Stocks, gains/losses, do I really have to calculate them by hand?

[David Carlson]

On 4/25/2012 2:40 PM, Ross Boylan wrote:
> On Wed, 2012-04-25 at 08:52 -0500, David Carlson wrote:
>> I do not think that we need to have a solution that would work for all
>> cases.  Day-traders, mutual fund accounts or 401-k accounts may
>> require
>> external software or spreadsheet solutions.  People who want to use
>> LIFO
>> or special methods of lot selection and manipulation can find their
>> own
>> solutions.  In the US, at least, FIFO and average cost are the only
>> methods to be considered seriously.
> I'm not sure who is to be doing the considering, but I think all methods
> deserve consideration.  There's nothing in the tax code that dictates
> those two choices, for example.
>
> As of Jan 1 of this year US mutual fund companies are required to track
> the basis of shares bought and sold; I think the rule applies to brokers
> (i.e., stocks) too, but I'm  not sure.
>
> So there may be increasing amounts of external help as time passes.
>
> Tracking this stuff in a spreadsheet is difficult and awkward; it would
> be great if gnucash could do it.  As I indicated in the "role of users"
> thread, it's absence was a show-stopper for me.
>
> I guess getting something work is a pretty substantial project, though
> maybe the existing work on lots has done much of it.
>
> Ross
>
>
The IRS requires both brokers and mutual funds to use the average cost
method unless the client has notified them in writing to the contrary.

Average cost method is very easy to implement.

David C

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