Quick Answer
Before November begins, small business owners should make sure their bookkeeping is current, bank and credit card accounts are reconciled, unpaid invoices and bills are reviewed, payroll records are accurate, and year-to-date reports make sense.
Cleaning up these areas now gives you a much clearer picture of where your business stands before December 31, and gives you more time to ask questions while there is still time to act.
October has a way of feeling like there’s still plenty of year left.
Then November arrives.
The holidays pick up. Schedules get packed. December seems to disappear. And suddenly, you’re trying to answer questions about your business that would have been much easier to deal with a month or two earlier.
At Ryder & Company, we encourage business owners to use October as a cleanup month.
Not because everything has to be perfect.
Because clean, current information makes year-end planning much easier.
1. Are Your Books Actually Up-to-Date?
This is the first place to start.
You should be able to look at your accounting records and trust that they reflect what has happened in the business so far this year.
That means income has been recorded, expenses are categorized, and transactions aren’t sitting around waiting for someone to figure out what they are.
Ryder & Company works with businesses on accounting, bookkeeping, QuickBooks, payroll, tax planning, and part-time CFO support, so we often see how one unfinished area can affect several others.
2. Have You Reconciled Your Bank and Credit Card Accounts?
Your reports are only as useful as the information behind them.
Reconciling means comparing your accounting records with your actual bank and credit card statements to make sure they match.
A missed charge, duplicate entry, forgotten deposit, or transaction posted to the wrong account can change the picture more than you might expect.
Doing this regularly also makes it much easier to spot problems now instead of trying to reconstruct them during tax season.
3. What’s Still Sitting in Accounts Receivable or Accounts Payable?
Take a look at who still owes your business money. Then look at what your business still owes.
Old invoices can quietly sit unpaid while everyone gets busy with daily work. Vendor bills can also get pushed aside or entered incorrectly.
This isn’t just bookkeeping housekeeping. It helps you understand what cash may still be coming in and what obligations are still waiting to be paid.
4. Are Payroll and Owner Compensation Records Correct?
Payroll deserves a closer look before year-end. Make sure employee information, wages, tax withholdings, and other payroll records are accurate.
Business owners should also review their own compensation and discuss questions with their accountant before December 31, especially when there have been meaningful changes during the year.
Ryder & Company provides payroll and tax-planning services, and its recent year-end guidance specifically recommends reviewing payroll and owner compensation before the year closes.
5. Do Your Year-to-Date Reports Make Sense to You?
Pull your profit and loss statement and balance sheet.
Then actually look at them.
Do the numbers match what you feel has happened in the business? Is revenue where you expected? Are certain expenses unusually high? Is profit stronger or weaker than you thought?
You do not need to become an accountant to understand your reports. But you should be able to ask questions about what you’re seeing.
That’s where a year-end conversation becomes much more useful.
Why Do This Before November?
Because tax planning works best while there is still time to make decisions.
Ryder & Company recently reminded business owners that once December 31 passes, many planning opportunities may be gone. Reviewing income, expenses, estimated taxes, payroll, equipment purchases, retirement contributions, and other year-end considerations earlier gives you more time to evaluate your options.
You don’t have to solve everything in one afternoon.
Start by cleaning up what you already have.
Then ask the questions the numbers bring to the surface.
Ryder & Company serves businesses throughout the greater Reading, Lancaster, and Allentown areas from its West Lawn office and helps with bookkeeping, accounting, payroll, QuickBooks, tax planning, and business advisory services.
Should you want to get a clearer picture of where your business stands before year-end, call Ryder & Company at 610-670-6170.