How do I account for Depreciation in LedgerSMB?

LedgerSMB does not have a built-in assett tracking / depreciation feature. Depreciation can be managed manually using General Ledger Transactions. You should probably confirm this with your accountant, but the basic procedure (kindly suggested by Tony Fraser) is, assuming a computer asset over 5 years:

Set up 3 accounts:

  • An asset account such as "Computers"
  • An asset account such as "Accumulated Amortization, Computers" that is normally a negative balance therefor it is a contra account
  • An expense account such as "Computer Depreciation"

Upon purchasing a depreciable asset (in this case, a computer):

Account Debit Credit Notes
On purchasing the computer
Computers 1000.00
Bank Account 1000.00
End of Year 1
Computer Depreciation 400.00 (40% of $1000)
Accumulated Amortization, Computers 400.00
End of Year 2
Computer Depreciation 240.00 (40% of $600)
Accumulated Amortization, Computers 240.00
End of Year 3
Computer Depreciation 144.00 (40% of $360)
Accumulated Amortization, Computers 144.00
Disposal
Bank Account 75.00 (sale of computer)
Accumulated Amortization, Computers 784.00 (reversing entry)
Computer Depreciation 141.00 (residual value)
Computers 1000.00 (reversing entry)