Looking Forward – Reporting And Accounting Update For Registered Social Landlords

The exposure draft of the SORP was published in summer 2006 and it was expected that the final SORP would have been published at the end of this month with RSLs encouraged to adopt early in their March 2007 accounts.

However, the proposals, particularly in respect of shared ownership accounting, have met with significant opposition. It seems unlikely that the shared ownership accounting proposals will be dropped completely, but the SORP working party is reviewing the proposals carefully and is likely to come up with a slightly revised consultation draft of the SORP in the next couple of months with another Exposure Draft in the autumn. Although the SORP has not been issued in final form, a number of RSLs are already accounting for first tranche sales through the income and expenditure account and it is likely that more will be adopt this accounting policy in this year’s financial statements.