How to take a write-off in accounting
/When the value of an asset has declined, some portion of its carrying amount should be written off in the accounting records. A write off is needed whenever the fair value of an asset is below its carrying amount. The write off process involves the following steps.
Step 1. Determine the Amount of the Write-Off
It is entirely possible that only a portion of the amount recorded on the books for an asset (known as its carrying amount) needs to be written off. For example, the market value of a fixed asset may now be half of its carrying amount, so you may want to write off just half of its carrying amount. However, a customer may have gone out of business, so all of the unpaid accounts receivable for that customer must be completely written off.
Step 2. Create a Journal Entry
Create a journal entry to write off the appropriate amount of the asset. This will be a credit to the asset account. There are two choices for the debit part of the entry. It can be to an expense account, if no reserve was ever set up against the asset in the past. For example, the direct write off of an account receivable would be debited against the bad debt expense account. Alternatively, the debit can be against a reserve that was already set up to offset the asset. For example, if there is an allowance for doubtful accounts that offsets accounts receivable, the debit would be against the allowance account.
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Step 3. Adjust Detail Records
Whenever you write off an asset, this can impact the detail records for an account. For example, when you write off an account receivable, make sure that the underlying aged accounts receivable report no longer contains the specific receivable that you wrote off.
How to Write Off a Liability
It is also possible to write off a liability, such as when a lender forgives part or all of a loan. In this case, the journal entry is a debit to the liability account in order to reduce or eliminate the liability balance, and a credit to a gain account, since the transaction essentially increases the profits of the business. A liability write off is relatively uncommon; in most cases, businesses must deal with declines in the value of their assets, so that is where write offs must be recorded.