Accounting for small businesses

Reconciling your business checking account each month allows us to keep your bank account, accounting and taxes up to date.

Having us reconcile your account each month allows you to…

• Identify lost checks, missing deposits and unauthorized electronic transactions. 
• Detect and avoid excessive/unwarranted bank charges and ensure that your bank correctly records transactions. 
• Detect and prevent embezzlement within your company. 
• Do you know how your business is doing? You really can’t know unless all accounts are reconciled and properly accounted for in your financial statement. 
• Manage your cash more effectively. Proper cash management not only saves money, it makes money for you. 
• Protect yourself. By timely reconciling and promptly objecting to your bank about any unauthorized, fraudulent or forged checks presented to your bank and paid by that bank, you can relieve your agency of liability for the shortfall and transfer the risk to the bank. This reason alone to reconcile should be enough. Crime exists. 
• Sleep better. You will sleep easier at night knowing that your bank accounts are reconciled, in balance and that all escrow funds, accounts, checks and disbursed funds are properly accounted for.

An income statement, also known as a profit and loss statement, basically adds an itemized list of all your income and subtracts an itemized list of all your expenses to get a profit or loss for the period.

An income statement allows you to…

• Track revenue and expenses so you can determine the operating performance of your business. 
• Determine which areas of your business are over or under budget. 
• Identify specific items that are causing unexpected expenses. Such as telephone, fax, postage or supplies. 
• Track dramatic increases in product returns or cost of goods sold as a percentage of sales. 
• Determine your income tax liability.

A balance sheet gives you a snapshot of your company’s financial situation at a specific point in time.

A balance helps you…

• Quickly monitor the financial strength and capabilities of your business. 
• Identify and analyze trends, particularly in the area of accounts receivable and accounts payable. For example, if your accounts receivable cycle is lengthening, you may be able to collect your receivables more aggressively. 
• Determine si su negocio está en condiciones de expandirse.
• Determine whether your business can easily handle the normal financial ebbs and flows of income and expenses.  
• Determine if you need to take immediate action to bolster cash reserves. 
• Determine if your business has been reducing accounts payable to avoid an inevitable cash shortage.
  
  

Balance sheets, along with income statements, are the most basic elements for providing financial reports to potential lenders, such as banks, investors and suppliers who are considering how much credit to extend to you.

The general ledger is the core of your company’s financial records. These records constitute the central “books” of your system. Since every transaction flows through the general ledger, a problem with your general ledger throws off all your books.

Having us review your general ledger system each month allows us to look for any discrepancies, such as double billing or unrecorded payments. We will then correct the discrepancies so that your books are always accurate and kept in top shape.