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An accountant will refer to and use six basic types of costs to analyze your real estate business.  Direct costs can be directly attributed to a product or product line, one source of sales revenue, or one business unit or operation. An example of a direct cost would...

While many businesses assume that generally accepted accounting practices and inviolate bind accountants, nothing could be further from the truth. Everything is subject to interpretation, and GAAP is no different. For one thing, GAAP themselves permits alternative...

Budgeting is one of those topics we'd rather avoid, but in real estate, it's an absolute necessity. To prepare a reasoned and thoughtful budget, an accountant must start with a broad-based critical analysis of the most recent actual performance and business position...

Most real estate agents operate as a sole proprietorship. This business structure has some significant pros and cons. A sole proprietorship is the business or an individual who has decided not to carry his business as a separate legal entity, such as a corporation,...

Some business owners choose to create partnerships or limited liability companies instead of corporations. A partnership can also be called a firm and refers to an association of individuals working together in a business or professional practice. While corporations...

Most businesses start as small companies, owned by one person or a partnership. The most common type of business with multiple owners is a corporation. The law sees a corporation as a real, live person. A corporation is treated as a distinct and independent individual...

Financial managers can do certain things to increase or decrease net income 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...

Accountants and auditors help to ensure that the Nation's firms are run efficiently, its public records kept accurately, and its taxes paid correctly and on time. They perform these vital functions by offering an increasingly wide array of business and accounting...

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