Bookkeeping should not come with a surprise invoice. I bill hourly for the work your books actually require, with a three-hour monthly minimum, and we agree on the expected scope before anything starts.
The Three-Hour Monthly Minimum
Every ongoing engagement carries a three-hour minimum each month. That covers the work that has to happen regardless of how quiet a month was — reconciling every account, reviewing transactions, and producing your statements. Below three hours there isn’t enough time to do that carefully, and I would rather turn down work than do it halfway.
Most small businesses land at or near the minimum. Busier books run higher.
What Determines Your Hours
Three things, and I’ll walk through all of them with you:
- Transaction volume — how many transactions run through your accounts each month
- Number of accounts — business checking, savings, credit cards, loans, and merchant accounts
- Starting condition — whether your books are current or need cleanup first
A solo consultant with one checking account and forty transactions a month is a very different engagement from a contractor with three cards, a line of credit, and job costing. You should only pay for the time your books actually take.
What Your Monthly Hours Cover
- Transaction categorization and recording
- Bank and credit card reconciliation for all accounts
- Accounts payable and receivable tracking
- Monthly profit and loss statement and balance sheet
- A walkthrough of what your numbers actually say
One-Time Projects
Cleanup, catch-up, and QuickBooks setup are quoted separately as one-time projects, because they’re finite work with a defined end. Once your books are current, ongoing monthly service picks up from there.
No Long-Term Contract
Monthly bookkeeping is month to month. If it isn’t working, you aren’t trapped — though I’d want to know why, and I’d rather fix it.
Get Your Quote
Tell me about your business and where your books stand. I’ll give you a realistic estimate of the monthly hours involved. That first conversation is free, and there’s no obligation on either side.