Sarasota has leased a large, Alpha-3 computer system from the manufacturer. The lease calls for a monthly rental of $38,000 for the 144 months (12 years) of the lease term. The estimated useful life of the computer is 15 years.
All rentals are payable on the first day of the month beginning with August 1, 2020, the date the computer was installed and the lease agreement was signed. The lease is non-cancelable for its 12-year term, and it is secured only by the manufacturer’s chattel lien on the Alpha-3 system.
This lease is to be accounted for as a finance lease by Sarasota, and it will be amortized by the straight-line method. Borrowed funds for this type of transaction would cost Sarasota 6% per year (0.50% per month). Following is a schedule of the present value of an annuity due for selected periods discounted at 0.50% per period when payments are made at the beginning of each period.