Working in real estate takes a big investment of time and money. In conducting your business, it’s not always crystal clear whether expenses are deductible, which can lead to an overpayment of taxes.
Understanding your expenses will help you deduct appropriately and avoid overpaying on your quarterly and year-end taxes.
To remain profitable in the transportation industry is a challenge these days. Without a proper way to track and control operational expenses for your trucking company, you run the risk of going out of business.
One way to gauge profitability is to accurately calculate the cost per mile for each of your trucks. That way, you’ll have a better understanding of your expenses when it comes time to charge your customers.
With strong bookkeeping and accounting practices in place, calculating your cost per mile starts with your company’s expenses. In the transportation industry, expenses typically fall into three categories: fixed costs, variable costs, and payroll.
Some machine shop owners assume they know how much it costs to run a job based on gut instinct or because of their experience. Others simply rely on bank balances to measure the success of their business at the end of each month.
To run and grow a thriving machine shop, you should know which jobs are truly profitable, and which jobs didn’t make you money.
Whether you’re taking the first steps in starting a small business, looking for ways to improve profits for your existing company, or exploring new opportunities for business growth, partnering with a monthly accounting service will help you plan for success.
Here's a quick list of ways a monthly accounting service will help you throughout the different stages of your business.
Choosing a permissible method of accounting for tax purposes for your construction business involves classifying your contracts and business. As your construction business grows and changes, you may benefit from using a different method of accounting.
You should review the following three steps every year to ensure that you are using the right method of accounting for your construction contracts.
Law firms face many financial obstacles that impede their growth and ability to provide a better service. Issues include:
You’re in the business of navigating the law for clients, not accounting and paperwork. Bookkeeping and accounting activities should not interfere with your primary responsibilities to the firm.
To stay focused on your clients, consider outsourcing accounting to professionals with experience in your industry.
Small businesses typically fall into two different accounting methods: cash and accrual. Both accounting methods refer to the basic rules and guidelines under which businesses keep their books and prepare their financial reports.
Depending on the legal form of the business, sales volume, extensions of credit to customers, inventory, and tax requirements set forth by the IRS, small business owners need to decide which accounting method to follow.
While some form of record-keeping is required by law, the resulting information can also be useful in assessing the financial health of a business. Although it is possible to change accounting methods down the line, the process can become complicated. That being said, it’s important for small business owners to consult with an accountant early on to decide which method is best suited for their particular situation.
As a small business owner, you should be consistently looking for ways to improve operations, increase profits, and reduce unnecessary spending. One option that should be considered is to hire accounting and payroll services to save you time and money.
Online accounting portals are standard in today’s technology-driven business environment. However, some small businesses are still exchanging their information with their accountants the old fashioned way — either by email or by handing off hard copies of paperwork. That’s definitely not efficient for the small business owner or the accountant.
Online portal technology allows small businesses to conveniently and securely log in to their accounting firm’s website to upload files for their accountant, receive messaging from the accounting firm, pay invoices, access online small business software, and access documents, tax returns, financial statements, and other important materials.
Essentially, it’s a secure way for small business owners to connect with their accountant, access resources, and exchange information. All in real time.
Small business owners often overlook the importance of partnering with a good accountant until they find themselves spending too much time in the back office crunching numbers at the end of a long day.
We tend to hear comments from new clients along the lines of, “I wish I made the decision to work with an accountant sooner” or “I didn’t realize what accounting services included beyond tax prep.”
Great accountants provide valuable small business advice on money management, employment laws, profitability, and financing year round.
