Is there information available on guidelines for accounting reporting principles and practices?
THE AICPA (American Institute of Certified Public Accountants) approved CIRA (Common Interest Realty Association) Audit Guide in March 1991. This guide firmly establishes Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) for the community association industry. Prior to the issuance of this guide, CPA practitioners had little guidance and were following general industry practices. The guide narrows the choices but still offers a choice between the fund method and the commercial (or single) column method of financial statement presentation. The guide requires use of the accrual basis of accounting. Cash basis will be acceptable only if there are no material differences from accrual basis. This may also cause some management companies to modify their accounting systems. Many management companies use the cash method of accounting during the year and rely upon the CPA to convert it to the accrual method at year-end as part of the audit process. The guide also establishes disclosure requiremen
