Spectacular lighted trees adorn our public spaces, the strains of seasonal music can be heard everywhere and stores are filled with a frenzy of shoppers seeking the perfect gift for those they love. Our calendars, already jam-packed with end-of-year tasks, are now into over-drive trying to make room for the holiday parties that fall into two categories: those we want to attend, and those … Read more
There are two vital steps to handling your basic business affairs. The first is to ensure that you collect all your monthly receipts, invoices and bank statements into appropriately labelled files. The second is that you do something with them. You either record them in your own set of books, or take them or send them to your bookkeeper. It always surprises me that … Read more
We’ve all heard of urban legends, those harmless tales that circulate full of misinformation and imagination and which have no link to fact when they are investigated. These are the tales of weird species of super-creatures or scientific experiments that went horribly wrong or even folklore about how love happens. But when these myths make their way into your tax planning, you can find … Read more
At Piligrim Accounting, our small and medium-sized business clients run the full range of those starting out, those gaining momentum, and those anticipating significant growth. Many small business clients come to us initially as a sole proprietor of a company and at some stage, they ask for advice on when they should incorporate. This is an important issue to discuss with your accountant because … Read more
I have yet to have a client who loves being contacted by the people who work with the Canada Revenue Agency. That is understandable, because usually it has to do with something that interrupts our day. No matter how efficiently we try to handle our business affairs, a contact from CRA generally means that some document is missing, a deadline is approaching or missed, … Read more
In the course of the year at Piligrim Accounting Inc. we deal with a large number of small businesses who need to set up and maintain reliable accounting software that meets their needs. Companies need to maintain strict records of revenues, expenses, other financial information and data about clients and their accounts. Having software that allows for access to timely reports on which long-term … Read more
The idea of having a rental property is alluring as an investment to many Canadians. Often it starts as a simple cottage at the beach which the owner enjoys during his or her holiday period, and then generates sufficient income in the other summer weeks to pay for the property taxes and basic maintenance. If you have a good experience at that level, a … Read more
When it comes to trusting the accounts of your small business to a bookkeeper, you need to look for two things: a high level of trust and a proven level of capability. If either one is missing, you will not get the service that you need. Worse still, you could lose some of your hard-earned money to either fraud or ignorance. That’s why the … Read more
Every tax preparer in the nation has been visited by some version of the client who views tax season with the kind of horror that is usually reserved for movie actors looking over a corn field and spotting an invasion of predatory insects. They arrive in person or send us online a version of the proverbial shoebox full of receipts without classifications or labels … Read more
Those who loves Canada’s oceans and lakes are well aware that a red flag flying on a beach pole is a signal that there could be trouble ahead. Rogue waves could wash away the sand beneath your feet or cause a rough ride for boaters. Tax season, now at its peak, is another thing that is often accompanied by red flags waving, but people … Read more
