Peter Gratton, Ph.D., is a New Orleans-based editor and professor with over 20 years of experience in investing, economics, and public policy. Peter began covering markets at Multex (Reuters) and has ...

Depreciation expense can be a big portion of a company’s total expense. And since expenses decrease income, it affects the overall value of a company. Understanding what it is and the methods can help ...

Amortization and depreciation are accounting methods used to allocate the cost of assets over their useful lives. Amortization applies to intangible assets like patents and trademarks. Depreciation ...

Accumulated depreciation is the sum of an asset’s depreciation expense. It’s calculated from the start of its use to a specific date. It’s also a contra-asset account. That means it decreases the ...

Depreciation is the recovery of the cost of a physical asset, like property or equipment, over multiple years. It allows companies to spread out the cost of some expenses, reduce taxable income and ...

When a business acquires an asset to be used in its operations, the cost of the asset is generally not expensed all at once. Rather, the cost is depreciated over a period of time that depends on the ...

Depreciation guidelines enable accountants to understand the importance of depreciable assets in operating activities and depreciation methods as well as the regulatory relevance of bookkeeping and ...

The Treasury has issued final regulations (Treasury Decision 9314) explaining how to depreciate modified accelerated cost recovery system (MACRS) property that has been acquired in a section 1031 like ...

Depreciation is the allocation of a capital expense item over a specific period of time. IRS rules stipulate that when a business, such as a limited partnership, purchases a capital asset like real ...