Trades Accountant

It’s easy to operate as a self-employed tradie. Get yourself an ABN and off you go!

But it’s not as easy as that if you want to run a serious trades business.

One of the keys to running your business is having a good accountant. Ideally you should find an accountant before you start your trades business so they can advise you on the best structure to suit your needs.

If you’ve already started your business without an accountant, the next best time to get an accountant on board is right now!

What about a bookkeeper?

Although they both deal with your numbers and are involved in your tax, BAS, GST etc, bookkeepers and accountants are different.

Whilst an accountant deals with your business structure and lodging your annual tax returns, a bookkeeper is more about the day-to-day transactions happening in your business.

You can do your bookkeeping yourself (or like many tradies, have your other half doing it) but having a bookkeeper will save you time and ensure that all of your transactions are being properly reconciled.

We ran a poll on the Trades.com.au Instagram page recently asking tradies what was more important out of a bookkeeper and an accountant.

For the day-to-day operations of their business, bookkeepers came out slightly ahead, showing that many self-employed tradies certainly do value the work that a bookkeeper can do for their business.

Choosing an accountant

Tradies and trade businesses are the bread and butter of many suburban accountants. No matter which one you choose, they’re probably going to do a half-decent job for you.

There may be benefits to using an accountant and/or bookkeeper who really understands the trades though. If they’re dealing with trade and building businesses all day, they’re probably going to have more relevant experience and knowledge to get the best outcomes for you.

If you’re looking for an accountant, asking other tradies for recommendations is probably a good start. Try the Tradie Boss Facebook group for recommendations.