Question

On March 5, 2018, you were hired by Hemingway Inc., a closely held company, as a staff member of its newly created internal auditing department. While reviewing the company’s records for 2016 and 2017, you discover that no adjustments have yet been made for the following items. Items

1. Interest income of \(14,100 was not accrued at the end of 2016. It was recorded when received in February 2017.

2. A computer costing \)4,000 was expensed when purchased on July 1, 2016. It is expected to have a 4-year life with no salvage value. The company typically uses straight-line depreciation for all fixed assets.

3. Research and development costs of \(33,000 were incurred early in 2016. They were capitalized and were to be amortized over a 3-year period. Amortization of \)11,000 was recorded for 2016 and \(11,000 for 2017.

4. On January 2, 2016, Hemingway leased a building for 5 years at a monthly rental of \)8,000. On that date, the company paid the following amounts, which were expensed when paid. Security deposit \(20,000 First month’s rent 8,000 Last month’s rent 8,000 \)36,000

5. The company received \(36,000 from a customer at the beginning of 2016 for services that it is to perform evenly over a 3-year period beginning in 2016. None of the amount received was reported as unearned revenue at the end of 2016.

6. Merchandise inventory costing \)18,200 was in the warehouse at December 31, 2016, but was incorrectly omitted from the physical count at that date. The company uses the periodic inventory method.

Instructions

Indicate the effect of any errors on the net income figure reported on the income statement for the year ending December 31, 2016, and the retained earnings figure reported on the balance sheet at December 31, 2017. Assume all amounts are material, and ignore income tax effects. Using the following format, enter the appropriate dollar amounts in the appropriate columns. Consider each item independent of the other items. It is not necessary to total the columns on the grid.

Short answer

Retained earnings are the accumulated profits, and the effect of the error is shown

Step-by-step solution

Definition of Retained Earnings

The retained Earnings refer to the accumulated profit after distributing the dividends to the shareholders of the company.

The effect of errors

	Net Income for 2016		Retained Earnings at 12/31/17
Item	Understated	Overstated	Understated	Overstated
1.	14,100		No effect	No effect
2.	3,500		2,500
3.		22,000		11,000
4.	28,000		28,000
5.		24,000		12,000
6.	18,200		No effect	No effect