If you’ve made the decision to hire a full-time accountant, or to add an accounting professional as an outside consultant, you’re now faced with a challenge: How do you avoid overpaying for the services of a financial professional to monitor the financial health of your small business? In other words, how do you determine if that accounting salary that you just added to your books is too big.
Not surprisingly, there is no easy answer to this question. After all, accountants, like all professionals, charge widely varying rates. An accountant working in a small town, for instance, might charge more than will one clocking hours in a major city. An accountant fresh out of college will undoubtedly charge a lower fee than will one who’s a 25-year veteran of the industry.
An accounting salary will vary, too, depending on your business. For instance, if you operate a large business with several locations, you can expect to pay whatever accountant you hire more money. That’s because your accountant, whether on staff or on retainer, will be doing more work; it’s not easy to track the financial statements and health of multiple locations.
If, though, your small business truly is small, with one location and just a handful of employees, you’ll probably have to pay your accountant a smaller salary. Again, that’s because of the amount of work you’ll be asking your accountant to tackle. It’s much easier to balance the books of a smaller business with just one single location.
To make sure that you’re not overpaying for your accountant, check with other small business owners in the area. Find out what they’re paying their financial help. If you’re paying much more, your accountant might be overpaying you. Check, too, with your local chamber of commerce. The officials there might be able to give you an idea of what the average accounting salary is in your area.
Adding an accounting salary to your monthly payroll is a big commitment. Make sure, then, that you are paying one that’s fair. Feel free to find out more accountant salary information.