Hi there accounting fans! Many of you who follow my blog will know that about a month ago I started offering accounting services as I had a small number of NZ-based individuals who wanted me to help them with their tax returns.
Well, the good news is that business is doing well and I find that I have quite a few clients signed up for my service (yay!). What that also means is that due to the increased demand on my time, I find it harder to do what I REALLY love doing – which is blogging and helping small business owners.
As such, I am announcing a revision to my prices for accounting services to align them better with current market rates for the following reasons:
- To filter in clients who want to work with me because they enjoy my fun and easy approach to accounting – as opposed to those who want to work with me due to my dirt cheap prices, which allows me to free up time to…
- …focus on building my blog and growing my readership. I have big plans for this blog and I will need to make time to see those plans come to fruition. Apart from that, the price revision also…
- …represents a more accurate estimate of the time and energy spent in filing tax returns and providing business/accounting advice to my clients.
With that, I would like to announce my new price structure:
Accounting and advisory Fees at only 1% of your sales.
Instead of offering differing services for accounting, bookkeeping and general tax advice – I’ve decided to streamline the system whereby 1% of your total monthly sales is charged as all-inclusive fees at the end of each month.
There is a minimum charge of $20 a month (ex-GST), which means that if you earn less than $2,000 a month in sales, I will still charge a minimum of $20. Conversely, there is a maximum charge of $3,000 (ex-GST) per YEAR on my fees, which means if you make more than $300,000 a year in sales, I will not charge you more than $3,000 (ex-GST) a year in total fees. This allows for some predictability in fees and also allows you to access my services at an affordable price, even if you are a high-turnover business.
This 1% fee a month will get you:
- A Monthly income and expenses report
- A monthly tax estimate which tells you how much tax to put away for the month
- Unlimited general tax and business advice – please note that matters that require specialised knowledge or cannot be resolved within 45 minutes may incur additional charges – I will let you know beforehand if this is the case.
- Accurate reconciliation of bank transactions to their respective accounts
- Monthly calculation of home office, entertainment and vehicle expenses (if applicable)
- An annual financial statement.
- The accurate and timely filing of your income tax AND GST (if applicable). Please note that at this time I do not offer PAYE filing services but i can work with you to find a system/provider that suits your needs.
If you wish to join me as a client – this is the best package for you. I also require all my clients to use accounting software. I will work with you to recommend the best software that suits your needs. You will need to pay the necessary fees for the accounting software. Please note that I do not charge a mark-up on accounting software fees, meaning that you will only be paying the general market rate for these software, but I may receive a commission in some cases – if this is the case I will let you know before you make any purchasing decision.
One-off preparation of tax returns
I still do get a bit of demand for the one-off preparation of tax returns for the prior tax year. My 1% fee still applies to these one-off returns. The 1% is calculated based on the annual sales of the client.
Please note that for one-off preparations, there is now a minimum charge of $250 (ex-GST) for the filing and preparation of tax returns. This means that if you have sales of less than $25,000 a year, I will still charge a minimum fee of $250 (ex-GST).
The maximum cap for one-offs is similar to the monthly package and is capped at $3,000 (ex-GST) a year.
What if I can’t afford those fees?
To be fair, even at the revised rates, my fees are still below what your average small accounting firm will charge you.
However, I have set up this amazing blog that contains a lot of information for any small business owner to manage their own finances and filing of taxes. You may not get access to personalised tax and business advice – but EVERYTHING on this blog is accessible to you completely free of charge.
My offer of 40 Mins free consultation still stands and you are more than welcome to pick my brain (completely for FREE) for 40 mins. If your issue can be resolved in 40 minutes – YAY! If not, then you likely have an issue that requires the paid, professional services of an accountant.
When do these price changes take effect?
The monthly 1% fee takes effect immediately – but it will not affect clients that have already prepaid their fees for the 2021 financial year (please note that I no longer accept pre-payments).
The price changes for one-offs take effect on 15 June 2020. I will still honour the $30 minimum charge for clients that approach me prior to that date.
Thanks for taking the time to read over the updated pricing scheme. Thank you also for your kind patience, support and understanding.
I’ll see you over in the rest of the blog!
Keep well,
Stay positive!