Greg White, CPA- Part Two: Cleaning Business Taxes Episode 166 Greg White – White and Associates In today’s blog we outline the second half of Mike’s conversation with Greg White, owner of White and Associates and expert in cleaning business taxes and accounting. First lets recap last episode: How you reconcile your accounts is the foundation of your tax and accounting If your Balance Sheet is correct- your Profit and Loss statement will be correct Your CPA should ask lots of questions and help you make sure you don’t overpay in taxes CLICK HERE if you would like to read the first blog/ listen to the first podcast Now lets dive deeper into today’s topic- cleaning business taxes. If you’re an employed single parent with no kids who is renting, your tax returns will be simple. For all of you business owners out there, you will want a skilled professional to help you prepare your returns and make sure you don’t pay any more cleaning business taxes than you owe. Greg shares a conversation he had with a client who had snow equipment that she wanted to replace. Greg discovered that she could use that expense to save on her taxes. She would have never known to mention anything, but their discussion is what lead to Greg discovering it and using it to save her money. KEY POINT: Make sure your CPA asks lots of questions and understands major things going on in your cleaning business If you go to your accountant January first with a box full of receipts and a whole lot of hope there isn’t much they can do to manage your cleaning business taxes at that point. When you work with your accountant throughout the year and keep them in the loop, you can create strategies that will save you numbers. Mike asks about owners of cleaning companies who just don’t get numbers. P&L’s and Balance Sheets are totally foreign. Can Greg help? Greg explains that many firms including his own can do as little as file taxes and as much as full accounting services. The key is not just to have a good set of books for your cleaning business taxes, but to properly run your company. If you need outside help to get that done, that’s fine, but without proper numbers you are flying blind. KEY POINT: Don’t be afraid to get help where you need it The next point to consider is internal financial controls. This is what allows you to run the financial affairs of your business without doing the books yourself. At the same time protecting yourself from theft and embezzlement. Greg shares some basic business best practices to make sure your employees aren’t stealing from you: Always open your mail, so you get the notices if things aren’t being paid. Keep your bookkeeper and accountant separate. Once your accountant or bookkeeper prepares your bills to be sent, ask for a back up and ready for signature. You should be the one signing and sending all checks Greg also discusses the basic service levels you can consider when hiring an accountant or bookkeeper: Option 1- Just filing your cleaning business taxes Option 2- Go over your books with you and help you understand them Option 3- Hire an in house bookkeeper with a CPA like Greg overseeing them Option 4- Have an outside firm handle all of your accounting and taxes Parting words from Greg – it’s important to know your business. The most successful owners are the ones that treat their business like a business and not like a personal checking account. They not only understand marketing their business but the back end. With current technology it is so easy to reconcile the bank statements. You don’t have to do it every day but every week or month will give you a good handle on your business. The biggest ting is to get comfortable with your numbers, get over the fear and they are ready to help out. BONUS LOVIN: Cleaning Nation gets two free hours of bookkeeping when they use White & Associates for their cleaning business taxes AND Greg will give a complimentary 1 on 1 consultation. You can email Greg directly at greg@whitecpafirm.com or call the office at 801-424- 5120.