re accounts and fees

[jmmymac12]

can anyone recommend where i can learn to do my accounts for a small business. i have looked at sage etc and they are not very relevant.accountants fees are exorbitant cheers

 

[ubiquitous]

can anyone recommend where i can learn to do my accounts for a small business. i have looked at sage etc and they are not very relevant.

Learning to do your accounts is one thing. Learning the workings of the tax system, how it affects you and how best to plan to legally minimise your tax burden is another thing altogether.

accountants fees are exorbitant

Have you shopped around using recommendations from family/friends?

 

[jmmymac12]

i have and they all seem dear .after perseverance i can now do vat returns so i am some way there.i was looking at a kilroys course but i dont know the details yet

 

[simplyjoe]

I applaud your attempt at economising but I feel you may live to regret your actions if you attempt to do your own tax returns. However best of luck.

 

[rabbit]

Have you shopped around using recommendations from family/friends?

lol Its not as if accountants display their prices in their shop windows , is it ? A friend tried to shop around a few accountants recently to find the best price and was given the run around. The receptionist did not know the price. She said to ask the accountant. He was out. When contacted later he said it would depend on.....be in the range of ... to .... etc Accountants know that most self-employed and business people need accountants just to comply with the laws and tax regime their fellow accountants have devised.

 

[QED]

What area are you in?

Personal recommendations are generally best when choosing an accountant.

 

[Ham Slicer]

The receptionist did not know the price. She said to ask the accountant. He was out. When contacted later he said it would depend on.....be in the range of ... to .... etc Accountants know that most self-employed and business people need accountants just to comply with the laws and tax regime their fellow accountants have devised.

Of course the receptionist didn't know. Would you ask the security guard at the front of PC World how much a laptop was?

Accountants prices are dependent on...

As previously said work off recomendations.

 

[ubiquitous]

A friend tried to shop around a few accountants recently to find the best price and was given the run around. The receptionist did not know the price. She said to ask the accountant. He was out. When contacted later he said it would depend on.....be in the range of ... to .... etc

Just to be clear...did this happen with "a few accountants" or with only one? Your use of singular and plural is a bit odd, unless perhaps they all share the one receptionist

 

[z103]

I applaud your attempt at economising but I feel you may live to regret your actions if you attempt to do your own tax returns. However best of luck.

I really do believe that you should declare that you are an accountant, in this instance.

So answer the OP's query, sortmybooks run accounts courses and supply software that may be suitable
www.sortmybooks.com

(I have no affiliation with the above company)

 

[hhhhhhhhhh]

So answer the OP's query, sortmybooks run accounts courses and supply software that may be suitable
www.sortmybooks.com

I would stay away from software until you know how to do the books first.

Use excel to get you started.

If you are not sure what you are doing software packages can make the task seem even more daunting.
Then when you are comfortable with the process, buy software.

 

[Yaffle]

You can get a lot of infomation of www.revenue.ie they do a good starting in business guide and then a guide for any tax return you may have to complete. As hhhhhhh said excel should be enough for a small business.

Did you look at bookkeepers (they're usually cheaper than accountants)? I have heard that some will do the tax adjustments and tax return and you sign it off yourself. Or you can take a bookkeepers accounts and complete the tax return using the notes and helpsheets from www.revenue.ie.

 

[z103]

If you are not sure what you are doing software packages can make the task seem even more daunting.
Then when you are comfortable with the process, buy software.

Spreadsheets can end up a tangled mess, and are more prone to errors.
Some software is far easier to use. Try writing a PRSI macro for example.

 

[ubiquitous]

Did you look at bookkeepers (they're usually cheaper than accountants)? I have heard that some will do the tax adjustments and tax return and you sign it off yourself. Or you can take a bookkeepers accounts and complete the tax return using the notes and helpsheets from www.revenue.ie.

Most bookkeepers are not very good at tax planning, technical tax adjustments and related issues. That's why they are bookkeepers.

 

[rabbit]

Most bookkeepers are not very good at tax planning, technical tax adjustments and related issues.

lol how would you define a "technical tax adjustment" as opposed to a normal tax adjustment ?

As regards tax planning, I know of a big firm of accountants a number of years ago who did not tell their client his section 23 tax incentive allowance was just used up, so he had to pay a lot more tax that year , and he bought another tax incentive property the year after. He quizzed 5 different bookkeepers ; all said they would have alerted their client to the issue which the very large accountancy business failed to.

 

[ubiquitous]

He quizzed 5 different bookpeekers ; all said they would have alerted their client to the issue which the very large accountancy business failed to.

5 different bookkeepers? Did he not believe the first 3 or 4? I'm surprised that they didn't tell him that, yes of course they would make such a stupid error in dealing with his file. What did he expect them to say Did he ask them had they Professional Indemnity Insurance to cover them if they did make such a boo-boo?

Btw, is this the same guy who went to "a few accountants" all of whom happened to share the one receptionist? He must be some operator


ps some examples of technical tax adjustments:
Assessment of eligibility for Retirement Relief from CGT
Interpretation of Case I Commencement & Cessation rules
Operation of Professional Services withholding tax
Definition of principal private residence
Scope of applicability of RCT
Corporation Tax implications of investment & rental income.
Rules for determining trade v Capital transactions
When can I stop

 

[Caveat]

bookpeekers

Was this intentional?

 

[rabbit]

Btw, is this the same guy who went to "a few accountants" all of whom happened to share the one receptionist? He must be some operator

Different person. By the way, the few accountants all had the same receptionist. As far as I know, He went to the receptionist / dogsbody of one accountant and chatted to another accountant directly. You wrote to someone " Have you shopped around ?" (accountants) but it is not easy to shop around...as I said its not as if accountants have their prices / rates in their shop window. Many do not seem to like people shopping around, do they ? Why are accountants not more upfront about their fees ?

 

[rabbit]

ps some examples of technical tax adjustments:
Definition of principal private residence

You mean a bookkeeper cannot look up the definition of a " principal private residence " and only an accountant is " technically" qualified to advise somebody re same ?

 

[ubiquitous]

Different person. By the way, the few accountants all had the same receptionist. As far as I know, He went to the receptionist / dogsbody of one accountant and chatted to another accountant directly.

Thanks for clarifying that, but I still don't understand why you said:

The receptionist did not know the price. She said to ask the accountant. He was out.

You wrote to someone " Have you shopped around ?" (accountants) but it is not easy to shop around...as I said its not as if accountants have their prices / rates in their shop window. Many do not seem to like people shopping around, do they ? Why are accountants not more upfront about their fees ?

Its very easy to shop around. Simply ask trusted friends and family for recommendations for a good/cheap/quick accountant (depending on what your priority is). Follow up the positive recommendations and make your choice.

 

[rabbit]

Its very easy to shop around. Simply ask trusted friends and family for recommendations for a good/cheap/quick accountant

lol there is a difference - a very big difference - between getting a "recommendation" and "shopping around".

"Its very easy to shop around"( accountants). Its very easy to win the lotto. Just get the right numbers.

What if many different friends / family cannot think of any accountants who do not charge an arm and a leg ?