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13 3 Prepare Journal Entries to Reflect the Life Cycle of Bonds Principles of Accounting, Volume 1: Financial Accounting

However, by the time the bonds are sold, the market rate could be higher or lower than the contract rate. The income statement for all of 20X3 would include $6,294 of interest expense ($3,147 X 2). This method of accounting for bonds is known as the straight-line amortization method, as interest expense is recognized uniformly over the life of the bond. Notice that interest expense is the same each year, even though the net book value of the bond (bond plus remaining premium) is declining each year due to amortization.

• The entry to record the issuance of the bonds increases (debits) cash for the $11,246 received, increases (credits) bonds payable for the $10,000 maturity amount, and increases (credits) premium on bonds payable for $1,246.
• Another way to illustrate this problem is to note that total borrowing cost is reduced by the $8,530 premium, since less is to be repaid at maturity than was borrowed up front.
• However, if the market rate is higher than the contract rate, the bonds will sell for less than their face value.
• We tend to think of them as home loans, but they can also be used for commercial real estate purchases.

It is contra because it increases the amount of the Bonds Payable liability account. The Premium will disappear over time as it is amortized, but it will decrease the interest expense, which we will see in subsequent journal entries. As the premium is amortized, the balance in the premium account and the carrying value of the bond decreases. The amount of premium amortized for the last payment is equal to the balance in the premium on bonds payable account.

discount on bonds payable definition

Discount on Bonds Payable is a contra liability account with a debit balance, which is contrary to the normal credit balance of its parent Bonds Payable liability account. After the payment is recorded, the carrying value of the bonds payable on the balance sheet increases to $9,408 because the discount has decreased to $592 ($623–$31). The interest expense is amortized over the twenty periods during which interest is paid. Amortization of the discount may be done using the straight‐line or the effective interest method. Currently, generally accepted accounting principles require use of the effective interest method of amortization unless the results under the two methods are not significantly different. If the amounts of interest expense are similar under the two methods, the straight‐line method may be used.

Before the bonds can be issued, the underwriters perform many time-consuming tasks, including setting the bond interest rate. Next, let’s assume that just prior to offering the bond to investors on January 1, the market interest rate for this bond increases to 10%. The corporation decides to sell the 9% bond rather than changing the bond documents to the market interest rate.

AccountingTools

As we go through the journal entries, it is important to understand that we are analyzing the accounting transactions from the perspective of the issuer of the bond. For example, on the issue date of a bond, the borrower receives cash while the lender pays cash. Bonds issued at face value between interest dates Companies do not always issue income summary account bonds on the date they start to bear interest. The issuer must pay holders of the bonds a full six months’ interest at each interest date. Over the life of the bond, the balance in the account Discount on Bonds Payable must be reduced to $0. Reducing this account balance in a logical manner is known as amortizing or amortization.

The interest expense is calculated by taking the Carrying Value ($93,226) multiplied by the market interest rate (7%). The amount of the cash payment in this example is calculated by taking the face value of the bond ($100,000) multiplied by the stated rate (5%). Again, we need to account for the difference between the amount of interest expense and the cash paid to bondholders https://online-accounting.net/ by crediting the Bond Discount account. A final point to consider relates to accounting for the interest costs on the bond. Recall that the bond indenture specifies how much interest the borrower will pay with each periodic payment based on the stated rate of interest. The periodic interest payments to the buyer (investor) will be the same over the course of the bond.

It looks like the issuer will have to pay back $104,460, but this is not quite true. If the bonds were to be paid off today, the full $104,460 would have to be paid back. The bondholders have bonds that say the issuer will pay them $100,000, so that is all that is owed at maturity.

Module 12: Non-Current Liabilities

The investors want to earn a higher effective interest rate on these bonds, so they only pay $950,000 for the bonds. The $50,000 amount is recorded in a Discount on Bonds Payable contra liability account. Over time, the balance in this account is reduced as more of it is recognized as interest expense.

The premium or discount is to be amortized to interest expense over the life of the bonds. Under both IFRS and US GAAP, the general definition of a long-term liability is similar. However, there are many types of long-term liabilities, and various types have specific measurement and reporting criteria that may differ between the two sets of accounting standards. With two exceptions, bonds payable are primarily the same under the two sets of standards. Issuers must set the contract rate before the bonds are actually sold to allow time for such activities as printing the bonds. If the market rate is equal to the contract rate, the bonds will sell at their face value.

Accounting for the Unamortized Bon Discount

If a $1,000,000 bond issue promises to pay interest of 8% per year and the bond market demands 8.125%, the bonds will sell for less than $1,000,000. The difference between the $1,000,000 of face value and the amount the bond market is willing to pay is the discount on bonds payable. The discount refers to the difference in the cost to purchase a bond (its market price) and its par, or face, value. The issuing company can choose to expense the entire amount of the discount or can handle the discount as an asset to be amortized.

Like the Premium on Bonds Payable account, the discount on bonds payable account is a contra liability account and is “married” to the Bonds Payable account on the balance sheet. The Discount will disappear over time as it is amortized, but it will increase the interest expense, which we will see in subsequent journal entries. As the discount is amortized, the discount on bonds payable account’s balance decreases and the carrying value of the bond increases. The amount of discount amortized for the last payment is equal to the balance in the discount on bonds payable account. As with the straight‐line method of amortization, at the maturity of the bonds, the discount account’s balance will be zero and the bond’s carrying value will be the same as its principal amount. See Table 2 for interest expense and carrying values over the life of the bond calculated using the effective interest method of amortization .

What Is a Discount on Bonds Payable?

Company A recorded the bond sale in its accounting records by increasing Cash in Bank (debit asset), Bonds Payable (credit liability) and the Discount on Bonds Payable (debit contra-liability). The premium or discount on bonds payable is the difference between the amount received by the corporation issuing the bonds and the par value or face amount of the bonds. If the amount received is greater than the par value, the difference is known as the premium on bonds payable. If the amount received is less than the par value, the difference is known as the discount on bonds payable.

Since these bonds will be paying the investors less than the market rate of interest ($300,000 semiannually instead of $305,000), the investors will pay less than $10,000,000 for the bonds. Discount on bonds payable (or bond discount) occurs when a corporation issues bonds and receives less than the bonds’ face or maturity amount. The root cause of the bond discount is the bonds have a stated interest rate which is lower than the market interest rate for similar bonds.

Where is the premium or discount on bonds payable presented on the balance sheet?

However, corporate bonds often pay a higher rate of interest than municipal bonds. Despite the lower interest rate, one benefit of municipal bonds relates to the tax treatment of the periodic interest payments for investors. With corporate bonds, the periodic interest payments are considered taxable income to the investor. For example, if an investor receives $1,000 of interest and is in the 25% tax bracket, the investor will have to pay $250 of taxes on the interest, leaving the investor with an after-tax payment of $750.