# ledger sheets, tax prep



## barringerfurniture (Sep 17, 2013)

Anybody care to discuss how they organize and maintain their ledger sheets? What line items does it contain and how often do you post to it? How do you organize and keep receipts and invoices in preparation for tax time? Do you use software?

Also, I'm interested in others' experiences with tax prep services. Anything to share?

Thanks a lot for any info.


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## WoodNSawdust (Mar 7, 2015)

Off the top of my head:

Wood - internal use
Wood - customer
hardware - internal
hardware - customer
Tools
Tools - depreciate
Books, magazines, subscriptions
Office supplies
postage & shipping
Internet access & web
professional services
Computers & networking
utilities
advertising, marketing, etc.
meals & entertainment
travel

I always use a professional accountant to do my taxes.

Besides the above categories the accountant also deducts for:
auto expenses by percent
home office (% of utilities, home repair, house insurance, taxes)
prior years large purchases that have not yet been fully depreciated.


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## JAAune (Jan 22, 2012)

I use Quickbooks for bookkeeping now but used to use GNUCash which was free. The accountant likes to have a Quickbooks file though for doing tax prep.

I organize receipts and invoices by calendar year but mostly keep them for documentation purposes in case the IRS ever wants proof of my expenses. Almost every transaction no matter how minor gets run through the business account so I just need to enter that information into Quickbooks. Even cash expenses are done by cashing a check with a written memo for the intended purchase. Monthly entries are convenient because I can use banking statements to help with the data entry.

Whenever taxes need to be filed I'll print out whatever reports my accountant requests and turn those in. He does all the work after that.

I'm not going to post my line items because the list is about 30-40 long or so. Quickbooks has the standard lines already setup and I added 15 or so based upon the type of transactions I usually make. Most accounts are broken into subaccounts so I can track where money goes. I know the exact sewer bill and adhesive expenses for example.


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## barringerfurniture (Sep 17, 2013)

Thanks WoodNSawdust.


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## Finn (May 26, 2010)

I married an accountant.


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## bonesbr549 (Jan 1, 2010)

"CASH" handles most of it. Just kidding. If you are makin a livin at it, an accountant is strongly advised. Someone that can recommend best "LEGAL" deductions and the red flags that will prompt audits.

quick books is a good tool, but should be used over the whole year. Hard to do at this point.

I would not trust tax advice from a woodworking forum either (TIC).


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## TopamaxSurvivor (May 2, 2008)

I never took any home office deductions in nearly 30 years. It can complicate real estate tax situations at time of sale. Not enough to be worth the potential hassle on advice of CPA. YMMV,


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