A vital part of running a business is accounting. There are quarterly taxes to estimate, accounts receivable to collect, and bills to pay. Some of these routines can sometimes get some business owners’ ways and can somehow dwarf their effort to grow their business. But how would they know if they’re making a profit without good accounting? The math tends to be easy when they buy something for $5 and sell it for $10. But complications will always rear its head with more success. They will need to account for insurance, sales tax, payroll, and many other things. That is where they can get the necessary help from a Certified Public Accountant, CPA. There are CPA firms everywhere, and if the company is in Houston, they can mostly get the help of some CPA firms in Houston.
What is a CPA?
The job of an accountant of a company includes handling the tedious math tasks that go along with running a business. They prepare financial documents such as profit-and-loss statements and tax returns and engage in financial planning and bookkeeping. As for a Certified Public Accountant, they have passed the state’s Uniform CPA Exam and also meet the experience and educational requirements of the state they live in. As a result, people see all CPAs as accounts. However, not all accountants are CPAs. The owner of a business is the boss, and a CPA may not make the business decision. However, they will be the one responsible if they don’t file their taxes. With the help of CPA firms in Houston, they can make the right decisions.
What Does a CPA Do?
The CPA’s bread and butter is to help companies prepare and file their business’s local, state, and federal tax returns. Companies can benefit from some essential services from CPAs beyond filing returns, and some of them are:
Consulting and Management
Most times, people overlook this aspect because companies can get the help of CPAs to manage and supervise the business’s daily financial operations. They can also offer long-range and strategic planning, like coordinating risk management, preparing financial statements for shareholders, cash management, and budgeting.
Audit and Assurance Services
People need to differentiate the IRS audit and a CPA audit, as they are not the same. Businesses can prevent being called in front of the IRS to allow a CPA to audit their business’s economic and financial data. Companies will have an unbiased report to ensure that everything is up to snuff through the CPAs. By assurance services, it means that a CPA can help gather all of the necessary information that a company’s decision-makers need. A CPA will also assure that these stakeholders understand it to make the right decisions for the company.
Tax Planning and Advice
CPAs are ideal representation companies can have in front of the IRS to answer any questions a local or state tax board if there is an audit or a problem. Businesses can also get help to minimize their tax burden throughout the year by getting advice from CPAs. As such, companies won’t have any questions or audit from the local or state authorities.
