I should have done my accounts more carefully!!!

[vix84]

Hi, I am so annoyed with myself - when I first did my accounts I kept up to date with it once a month, then I let it slip so just kept the odd reciepts and did the accounts at the end of the year!

So now we are trying to get a mortgage and as I have been self-employed for under 3 years I will need to get an accountant to look at my accounts and show my predicted earnings for this year.
Which would be easy if I had of done it all very properly!

Now Im looking back over them and can see that I have made various mistakes - like calculating the expenses for the bills monhtly instead of weekly - so have re-done those. Luckily that was on this years so it doesnt matter.
But seeing how Ive made stupid mistakes like that, Im now panicing that I would have made stupid mistakes on my 1st years one and the accountant will need to edit it etc. If anything Im sure I have probably paid more tax than I should have rather than the other way around!

Last year I was on maternity leave, so only earnt about £3000 - so would I still need to make sure all the bills etc. are done, or because I wont be taxed I dont need to do the accounts, just prove income?



I have just ordered a morton michael account book to re-write it all as I understand my account record, but the accountant wont.

Does anyone know how much it costs to get someone to check your accounts and do preicted earnings? Or can you recommend anyone?

Ps - if for example, you paid too much/too little tax one year as you messed up your accounts, how do you sort that out?

[Chatterbox Childcare]

This sounds very complicated - good luck with it. You may have to have a meeting with the IR at the end of it if you books don't match you return

[vix84]

Its feeling very complicated at the moment, we have found our dream house but only need to re-mortgage for an extra 10k, but this means getting my accounts approved!

I don't think I will have to see the IR, as Im sure the actual amount of tax I owed was correct, I just need to double check I've done it all right, and if not then I need to dig back out all the receipts, as I discounted a few that I found at a later date!

If anything it should be ok as my 1st year I was very good at doing it all correctly, very in depth, then the next year I only earn't a couple of thousand, and this year I can still do my accounts - so in theory Im sure its fine, its just an added thing that I dont need at the moment, I should have been more thorough and organised at keeping my accounts in an organised way!

[Rubybubbles]

I use the NCMA account book and find it very straight forward and easy to use

[aly]

In the 'Who Minds' Mag there is an accountant for childminders advertised in there...might be worth looking and asking them?

good luck

[mandy moo]

My husband is self employed and I use his book keeper (shes great) and charge her fees to him

[The Juggler]

there's a guy in Who Minds who does it for £100 ish.

I don't do much through the year, keep a spreadsheet noting my takings each month then keep a file with all my receipts/notes of spending in. Even if I don't do it all year, does'nt take me long to add the receipts/notes in each year. I find the books hard work, but that's just me.