To prepare for the new lease accounting standards, manufacturing businesses have had to take a closer look at their leases. Because of the high volume of equipment leases in the manufacturing industry, this is nearly impossible to do without automated technology. 

To prepare for the new lease accounting standards, manufacturing businesses have had to take a closer look at their leases. Because of the high volume of equipment leases in the manufacturing industry, this is nearly impossible to do without automated technology. 

How serious are the implications of misrepresented leases? And how do you avoid putting your business at risk of a failed audit?

In this whitepaper, we dive into what contributes to the risks associated with ASC 842 and how to address them.

While there are multiple reasons to consider using a spreadsheet, such as a considerably low number of leases, familiarity with Excel or a low lease accounting budget, you should be aware of how it compares to an automated solution.

Marc Betesh is the founder and CEO of Visual Lease, the #1 lease optimization software provider, and KBA Lease Services, the nation’s leading lease audit firm. Betesh helped shape the current lease accounting standards in the industry and is a thought leader on ASC 842, GASB 87, and IFRS 16. Betesh is regarded as “top-rated faculty” at CoreNet Global Learning and has lectured on lease topics at New York University’s Real Estate Institute, American Bar Association, Association of the Bar of the City of New York, Practicing Law Institute, ICSC, Lorman Education Services and the Institute of Internal Auditors. He is also an active member of the New York and New Jersey Bars.

Carrie Summerlin Named FICPA’s New Chief Growth & Innovation Officer

The Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants (FICPA) recently announced that Carrie Summerlin has been named the Institute’s new Chief Growth and Innovation Officer. She will officially join the FICPA on Monday, May 16.

Now, all of these organizations must adhere to a much more robust and complex reporting process than they had been accustomed to under the prior lease accounting standards. Despite this change, many continue to underestimate just how challenging the lease accounting process truly is.

Companies are currently reevaluating their lease portfolios to ensure these costly agreements still make sense in light of their new business goals and operations. As a result, many of these same organizations are making modifications to existing leases or are considering different options and/or terms for new agreements.

Stepping into 2022 should be a good deal less jarring. And yet, there might be changes and surprises. Here’s what experts see as coming up.

The verdict is in: the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) will not issue a third delay to the ASC 842 effective date for private companies, which will take effect Dec. 15, 2021. This means many firms may be flat-footed when the new standards go into effect.

If you thought you would have had more time to prepare for the new lease accounting standard, you’re not alone. As of late July 2021, 75 percent of surveyed senior accounting and finance professionals at private companies with more than 1,000 employees said they were not yet compliant with ASC 842, with 30 percent less than halfway through the process. Furthermore, 40 percent claimed they were only somewhat confident about their ability to successfully adopt the new standard in time for their next scheduled reporting period after Dec. 15. This data indicates that many private companies were, indeed, waiting for another extension.

In a piece of good news for Manhattan’s battered office market, over 3M SF of office space was leased in November — the first time since before the coronavirus pandemic the nation’s largest office market eclipsed the 3M SF mark.

A total of 3.09M SF was rented last month, according to Colliers’ monthly snapshot. That was the highest monthly leasing total since January 2020, when 3.6M SF of office leases were signed just before the pandemic hit the city and brought activity to a sudden halt.

In this guide, we break down the complex FAQs, so you can better understand how it impacts your organization, what to do before the effective date and more.