Question

Your parents tell you that they must create a personal balance sheet. Explain what a personal balance sheet is and explain the three steps they must use in its creation.

Answer 1

A balance sheet is an essential way to evaluate for a business. 2. Calculate Assets

Assets, money, investments and products the business owns that can be converted into cash: These are what put companies in the financial positive. A thriving company should have assets that are greater than the sum of its liabilities; this creates value in the company’s equity or stock, and opens up opportunities for financing.

It’s important to list your assets by their liquidity—the facility by which they can be turned into cash—starting with cash itself and moving into long-term investments at the end of the list. For the purpose of an annual balance sheet, you can separate your list between “Current Assets,” anything that can be converted into cash within a year or less, and “Fixed Assets,” long-term possessions that can be sold or that retain value down the line, minus depths and other things.