It’s that time of year again! You might be scrambling to gather all of the paperwork you need for taxes. You’re thinking about next year’s budget. Was your spending under control? Can you invest in a new hire? If you’ve been saving everything to do at once, it might seem overwhelming.

Attention to detail now will improve your ability to make clear, informed decisions related to your budget and strategy for next year. We’ve identified five things you can do to get your financial accounting in order to avoid the unpleasantries and stress with year-end financial planning.

• Reconcile your bank accounts to make sure you know where all your money went
  Have you accounted for everything? If you’re using an accounting system, is everything entered? Have all of your payments to vendors cleared? If you ended a subscription, make sure you weren’t charged. And make there are no fraudulent charges on your account.
• Record all of your expenses to make sure you maximize tax savings
  Tax deductions equal tax savings. Have you captured all of your expenses? Have you looked at capturing the business portion of usage of your vehicle? Have you reviewed your personal credit cards to make sure you didn’t use those cards for anything related to your business?  Don’t miss an opportunity to get those expense deductions.
• Make sure you have valid W9s for vendors so you can issue 1099s on time
  Make sure you have valid W9s, and they’re correct. There are considerable penalties for providing an incorrect statement and if you don’t file on time. The W9 has the tax ID that you have to have to file the 1099 with the IRS and all the relevant information to make sure vendors get a copy.
• Collect everything you need to give to your tax accountant
  What does your accountant need? Anything that may be required to calculate your tax liability and file with the IRS. This can include completed financial statements and/or bank statements for your business accounts, sales receipts, and records of all business purchases. Don’t forget asset and equipment records (think laptops and office furniture) – purchases, sales, and disposals.
• Review your spending from last year to help create your 2022 budget
  
  Analyze last year’s spending:
  • Have I made any significant business changes?
  • Are health care benefits increasing?
  • Is my employee base the same so I can predict similar wages next year?
  • Do I think I’ll spend the same amount on vendors, consultants, software, etc.?

What new expenses might you have?

• • Am I adding new software?
  • Do I need to buy new laptops for employees?
  • Do I plan to add headcount?
  • Are health care benefits increasing?

Year-end financial planning shouldn’t be stressful. Take it one step at a time. If you feel like you’re ready to outsource this headache, we’re here to help!