Cashflow forecasting is the next step on your business’ roadmap to recovery. Your cashflow forecast will help you determine how to move forward with your business. You can use your forecast make the best decisions for your company and its finances.

What is Cashflow Forecasting?

A cashflow forecast is a comprehensive financial model used to tracks a business’ access to cash. The model shows where your inflows and outflows of cash will be going for the next 13 weeks. Your forecast will be more accurate in the first several weeks than it will be near the end of the forecast. To keep everything up to date, the forecast should be updated weekly. The forecast will track your inflows and outflows, which is crucial to understanding your breakeven point and modifying your business plan to accommodate the new economic landscape. It will also account for any existing debt you have and any interest payments on that debt. This allows for short-term liquidity planning and long-term budgeting. Both are especially crucial when facing down the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Why Cashflow Forecasting?

With a solid cashflow forecasting model, you can weigh the financial implications of decisions before you make them. Your forecast will account for inflows and outflows of cash, as well as inventory costs, accounts payable and receivable, bill payments and more. Knowing these details will help you set the stage for other difficult business decisions like cutting costs or consolidating debt. By adjusting your forecast to reflect your potential business decisions, you can see everything from how the decision will affect you in the short term to a projection of how it will affect you in the long term. This is especially important in an ever-shifting economy. The forecast can also give you insight on whether and when you need to seek outside funding for your business.

Maximizing PPP Loan Forgiveness

One of the best features of the loans from the government’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) is the potential for loan forgiveness. While the federal government and the Small Business Administration (SBA) are still working on guidelines for what allocations will and will not be eligible for forgiveness, we do have some idea of what they will be looking for. The current guidelines state that 75% of your PPP disbursement must go toward payroll costs, which include compensation, benefits and leave time. The other 25% of your disbursement can go to other eligible costs like interest on mortgage payments or rent and utility payments. Your cashflow forecast model can help you determine how you should allocate your PPP disbursement to not only maximize your loan forgiveness, but also help you determine which parts of your business need the money from the disbursement. As you move forward, you will understand how best to use your disbursement funding to help your business. You’ll also understand what implications the disbursement will have on the finances in other areas of your company.

Avoid Money Management Mistakes

Some of the most common money mistakes that business owners make include defaulting on liabilities, overstocking inventory and targeting the wrong market. Your cashflow forecast will keep you from making these common mistakes, especially with high stakes funding like a Paycheck Protection Program loan. You can use the forecast to track your liabilities and make the best decision on when to pay them from which account. The forecast will also help you understand the dynamics of your inventory stock and how to handle them. As the financial outlook in the economy changes, your target market may shift as well. You can use your cashflow forecast to adjust which markets you target and with which funding. You can also get a sense of the effect you are having on your targeted market as you update your forecast. A cashflow forecast sets the stage for the rest of your COVID-19 business plan. In the coming weeks, our Roadmap to Recovery webinar series will also cover setting breakeven points and reestablishing post-pandemic budgets. As you continue to prioritize your business’ growth and stability, your cashflow forecast will be a crucial tool for reevaluating your business plan.

The next step on your business’ roadmap to recovery is maximizing your Paycheck Protection Program loan forgiveness. These loans give business owners the power to maintain their company and keep their employees on the payroll, without worrying about paying the disbursement back in full.

Paycheck Protection Program

As part of the CARES Act approved by Congress on March 26, the government enacted the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). The program consists of loans worth 2.5x a company’s monthly payroll, up to $10 million. Loans from the PPP offer 1% interest for a term of 2 years. Loans from the Paycheck Protection Program are also forgivable so long as you use the disbursement to keep all your employees on your payroll and use the remaining funds for eligible allocations. The SBA and the federal government have determined what constitutes an eligible allocation.

Approved Loan Uses and Stipulations

The loan disbursement from the PPP can be used for payroll costs, employee benefits, mortgage interest payments, rent payments, utilities and interest on other debt accrued prior to February 15, 2020. While the government has approved several uses for the PPP disbursement, in order to qualify for forgiveness, at least 75% of it must be used for payroll costs. The other 25% of the loan can be used for the other qualified expenses. Eligible payroll costs include:

• Employee compensation, up to $100,000 per employee
• Payment for parental, family, medical or sick leave
• Taxes assessed on employee compensation

Maximizing PPP Forgiveness

In order to maximize forgiveness, your business will need to diligently maintain documentation to take back to your lender after the loan period is up. You’ll most likely need to provide your lender with:

• Employment and Wage Documentation
• Receipts and Invoices
• Official Certification

The government has allowed for partial forgiveness on these loans as well. Proportion of loan forgiveness will decline as headcount of employees declines or as salaries decrease. Employers who have laid off or furloughed employees or employers who have decreased employee salaries have until June 30, 2020 to reinstate the employees to their previous employment status and salary level. The amount of forgiveness the employer is eligible for increases proportionate to the number of employees reinstated.

Tracking Strategies

Tracking the way your business allocates your Paycheck Protection Program disbursement is vital to maximizing the forgiveness of your loan. If your business was also approved for an SBA funded Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL), you must allocate the funding to different expenses. Using the following tracking strategies will help you understand how to apply the funding to your business in the best way possible. Track other Approved Expenses Maintain two separate spreadsheets for tracking Paycheck Protection Program allocations. For one spreadsheet, multiply the amount of your loan disbursement by 0.25. This determines how much of your loan can be used for approved non-payroll expenses. In the second spreadsheet, keep track of the remaining 75% of the loan disbursement for payroll and employee benefit expenses. As you use the funding for approved expenses, separate the deductions by the approved category. Maintain receipts, invoices and records of each of the recorded payments in a single, easy-to-access digital file.

Add Supporting Documentation

In addition to your well-organized spreadsheet, maintain additional documentation that validates the expenses you are recording. These documents include:

• IRS payroll tax filings
• Mortgage/rent agreements
• Utility accounts in the business’ name
• Previous tax returns

Build a Cashflow Forecast

A cashflow forecast is a 13-week financial model that shows where your available cash will be going. The forecast should be updated weekly to ensure that each of your financial decisions is backed financially. The forecast will help you determine how best to distribute your disbursement, whether it’s payroll or utility payments. As you determine how to allocate your funding, your cashflow forecast will also help you decide whether to seek other outside funding, like an Economic Injury Disaster Loan distributed by the SBA. Understanding where your funding is going is vital to making sure you use it wisely and in a way that maximizes your forgiveness.

The COVID-19 pandemic has hit businesses hard. To help them stay afloat, the federal government and the IRS pushed the tax filing and payment deadline to July 15, 2020.

There’s Still Time!

For many businesses, tax season is a last-minute dash to the finish—even with the new, later deadline. By this stage, many CPAs do not have the bandwidth to take on new clients and help them file their taxes in time to hit the deadline. At Better Accounting, our expert CPAs and bookkeepers are still available to help you prepare your finances and file your taxes. Our expert tax accountants can get started on helping your business with this year’s tax filings right away.

No Job Too Big

Even if you have multiple years of taxes left to sort through and file, we can help with that! We will help you sort through the IRS’ process for backdated returns, apply for penalty abatement if it’s applicable, and even gather the records you need for each of the years you need to file. Our tax experts will even help you monitor return processing and other compliance processes long after the tax deadline has passed. With Better Accounting, you can make this year the year your business gets caught up on tax filings and starts looking to the future.

Business Owners, Fear Not

We specialize in all tax filings, whether federal or state, business or individual. As small business owners ourselves, we understand that tax season is stressful. It doesn’t matter if your business’ finances are inextricably tied to your personal finances or you just need a little extra help on the personal side. Our tax experts are ready to help you with every tax form you may need to file. Our professional tax accountants also stay up-to-date on tax credits and incentives. If you’re eligible for deductions, credits or breaks, we will make sure to include the proper documentation with your filing.

We Do Tax Prep, Too

If you are not quite ready to file your taxes or you just don’t know where to begin, don’t worry! Our expert accountants also do tax preparation. We will help you get your finances in order before we complete your filing. Our CPAs and bookkeepers will help you organize your records and documentation. We understand that every business is unique, and our tax preparation strategy is tailored specifically to your business. Our tax experts will help you with everything from sorting a shoebox full of receipts to itemizing tax deductions. We use detailed tax preparation checklists to make sure you have everything you need to get started on those filings. The new tax deadline is fast approaching. Get expert tax help from Better Accounting and make 2020 your best year yet. Give us a call today!

As part of the CARES Act passed by Congress on March 26, the federal government is implementing many programs to help businesses. One such program is the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), meant to incentivize small business owners to keep employees on their payrolls.

What is the Paycheck Protection Program?

The Paycheck Protection Program is intended to provide cash-flow assistance to businesses through federally guaranteed loans. The loans are disbursed to employers who maintain their payroll during the COVID-19 declared emergency. Employers who comply with payroll maintenance are eligible for loan forgiveness for certain expenses and 8 weeks of payroll forgiveness. Payroll forgiveness will be determined by employee retention rates and salary levels. Unlike other loans provided by the SBA, the PPP loans are not subject to SBA fees. Payment can also be deferred for six to twelve months in an effort to ensure that businesses can make their other payments and keep their doors open in the wake of COVID-19. Small businesses can apply for the loans if they’ve experienced economic injury as a result of the COVID-19 declared state of emergency. The dates of economic injury are between February 15, 2020 and June 30, 2020. The CARES Act also provides that the program be retroactive to February 15, 2020 to incentivize employers to bring laid off and furloughed employees back onto their payroll.

How do you apply for the Paycheck Protection Program?

You can apply for a PPP loan through any of the SBA’s pre-approved 7(a) lenders. These include banks, credit unions and other financial institutions. The CARES Act also gives the SBA the resources to approve additional lenders to accommodate the influx of applicants. A list of SBA-approved 7(a) lenders can be found here. To apply, you’ll need the following statements, reports and documentation:

• Your 2019 IRS Quarterly 940, 941 or 944 payroll tax reports
• The last twelve months of payroll reports beginning with your last payroll date
• 2019 IRS Form 1099 for any independent contractors that would otherwise be your employee
• Documentation showing total of all health insurance premiums paid by the company
• Documents showing the sum of all company-paid retirement funding
• Documentation showing employer contributions to 401K and IRA plans

What can I use my PPP funding for?

Funding disbursed from your PPP loan can be used for any of the following:

• Employee compensation, including:
  • Salary and wages
  • Commission, cash tips or the equivalent
  • Vacation time or Paid Time Off (PTO)
  • Family, medical or sick leave
• Healthcare benefits and insurance premiums
• Retirement benefits
• State or local tax assessed on wage compensation
• Interest payments on mortgage obligations, not including principal
• Rent, including rent for a lease agreement
• Utilities
• Interest payments on other debts incurred before February 15, 2020

The Paycheck Protection Program is one of many financial and economic stimulus options available to small business owners. Reach out to Better Accounting or your local SBA representative to learn what else you can do for your business.   Download the Paycheck Protection Program ApplicationThe information provided is based upon facts that were available at the time of publication and are subject to change.Better Accounting makes no warranties, express or implied, or representations as to the accuracy, completeness or timeliness of the information provided. Better Accounting cannot be held liable for any claims or damages that result from reliance on this information.

Tax season can be stressful, especially when the stakes for small business owners are already so high. When tax season rolls around, you can trust your taxes to an experienced tax accountant. With some basic documents, your tax accountant can fill out your forms and maximize your return.

Here are some of the things you need to bring your tax accountant so they can prepare your taxes:

• Last year’s tax return

This will help your accountant understand which credits or deductions you claimed in past years. It will serve as a yardstick for what this year’s return should look like based on what growth you’ve seen and the changes you’ve made.

• Articles of Incorporation
• A partnership agreement, if applicable
• Record of any changes in ownership

These documents will help the accountant understand not only your company structure but also any changes you may see in your returns. This way, you can file the right forms and claim the right deductions, all while minimizing your risk of an audit.

• Accounting records
• Bank statements
• Credit card statements
• Payroll reports

Using these documents, your accountant will be able to see things like what healthcare benefits your company offers. These details help your accountant understand which forms need to be filed and which expenses need to be accounted for.

• Detail of asset purchases
• Detail of asset dispositions
• Depreciation schedules

These documents help your accountant determine your company’s net worth. Your net worth is more than just the amount of money your company makes, it’s also the worth of the assets you still have. These documents will paint a fuller picture of your company and its finances for your tax accountant. With the proper information gathered, your tax accountant can assess which deductions or credits you qualify for. Arriving at your tax appointment with these documents and records will also save you time and money. Tax accountants often partner with accounting firms that will do tax preparation for the companies they prepare tax forms for. An accountant doing tax prep will come prepared with the list of documents your tax accountant will need. This includes reconciled bank statements, detailed accounting records and other records for your tax accountant to document. With an expert tax accountant from Better Accounting, your tax season will be a breeze. Whether it’s a tax credit or a more detailed list of available deductions, our tax accountants will maximize your return and minimize the amount of time you have to wait for it.

What is bookkeeping?

Bookkeeping is different from your day-to-day accounting operations. An accounting professional will give you a high-level interpretation of your financial data. In contrast, a bookkeeper is intimately acquainted with the financial dealings of your business. They can do everything from bank reconciliation to maintaining your general ledger. With a bookkeeper, your company will be at an advantage over companies without one. Timely, accurate books will reveal everything from bookkeeping mistakes to increased cash flow. Your bookkeeper is one of the most vital parts of your company. Your bookkeeper’s daily tasks are the things that keep your business afloat. Here are a few of the hidden truths about bookkeeping.

Even the smallest bookkeeping mistakes can hurt your company

When you’re running a small business, it’s important to note that even small expenses can make a big difference. If you don’t have a tenured professional running your books, small mistakes may crop up. Anything from small errors to small expenses can sink a small business at any stage. Small errors or messy books can affect your business’ cash flow and ultimately, your business’ success. Your bookkeeper will keep your books clean and accurate. This gives you and your accounting staff the financial data you need to make big business decisions.

Accurate bookkeeping will save you time and money on your taxes

As tax season nears for your company, a detailed and up-to-date bookkeeping record will save you time and money. If you already have clean financials for your tax accountant to use, it will take less time for them to prepare your tax forms. Since your tax forms are accurate and submitted early thanks to your accurate books, your maximized return will arrive quickly. Accurate bookkeeping also protects your company. When your books are accurate, so are your tax forms. When your tax forms are accurate, your company escapes large tax bills and regular audits.

Timely bookkeeping data will give you an advantage

For everything from seeking investor funds to filing an accurate tax return, regular and accurate bookkeeping data will give you a leg up over your competitors. If there’s an issue with your finances or your bank reconciliation, your books will reveal the issue quickly. That way, you can stay on top of your cash flow and watch for potential growth opportunities. Investors also like to understand your cash flow prior to investing. A peek at clean and accurate books will give them a clear picture of how your business runs. Your clean books will also assure them that their funds are in good hands. Bookkeeping is one of the most important parts of your business. Keeping your financial records in order is essential to your companies success. Don’t go with the cost-effective option when it comes to hiring someone who will be responsible for making sure your finances are in order. Your bookkeeper will monitor your cash flow, and make sure that your business is growing and succeeding. By understanding the truths about bookkeeping, they will help save your business time and money.

Some business owners opt to take on their own tax forms every year. However, unless they have accounting experience, it probably takes a lot of time. With a tax accountant, they’ll save time and money on their tax filings. A tax accountant will track the company’s income and expenses. They can do this all year long or during tax season.

Claim All Your Deductions

A tax accounting expert has experience with tax filings across multiple industries. They will document all your business earnings, expenses and any deductions you have available to you. They won’t let a tax deduction go undocumented. Whether you maintain a tax accountant all year or only need someone at tax season, a tax accountant will compile your data for your forms and filings. Many tax accountants also have tax preparers that can come in and help your accounting team put together the right documents. This saves you and your staff time and ensures that all your information is accounted for.

Avoid an Audit

If the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) finds multiple errors on your tax documents during review, they’ll initiate an audit of your company’s finances. An error can be anything from giving inaccurate information to not following the directions on the form. An audit will disrupt your business operations. The executive team and accounting staff will have to work in overdrive to gather and prepare documents for the auditing team. A failed audit can result in up to five years in prison and up to $100,000 in fines. A tax accountant will ensure there are no errors on your tax forms and filings so you can go into the new year stress-free.

Maximize Your Return

Tax accountants keep up to date on deductions, credits and incentives available to businesses filing their taxes each year. Often, the government offers incentives and credits for start-up businesses or small businesses just for doing business as usual. Your tax accountant will keep track of whether you need extra paperwork or documentation as well. A tax professional may even find deductions you didn’t even know you could claim. With a fresh pair of eyes and a lot of industry expertise, your tax return will be a high one. Hiring a tax accountant takes the pressure off your business and your staff. With someone else to worry about tracking your income, expenses and deductions, you can focus on your business. A tax accountant for your business means a higher return and a stress-free year.