Y’all, taxes are no joke. No joke.
This is the first year I’ve filed taxes as an LLC. It was quite a year, and honestly I was dreading tax season from the moment I decided to create Hel On Heels Blog, LLC.
Guess what though? It wasn’t hard!Β It seriously all ended up being fine, and I did it by myself.
Now I feel like I should preface that I’m not a full-time blogger making full-time money. I’m a full-time marketing professional with a serious side-hustle. If you have lots of money coming from every which way, you may want to look into getting an accountant.
Here are my top 3 tips for staying organized and preparing all year for tax season. This way when it comes, it’s not a big deal!
1. Get organized early and often!Β Keep a spreadsheet and document all of your income, expenses, and outstanding income. Mark the date, the expense, the company, the description and the tax category. Don’t forget to include any promo items.
This seems like the perfect time to remind you that you have to pay taxes on promo items too, andΒ shampooΒ doesn’t pay the bills. If you want to learn how to negotiate this–you should totally take Erica’s Bosspitch Course.
2. Keep a Google Drive of all your statements.Β Start a Google drive today and put all of your receipts, invoices, contracts, whatever and throw it in this file. If you have a receipt while you were out and about, like for a dinner, scan it or take an iPhone photo of it and keep it in this folder. Odds are slim that you’ll get audited, but you’ll want all of these documents if you do.
3. Reach out when you need help.Β Again, I’m not a full-time blogger, but I was able to get the resources I need from an accountant at a conference (check out Amy Northard – CPA.) I then used TurboTax for small business. It came with a CPA that would give you a final audit before filing. Mine’s name was Owen and he answered all of my questions (and I had a lot!) If you have questions, find an accountant. They can help you!
Are you a blogger?Β What are your favorite tax tips?
This is so helpful since I just filed for an LLC. I will keep this all in mind.
Let me know if you have any questions!! I’m no expert, but happy to help.
Oh my… I can’t even imagine having to do this. Thankfully I have only ever lived in countries where you don’t need to file. Bookmarked this in case I ever find myself moving to the States! Lynda H of insaitama.com
Haha it’s not as scary as it sounds! Once I got organized it was no big deal. π
Good for you for staying on top of everything. I dread tax season.
I was totally afraid of it, but once I got organized it wasn’t so bad!
I’m not a full-time blogger either and I’ve gone back and forth for the last couple years if I should make my blog an LLC. This is a helpful post!! π
xoxo A
http://www.southernbelleintraining.com
I like having my blog and my full-time money separate. I think it was time for me to separate the two and I’m glad that I did!
This was really interesting. I really need to get all my stuff together because I am so unorganized. Thank you for the tips!
Getting organized helped SO much! I feel so much more confident now that I have files and spreadsheets!
I didn’t know turbotax gave you an audit from a cpa! that’s awesome!
I didn’t either! I purchased the small business version and it came with Owen! I was THRILLED.
I had a CPA help me out this year and while Iβm grateful I didnβt have to do it alone, I was not expecting such a harsh amount owed. Real slap from life (and the IRS). But now I know for next time.
Yeahhhh luckily I’m just starting out as an LLC so I can take a loss. Also, this year I’m paying quarterly so it’s not such a huge scary amount at the end.
I’m not here yet, but I want to bookmark this post for future use. Thanks for sharing your experience!
Of course! Let me know if you ever have any questions. I’m no expert, but happy to help!
I use quickbooks (pay like $17/month) to keep track of my income and expenses. I can separate what is personal / business. They also send my tax forms to TurboTax so I don’t have to do much. I definitely invested in the CPA.
Taxes can be SO confusing, especially when you’re self-employed! Thanks for sharing these tips!