Need New Business Advice!

[AlexLeather]

I'm a bit put off by the Schedule C and filling every line out. Utilities? Attorney fees? Mileage? All the little odds and ends here? I'm in panic mode having to record literally everything. I work from a spare bedroom in my home and would have to keep track of homeowners insurance.

I do all my sales online, and all my customers so far have been out of state, so i'd have to pay the interstate and foreign sales tax, and claim zero on the retail sales tax. I was told I wouldnt have to do the B&O tax. So many different tax forms.

[SteelcityK9Cop]

I dropped $4- on Quicken after reading a ton of reviews of business finance tracking programs.. Has worked great for me! If things take off you can always upgrade and transfer the data easily into Quickbooks.

Check your state government website... there is a ton of (often confusing) info on there about starting and running a small business.

[johnv474]

Another option is simply to pay someone to do your taxes... just keep your records.

For recordkeeping, one very easy/reliable method is to buy a 3-ring binder and a ream of colored paper. Print the date on each page, so 365 pages. Keep all receipts and staple to the corresponding page. Jot down notes about miles travaled or the purpose of business travel, etc.

No, it's not searchable like some digital options, and yes, you need to make business purchases on a separate transaction so you don't have to subtract out other purchases from receipt totals, but it is simple, drop-dead reliable, and your tax professional will thank you for it. Each year buy a new ream in a new color and you can easily keep everything in order. Plus, it costs about 10 dollars a year in supplies. Save the cost of quickbooks and you can pay an accountant.

2 cents...