Year-End Bookkeeping: Your Route to Precision and Compliance

Attention, business owners, financial managers, and accountants! Once again, it’s that crucial time for your business – the year-end closing. Where precision meets compliance, and every number is a testament to your accuracy and diligence… Right?

For those of you still not using our outsourced Controller services, follow these tips to ensure thorough year-end bookkeeping and detailed records compliance.  And remember, as one of the best accounting firms in Fairfield County, Walker Advisory is always ready to assist your business, regardless of size, through outsourced Controller services and our outsourced CFO services.

Solidify Your Financial Bedrock with These Guidelines:

• Reconcile: Review your bank accounts carefully to ensure they align with your books. Discrepancies that slip through the cracks can have significant consequences later. Take the time to compare each transaction and balance, double-checking every entry methodically. By maintaining this level of thoroughness, you can confidently ensure the accuracy and reliability of your financial records.
• A/R Insight: It is important to carefully review your Accounts Receivable aging report to identify any outstanding debts that have become uncollectible or unlikely to be paid. By doing so, you can accurately assess the financial health of your business and make informed decisions regarding write-offs. Removing these illusionary assets from your books will help maintain the accuracy and integrity of your financial records, providing a more realistic representation of your company’s financial position.
• Check for Prepaid Expenses: Ensure that any prepaid expenses like insurance and subscriptions are accounted for correctly. Have they been expensed on the income statement?
• Asset Audit: Ensure your Fixed Assets are up to date. New vehicle? Disposed of old computers? Any new asset acquisitions or disposals should be accurately recorded in your books, so review asset records for accuracy and completeness. This audit ensures that your balance sheet reflects the true value of your company’s assets.
• Depreciation Duties: Accurately record the annual amortization and depreciation expenses in your financial records. Doing so allows your assets to mature and reflect their true value on your ledger.
• Credit Card Conciliation: Reconcile all credit cards to align them accurately with the corresponding transaction and statement records to identify and resolve discrepancies between them.
• A/P Assessment: To ensure accurate categorization, reviewing your Accounts Payables diligently is important. This guarantees that every payment is correctly allocated to its respective category.
• Accrued Expenses: Unpaid Payroll, utilities, or rent? Your actual liabilities should reflect any accrued expenses incurred but not yet paid for.
• Loan Linking: Cross-reference loans with year-end statements and adjust interest and principal payments to manage your loan obligations effectively.
• Equity Examination: Match Equity balance closures from the prior year and your beginning balances ties to your past year’s tax returns—it’s fundamental.
• Revenue Reevaluation: Analyze sales against Invoice/POS data. Consistency here is non-negotiable as it lays the foundation for reliable insights and accurate income reporting.
• Payroll Perfection: Ensure payroll aligns correctly with the year-end summaries from your payroll provider. This includes wages, payroll taxes, bonuses, and employee incentives.
• Expense Exploration: Examine expenses for outliers—especially large or unusual transactions. Transactions that may look outside the normal course of business by their timing, nature, or size may raise suspicions of fraudulent activity on a report.
• Repairs & Maintenance vs. Capital Expenditure: Pay attention to repairs & maintenance accounts for what should be capitalized instead of expensed. Are you extending the life of an asset or adapting a property to a new use? Capitalize! Are you just putting on a bandage to keep your asset running? R&M!

Let these 14 steps guide you towards achieving a meticulous close. Although perfection may be hard to reach in accounting, aiming for utmost accuracy is crucial!

Leveraging Outsourced CFO Expertise to Elevate Your Fiscal Health

At Walker Advisory, we grasp the gravity of nailing year-end reporting accuracy. With services such as outsourced CFO or outsourced Controller Services to advanced tax planning, we have the financial skills that fit your industry’s fabric—Non-Profit, real estate, trades, and more! Entrust your economic success to someone who’s more than just an accountant; partner with a finance architect who is ready to build on your fiscal needs.

Reach out to us today at Walker Advisory and have peace of mind tomorrow. Be ready to proceed with business confidence that only comes from precise bookkeeping. Your business (and bank account) deserve no less.

This blog post has been written for informational purposes only and is not intended to provide, nor should it be solely relied on for, legal, tax, or accounting advice. Contact Walker Advisory and let us handle the complexities of a business’s year-end close-out, empowering you to navigate any financial climate the new year may bring with accuracy, confidence, and finesse.