Don't Pull Your Hair Out - Hire a CPA

The extended deadline for corporate and partnership tax returns is upon us. Can you feel the joy?!? The end of summer signals crunch time for tax preparers everywhere. As September 15 approaches, many businesses find themselves frantically compiling the necessary information to submit to their accountants.

In this haste, important documents may be forgotten or closing entries can be haphazardly made. This can create quite a mess of the books! This “mess” often leads to lengthier tax preparation times, which leads to higher fees, which is more money out of your pocket.

Many businesses may feel they are saving money by keeping their own books and hiring a CPA solely for tax preparation, but this is not always the case. Often, paying a CPA a monthly fee to keep the books is more cost-effective than dumping a year’s worth of data on their lap at the last minute. Monthly bookkeeping can save time, money, and most importantly, your sanity! CPAs can add value in other ways too. See for yourself:

· The obvious one – CPAs deal with numbers every day. Maybe it’s inherent, maybe it’s learned, but CPAs know what a set of books should look like. “Debit”, “credit”, and “journal entry” are not dirty words to CPAs, but a way to communicate numbers.

· Continuity. Having a knowledgeable CPA involved with your business over a long period of time can provide a great benefit. This provides the business owner an outside source that is familiar with the history and operations of the business, as well as one who knows how to put it all together. They’ve seen what works, what doesn’t, and can provide feedback to the business managers.

· IRS communications. What business owner wants to deal with IRS? None, I suspect! CPAs can act as intermediaries, saving business owners the headache and hassle that often comes with dealing with IRS issues.

· Record retention. “Pack rats” – that is what CPAs MUST be. Whether it’s electronic copies or hard copies, CPAs are typically vigilant about keeping records. This provides an easy and accessible way for businesses to obtain documentation for loans, business plans, etc.

Does the word “debit” make you cringe? Are you on prescription meds from dealing with the IRS? Is the trashcan your dear friend? If any of these apply to you, I urge you to contact a CPA today!

--LeAnn Carlson is the audit manager for Cook & Associates, a full service public accounting firm with offices in San Marcos and San Antonio, TX