business Cash with Your Books

Charting the Way

Balancing Your Entries

Posting Your Transactions

Tracking Customer Collections

Paying Bills Accurately and On Time

Planning Profits

Comparing Budget to Actual Expenses

Comparing Sales Goals to Actual Sales

Tracking Cost Trends

Making Pricing Decisions

Chapter 24: Top Ten Most Important Accounts for Any Bookkeeper

Cash

Accounts Receivable

Inventory

Accounts Payable

Loans Payable

Sales

Purchases

Payroll Expenses

Office Expenses

Owner’s Equity

Retained Earnings

Appendix: Glossary

About the Author

Cheat Sheet

Guide

Table of Contents

Begin Reading

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