Basic Accounting Tips for Setting Up Your Bookkeeping System

Knowledge of some basic accounting concepts and bookkeeping systems is necessary in order to set up and maintain an accounting system for your church or nonprofit.



There are two basic accounting bookkeeping practices: single entry bookkeeping and double entry bookkeeping

Single entry bookkeeping can be employed by small churches or nonprofits where a balance sheet is not required for financial control or tax purposes.

Double entry bookkeeping is required for all organizations that must produce both a statement of activity and a statement of financial position (balance sheet).

To really understand the difference between these two bookkeeping systems, you must understand some basic accounting concepts.



The two most important basic accounting concepts:

1. The Basic Accounting Equation which is Assets = Liabilities + Fund Balance. (The fund balance is known as owner's equity in the for profit world)
2. Debit = Credit (Very important double entry bookkeeping rule! In a transaction - all debits MUST equal all credits.)

Let’s discuss the second one first. In accounting, accounts are set up to look like a “T” and are actually called T accounts –very imaginative huh?

Anyway...in this “T” account – amounts entered on the debit side (left hand side) are called debits and amounts on the credit side (right-hand side) are called credits. 'To debit' means to make an entity in the left-hand side of an account' and 'To credit' means to make an entry in the right-hand side of an account.

Important point! The words debit and credit have no other meaning in accounting. Most people think a debit and credit as a positive or a negative. They are not either.

Now...back to rule number 2...Debits and credits must be equal for all entries in a double entry bookkeeping system.

A debit or credit will either increase or decrease an account balance depending on what type of account you are working with.

Now to the first basic accounting concept: Assets = Liabilities + Fund Balance or Fund Balance = Assets -Liabilities.

What this really means is that, from an accounting perspective, the Fund Balance (also known as Net Worth, Retained Earnings, or Net Assets) is the difference between what your organization owns (Assets) and what your organization owes (Liabilities).

Learning those two basic concepts wasn’t so hard was it?

Ummm...well...let’s move on to something easier...

Single Entry Bookkeeping

The main advantage is the simplicity. It involves the simplest form of keeping records of financial transactions.

Essentially the organization makes two lists, one of income received and one of expenses incurred. This is beneficial for organizations that rely on volunteers with virtually zero accounting or bookkeeping knowledge.

It is similar to a check register. You add your increases and take away your expenses...all the while keeping a running daily balance.

The main disadvantage of single entry bookkeeping is the absence of financial control due to limited detailed records of asset and liability accounts.

It is also easier to make errors with. With double entry bookkeeping everything must balance.

Double Entry Bookkeeping

Most medium and large organizations use a double entry system which tracks their income (donations) and expense AND their assets and liabilities.

Double entry bookkeeping is require for all organizations that are required to produce a statement of its assets and liabilities (a balance sheet or statement of financial position).

In a double entry bookkeeping system, at least two entries are made with every financial transaction recorded...a debit and credit. Each transaction must balance each other. For every increase in one account, there is an opposite (and equal) decrease in another.

Double entry bookkeeping computerized systems have some a long way in the ease of using them. Most of the time you just have one entry to make and the program does the additional entries required to balance your transaction

To learn more basic church and nonprofit accounting try my book: Basic Church Accounting.

It provides you with basic accounting concepts; examples of accounting journal enteries; descriptions and examples of financial statements; a chart of accounts for a church; a chart showing what accounts you debit and what you credit; and step-by-step instructions for posting church business transactions.

My Free Spreadsheets

I have built my free accounting spreadsheets using the single entry bookkeeping system mainly because our church secretary, whom I built them for, has no accounting knowledge and secondly because the double entry system would be too complicated for me to build and give away.

I believe a lot of small churches and nonprofits rely on volunteer help. A lot of these special people have very limited accounting experience and could benefit from my simple spreadsheets.

As I stated on my "Free Accounting Spreadsheets" page, If you need a double entry accounting system...my spreadsheets might not be the best option for you.

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