[GNC] Add top-level account for both Income (Revenue) and Expenses (Other [Non-Operating] Income And Expenses)

[Michael or Penny Novack]

On 12/25/2022 7:51 PM, Stan Brown wrote:
> The new top-level account is for _Non-Operating_ income and expenses. As
> such, I would make it an equity account. I agree with you, though, that
> it should definitely be a placeholder.
>
> What I'm not clear on is why it must be a top-level account. To me it
> sure looks like what we called Extraordinary Income (in the accounting
> sense, where "Income" is the net of income and expenses) -- for
> instance, the gain or loss if they sell a piece of equipment that they
> no longer need. That could have the main Equity account as its parent.
>
> The OP could do some experimentation. But, like you, I'm concerned about
> how well the reports would cope with a sixth top-level account.

Accounts of both types income and expense are actually of fundamental 
type equity. The change in accounting practice to not immediately enter 
against equity was made hundreds of years ago specifically to allow for 
the Income and Expense report (aka "profit and loss") and more recently, 
with computers, we no longer need to ever "close" them into equity << 
but you CAN have gnucash :close the books: if you like >>

SO .... if you have some extraordinary "income" (or "expense") that you 
do NOT want in the profit and loss, that you want immediately "closed" 
to equity, you could indeed put those accounts under equity. If I had 
one or the other (or both) I;d probably create a parent under equity 
with a name like "extraordinary income and expense" and put children 
under that as needed.

Michael D Novack