what is an adjusted debit balance 
an adjusted debit balance is the amount of money in a margin account that is owed to the brokerage firm minus profits on short sales and balances in a special memorandum account sma 1the adjusted debit balance tells the investor how much they would owe the broker in the event of a margin call which requires the repayment of borrowed funds to the brokerage firm if the balance in the account drops below a certain level that can happen when a security purchased on margin falls in value financial industry regulations permit an investor to borrow up to 50 of the purchase price of securities on margin which is stipulated in the federal reserve board s regulation t that is referred to as the initial margin 2in addition investors must meet a maintenance margin requirement set by their brokerage firm that s the amount of equity they need to have in their margin account at all times and it is calculated by subtracting the money they owe their broker from value of the cash and securities in their account industry rules require the maintenance margin to be at least 25 of the market value of the margin securities but some brokerage firms set a higher minimum 2