What is the depreciated value of a computer purchased on January 1 2004 if it cost 32000 and had a useful life of 5 years with no salvage value and it was sold for 10000?

Answer 1

if you're asking about how to calculate the answer.. then it might be $3,200 - ? / 5years = $1,000. therefore: $3,200 - ? = $1,000 * 5yrs; then Salvage Value = $5,000 - $3,200 = $1,800. to prove if your answer is right you go: $3,200 - $1,800 / 5years then see if it equals to $1,000. if it does then your answer is right, but if not then your answer is wrong!! p.s. ? - means unknown but if you prove your answer @ the end, then replace it with the answer you got from your calculations. / - means divided by 0r in other words, the divide sign. (the strategy is to get all the known values on one side & leave the unknown on its own.. eg: 45 + ? = 50 therefore; ? = 50 - 45; ? = 5. (sign changes as you move it from one side to the other.) There are too many things missing to give an answer. First what type of depreciation have you established for these types of assets? Straight line, Double Declining or ACRS or MACRS would be the most common. That will determine the yearly percentage depreciation that must be applied. Then, most of these will require half year convention in the first and last years...although again the accounting practices as established would determine that. Now, you either took depreciation each year and should know how much you took, which gives you your current basis, the difference between that and what it being sold for is the gain or loss. If you didn't take any depreciation for books, then the basis never changed from acquisition. And for tax, which will normally have a different depreciation method and life applied, even if you didn't, the law reads "....depreciation taken or allowed..." so you forgo what you didn't take and get to your basis just like you had. Then that depreciation is probably recovered as a Section 1245 or 1250 asset sale anyway. Basic. Simple.