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#chart-of-accounts

Chart of Accounts

Design and organize your account hierarchy for effective financial tracking

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9 min read

Roller Skating Rink Bookkeeping: How to Account for Five Businesses Under One Roof

A roller rink runs admissions, skate rentals, birthday parties, concessions, and merchandise under one roof — and well-run rinks post 20–35% margins while others limp at 10% on the same traffic. This guide shows how to split the chart of accounts by revenue stream, hold party deposits as deferred-revenue liabilities until the event happens, capitalize the rental fleet, and track KPIs like revenue per visit and ancillary revenue share.

Mike Thrift

bookkeepingsmall-businessrevenue-recognition
9 min read

Bookkeeping for Ammunition Reloading Supply Shops: Component Sales, FAET, and Lot-Level Inventory

A reloading supply shop that only sells bullets, brass, primers, and powder owes no federal ammunition excise tax — but loading and selling finished ammunition triggers an 11% FAET liability filed quarterly on TTB Form 5300.26. This guide covers the chart of accounts, lot-number FIFO inventory tracking, and hazmat freight costing that keep a component retailer or hybrid manufacturer compliant.

Mike Thrift

bookkeepingsmall-businessinventory
7 min read

Driving School Bookkeeping: Dual-Control Depreciation, Licensing Renewals, and Per-Lesson Revenue

A driving school's books hinge on three quirks most owners miss - a dual-control training car is two separate depreciable assets, instructor licensing adds $2,000+ in recurring annual compliance costs, and revenue must be tracked by lesson type to see profit per instructor-hour. Here's how to structure the chart of accounts, handle vehicle disposal correctly, and run a simple monthly close.

Mike Thrift

bookkeepingsmall-businesschart-of-accounts
8 min read

Independent Real Estate Appraiser Bookkeeping: Making Sense of AMC Fee Splits, USPAP Engagement Letters, and E&O Costs

AMCs commonly keep 30–50% of the borrower-paid appraisal fee — in documented cases an appraiser received $205 of an $834 fee. This guide shows independent appraisers how to reconcile AMC payouts against engagement letters, structure a chart of accounts around E&O insurance and mileage, accrue fees at report delivery to catch underpayment, and estimate quarterly taxes off net rather than gross 1099 income.

Mike Thrift

bookkeepingreal-estateindependent-contractor
8 min read

Laundromat Bookkeeping: Reconciling Coin and Card Revenue Against Utility Usage to Catch Shrinkage

Laundromat utilities run 20–25% of gross revenue, which makes water and gas meters a second independent ledger — convert metered consumption into an implied cycle count and revenue figure, compare it to coin-box counts, and a persistent gap over 5–8% flags theft, leaks, or miscalibrated machines. Includes a weekly-to-annual checklist covering multi-stream income accounts and Section 179 equipment expensing.

Mike Thrift

bookkeepingsmall-businessreconciliation
7 min read

Orthodontic Practice Bookkeeping: Contracts Receivable, Deferred Revenue, and Insurance AR Explained

Contracts receivable — typically 55–60% of trailing twelve-month production in a healthy orthodontic practice — is a distinct metric from accounts receivable, and tracking it correctly requires ASC 606-style deferred revenue schedules, monthly insurance write-off reconciliation, and a chart of accounts that separates production, collections, and write-offs.

Mike Thrift

bookkeepinghealthcarerevenue-recognition
8 min read

Indoor Skate Park Bookkeeping: Why Three Revenue Streams Can Sink a Profitable Facility

An indoor skate park is three businesses in one — admissions with near-zero COGS, high-margin coaching, and pro shop retail carrying 55–70% cost of goods sold. This guide covers splitting the chart of accounts by stream, recognizing punch card and membership revenue under ASC 606, depreciating ramp systems over 5–7 years with Section 179, and building a margin-weighted break-even model against $25,000–$30,000 in monthly fixed costs.

Mike Thrift

bookkeepingsmall-businessrevenue-recognition
9 min read

Bookkeeping for Medical Device Reprocessors: When the FDA Calls You a Manufacturer

Third-party reprocessors of single-use medical devices are regulated as full manufacturers under the FDA's QMSR (effective February 2, 2026) — same 510(k), MDR, and UDI obligations as the OEM. That reshapes the books; a three-stage inventory split, per-device-family COGS, recurring validation expenses, and product liability reserves sized by risk class.

Mike Thrift

healthcaremanufacturingcompliance
9 min read

Boat Detailing Business Bookkeeping: Per-Foot Pricing, Seasonal Cash Flow, and Marina Contracts

How to set up the books for a boat detailing business — separate income accounts for each service tier (wash, polish, ceramic coating, oxidation restoration priced $10–$200 per foot), a 12-month cash flow forecast for a season that concentrates 80% of revenue into six months, and distinct tracking for recurring marina and yacht club contracts.

Mike Thrift

bookkeepingsmall-businessseasonal-business
8 min read

Colorado's Psilocybin Healing Centers Just Watched Cannabis Get a Tax Break They Didn't

Cannabis got Section 280E relief when medical marijuana moved to Schedule III in April 2026, but Colorado's 34 licensed psilocybin healing centers are still fully subject to it. Here is how 280E limits deductions to COGS, why facilitator session labor is the contested cost category, and how to structure a chart of accounts, deferred revenue, and cash controls for a Schedule I business.

Mike Thrift

tax-compliancecost-of-goods-soldbookkeeping
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