Dustin Mason LLC

It's that magical time of year again - when business owners everywhere ask, "Where did all my money go?"

Every December, I see the same thing - great business owners blindsided by messy books and missed deductions. The good news? A little cleanup now can save you hours later. Here's where to start.

✅Record owner contributions and draws correctly.
This is one of the mistakes I see most. It is extremely important to keep personal and business transactions separate. Anytime you buy some that is not business related use Owner's Equity - not an expense account.

✅Code expenses appropriately 
Many business owners do not use their financial statements in the way they are intended to be used. Instead of helping to guide them to make better decisions, expenses get categorized however QBO codes them. Separating expenses into true categories gives you a clear view of your operating costs.

✅ Review transactions
Interest on loan payments is often overlooked when business owners are doing their own bookkeeping. Only the interest portion of a payment is deductible. The rest reduces your loan balance - not your profit.

✅Audit recurring subscriptions
Check your monthly subscription charges. If you are categorizing your expenses properly this step should only take a few minutes. Immediately cancel anything that you are not using - even if you really intended to use it one day.

✅ Identify Negative Amounts
The balance sheet is, in my opinion, the most important of the three main financial statements. Unfortunately, many small business owners never bother to look at it once during the year. Take a few minutes and see if anything looks out of place. A negative amount in the liability section can mean something was misclassified. Catch them before year-end while you still have time to fix the underlying issue.

When your books are clean and current, you file faster, claim every deduction allowable, and make smarter decisions all year long. 

💬 If you're not sure where to start - or just want a second pair of eyes to review things before tax season - send me a message. I'm happy to help business owners finish the year strong.

🔥What's one thing you always double-check before tax season?