[jeff]

Welcome to the Q1 2016 CPA Exam Study Group for BEC.

Some BLITZ videos to help your exams: https://www.another71.com/ninja-blitz

Jeff Elliott, CPA (KS) | Another71 | NINJA CPA | NINJA CMA | NINJA CPE

[Anonymous]

Malotu C?

[MaLoTu]

Yes, Cortes! It is C.

[MaLoTu]

Can someone tell me how to calculate the flexible budget? I can copy and paste the problem I am having trouble with if that helps explain it. Is there a formula?

[Anonymous]

I am not that good with it, but post the question that way maybe someones pinches in if I do not know the concept behind the answer

[MaLoTu]

It doesn't seem that there would be a formula that would fit all situations. I think I get the underlying concept. I had to get the standard per unit cost, multiply it by the actual qty, and then compare the given actual VC to the budgeted for the amount sold … that was a mouthful! I will post it if you want to see, but if not I don't want to go through formatting it! **I don't mind posting it though if it will help you** lol.

[Anonymous]

I had one one like that recently. I was able to get it right but after like 5 minutes trying to figure out was happening. It was a mess, I hope I do not get a bunch of those q's on the exam!! Do not worry, do not post it of you feel you do not need to 🙂

Btw I kind of know what is happening now when I see those variances q and I do not think there is a universal formula for them. We have to be able to decipher what they are asking and then know what numbers to use or how to get them. For efficiency or usage variances, Budgeted rate * diferences in budgeted and actual volumes. With Rate variances, Actual volume or quantity * diferences between budgeted rate and actual rate. But they sometimes throw in total fixed OH cost numbers and total OH cost and ask for variable OH rate or volume variance. So in conclusion I do not think there is a universal formula for this nonsense.

[MaLoTu]

Cortes, for the basic variance questions I use the following formulas:

P = Performance – DA = Actual (before the parenthesis) ———Actual qty*(Std. Pr-Actual Pr)
U = Usage – DS (you see it spells DADS, helps order) – Std. Pr*(Std qty-Actual qty)
R = Rate – DA – —————————————————Actual hrs*(Std. rate – Actual rate)
E = Efficiency – DS – —————————————————Std. rate*(Std. hrs-Actual hrs)

[FAR_WARS]

Can anyone w becker tell me what “ABA BSA”- Leave me alone, I have to study” is supposed to mean regarding OH Variances?

FAR- 80
BEC- 75
AUD- 78
REG- ?

[Anonymous]

Malotu those are good for the basic ones! 🙂 Ninja has the same ones on the book. I had to try to understand the concept behind them first to know what to use and therefore know what I needed to compute bc sometimes like in your q they can have you calculating first the budgeted rates and one can easily end up mixing numbers (OH fixed rates with variable OH rates) for example. We can know the formulas but I think it is equally important to know what they mean and what the q is demanding of us and that is where I sometimes fail :/.

[Excel14]

I look at the variances this way….all the price variances use an actual number outside of the parentheses, and the efficiency variances use the standard number outside. In terms of what goes inside the parentheses, if it is price a variance, it is merely the standard less the actual price; if it is an efficiency variance, it is standard quantity less actual quantity. It may not work for other people, but it made things very easy for me. Now the FOH variances are a shade different, but most follow the logic I used.

BEC (2/28/16) ----- 78
FAR (09/10/16)-----
AUD
REG

CIA, CGAP, CFE

[MaLoTu]

@FAR_WARS – I have no idea! I get so sick of the mnemonics in Becker that I blank out on most of them!

@cortes – I have that format memorized so that I can write it down really quick on my scratch paper before the test!

[Excel14]

BEC (2/28/16) ----- 78
FAR (09/10/16)-----
AUD
REG

CIA, CGAP, CFE

[Anonymous]

Malotu I will try to do that too with some formulas that I have

Excel14 that is basicly the logic that I use too:

Usage or efficiency variance = STANDARD rate * (diference bewteen actual and budgeted volume)
Rate variances= ACTUAL usage or volume * (difference between actual and budgeted rates)

The fixed OH production variances I found more tricky to decipher.

[MaLoTu]

@excel – yes the answer was C … I didn't subtract 3000 … I hope I get easy calculations. I am pretty sure that when I took it in August I didn't know half as much as I do right now and I still made a 67 … I hope luck is with me! I am starting to stress.

[Excel14]

Malotu,

You will nail this thing. I'm just praying I don't see master budget, flexible budget, type questions. That is the only unit I really have to hit hard tomorrow. Test on Sunday. I do want to review Gleims IT stuff too. Not sure if Gleim goes deep enough, but we'll find out Sunday.

BEC (2/28/16) ----- 78
FAR (09/10/16)-----
AUD
REG

CIA, CGAP, CFE

[Author]

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