Case 1: P. Property Revenue recognition

P. Co. is one of Hong Kongs leading property development companies. The companys shares have been listed on the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange since 2007. The principal activities of the Company and its subsidiaries (the Group) include property development and investment, hotel operations, property leasing and trading of building materials etc. The financial year-end of the company is Sept 30.

On Dec 1, 2019, you as the finance manager of the company who oversee the accounting-related matters about the group find the following few facts:

Residential development project ST

The company has a number of property development projects going on. One of these is a residential development named ST, which includes the construction of five multi-story residual buildings with multiple units in its first phrase. The project obtained approval of its General Building Plan by the Building Authority in Dec 2016, and foundation works were completed by mid-2017 and superstructure works commenced in late 2017. By June 2018, the construction was in-progress and the Group started selling the apartment in mass retail market before construction was completed. Such pre-sale complies with the presale period set by the Hong Kong SAR Government. Upon completion of the construction, the Group needs to obtain a Certificate of Compliance issued by the Lands Department. This is expected to occur on Nov 30, 2019 while the expected date of passing the kays of the apartments to customers will be Dec 31 2019.

The directors would like to know the accounting impact of the HKFRS15 to the Group, particularly when revenue from the pre-sale of apartment can be recognized. The directors selected one of the pre-sale transactions of the project can asked for advice. The transaction is detailed as follows:

On March 1, 2019, Mr. C. entered in to a preliminary agreement to purchase one of the units of the project based on the listing price of HKD20 million. Based on the agreement, Mr. C paid a 5% of the deposit of listing price. On March 4th, Mr. C entered into a formal agreement for sale and purchase superseding the preliminary agreement. On the same day, Mr. C paid another 5% of the list price as deposit. The 10% initial deposit has to be paid regardless which payment plan a customer chooses as the deposit is used to protect the property developer from customers who fail to complete their obligations under the contract.

The Group offered Mr. C a payment plan under which if Mr. C paid the remaining amount within 90 days after the preliminary agreement, he would receive a 10% discount on the list price. On March 4, 2019, the customer paid the remaining balance of the list price after the discount. The payment was then placed in a stakeholder account in accordance with the Consent Scheme of the Lands Department of Hong Kong. The Group could withdraw money from the stakeholder account to pay for the construction costs of the project which would effectively reduce the financing needs of the project.

The Group estimated, at the inception of the contract, that the cash selling price of this apartment unit after considering different alternative payment options was HK$19,673,954. A comparison of the payment terms between different payment options indicated a total cumulative interest of HK$1,673,954 and an implied interest rate of 12% per annual (equivalent to 1% per month). After taking into consideration the relevant principles in HKFRS15, the Group concluded that this arrangement with Mr. C. contained a significant financing component, and therefore, interest, is calculated monthly.

Required:

1) Analyze and advise as to when the Group can recognize revenue arising from the pre-sale of the apartment of the project?

2) Explain, with appropriate calculation and journal entries, how the payment Mr. C made in 2019 prior to the completion of the construction should be dealt with in accordance with relevant accounting standards in the Groups consolidated financial statement for the year ended on Sept 30, 2019.