While taxes may be the last thing you want to think about right now, it’s precisely the time to shift your focus towards the upcoming tax year. By embracing year-end planning, you can lay the foundation for a smoother, more tax-efficient financial future. In this guide, we’re going to break down the importance of year-end planning and outline the steps of how to prepare for taxes starting today.
Why Planning Ahead for Taxes Matters
To fully grasp the significance of starting now to prepare for taxes, it’s crucial to understand why year-end planning is a vital component of your financial strategy.
- Timing is Everything: Initiating year-end planning now is like hitting the financial bullseye. It’s the perfect moment to implement tax-saving strategies or put into action any strategies you’ve learned about. Waiting until the year ends means losing the potential benefits for the current tax year.
- Precise Tax Estimates: Year-end planning gives you the opportunity to gain a comprehensive estimate of your tax liability for the upcoming year. Having this information in advance can be super beneficial. If you are thinking you might have a higher tax bill than expected, you’ll have roughly six months to prepare for it. This preparation can help you avoid last-minute financial stress, potential interest, and penalties.
- Efficient Preparation: Proactive planning is undeniably more efficient. It’s the difference between preventive medicine and firefighting. By tackling your financial preparations ahead of time, you’ll save both energy and resources. This means you can dedicate more effort to planning for your future instead of dealing with last-minute crises.
How to Prepare for Taxes
Are you ready to take the proactive steps for year-end planning? We’re going to lay out exactly what you need to do in the following 3 Step blueprint:
Step 1: Get Your Books in Order
When it comes to preparing for taxes, accuracy is paramount. Your business’s financial health, whether prosperous or struggling, is inseparably linked to your tax outcome. One of the most important elements in preparing a business return is your financial statements. So, it’s essential that your financial records are not only in order but also accurate. Inaccuracies could potentially cost you money. If you’re unsure about your bookkeeping’s accuracy, it’s smart to work with a professional. Don’t wait until January to start working on this. Start looking for help between October and December to avoid the rush that comes with the new year.
Step 2: Gather Your Tax Docs
Although you won’t have official documents for some things before the year ends, we advise you to start collecting relevant information. For your tax estimate, having your latest pay stubs is beneficial. If you’ve made significant financial moves during the year, like purchasing property, your closing statement may contain tax deductions you need to consider. If you’re working with us for year-end planning, we provide a detailed organizer with essential questions to help jog your memory and gather the required information.
Even if you’re not working with us, we have a FREE document that will give you over 2 dozen strategies to lower your tax burden.
Step 3: Schedule a Year-End Planning Session
Honestly, a year-end planning session is the most important part of your tax preparation journey. By scheduling a meeting with your accountant, you’re positioning yourself for a clearer financial path in the coming year. During this session, you’ll receive an estimate for the current tax year. Based on your financial situation, your accountant may introduce new strategies, or they might revisit strategies you’ve previously talked about. You’ll walk away from this meeting with a clear action plan to minimize your tax burden. Having this clarity can make the end of the year a lot less stressful, as you’ll know what to expect regarding the amount of taxes you owe.
For our Incite Tax clients, reaching out to your tax accountant is the first step. Depending on your package, year-end planning might already be included. If it’s not, you can discuss payment options with your accountant based on your existing plan.
If you’re not an Incite Tax client, click the link below to schedule an introductory meeting with us! We’re here to help you keep as much of your hard-earned money in your pocket as possible because, let’s face it, the government sucks at spending your money in the right way. It’s better off in your hands.
So, there you have it—the roadmap to successfully prepare for taxes starting now. Join us in taking a proactive approach to your financial future.
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Hi. This is all well and good but my taxes are individual only and quite simple. Tom Cantrell has done them for about 12 years, initially when a business was involved, but for 8-9 years have only been individual
I’ve paid $199.00 for the preparation and efile. I didn’t even see a price here but am struggling terribly with a checking account more often than not is overdrawn.
I ask that these 2022 taxes be completed and then as someone there told me, individual taxes starting in 2023 will no longer be entertained.
Please help as funds are low and preparation is late.
Thank you. Have a good rest of your day,please stay safe,be resilient and most of all,God bless
Robert M Cambria
Thank you Robert! I will have Tom reach out to you so we can get everything situated properly!