Do you need an assistant, a bookkeeper, or a system?

Technology has made it relatively easy and accessible to complete accounting tasks online using software like Quickbooks or other programs. With easier access to those programs, those accounting-like tasks sometimes get assigned to an office manager or assistant.

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Why EBITDA is important to your banker

EBIDTA is an accounting term that stands for Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation, and Amortization. The first three elements—earnings, interest, and tax—are relatively straightforward. Earnings are the money you bring in, or your revenue. Interest could be the interest on a mortgage payment or other debt. And we’re all pretty familiar with taxes.

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Why you need a tax preparer who specializes in real estate

When most people think about tax preparation, it feels complicated and daunting, but everybody needs it. In a perfect world, everybody wants a tax preparer who will do their job so well that they don’t have to pay any income tax. It’s not a perfect world, but the tax preparation market is all about finding ways to maximize tax savings.

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How to bubble-proof your real estate business

Because of the dot com bubble bursting in the late ’90s and the housing bubble bursting back in 2008, real estate investors are always concerned about bubble-proofing their business. Of course, as I write this, it’s 2018, and the bubble’s cycle is eight to twelve years. So we’re right in the middle of that window and concern is warranted.

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Three keys to real estate investor bookkeeping

When I talk to people about bookkeeping for real estate investors, they’ve all had different experiences with their current or former bookkeepers. Sure, many of them have a bookkeeper that’s always late. I love helping those people, because I’m always on time.

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Spreadsheets are bad for bookkeeping

Small businesses and solo entrepreneurs often put off things like proper bookkeeping. And sometimes they can get away with that their whole life. But if you ever want to scale up or get help from someone else, you need to use official accounting software.

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Stop wasting your brain on cash

If you handle a lot of cash, it can be a pain to track accurately. How can you remember weeks later what you spent your cash on? You can’t! Really good bookkeeping is about not wasting your brain on things like that.

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A simple, straightforward bookkeeping process

Before we start working with a new client, we answer a lot of questions about our process and how it all works. We’re talking about managing the books for their business and having access to all their financial data, so it’s good to ask questions and understand the process.

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