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110% reliable, clear and simple communication

Being a busy midwife and mum to two young children, I don't have a lot of time to spend on back-office admin or taxes.Luckily, I have Nick Roberts to take care of my bookkeeping, GST, annual accounts and tax returns.Nick has been dealing with my books and tax for 10 years with a minimum of fuss and bother. 110% reliable, clear and simple communication, and no annoying inexperienced staff or unexpected bills which I hate . Everything I need is taking care of on a timely basis and all at a very re...

Tax Debt - The Way to Financial Disaster

There are some days of the year that are just awful. Specifically, I’m referring to the 28 August, the 15 January and the 7 May. Yes, that’s the day most of us in business have to pay our GST and Provisional Tax, a depressing day indeed. Just why the IRD thought that making us pay both taxes on the same day was a good idea is a total mystery!However, there’s one thing worse than paying the GST and Provisional Tax and that’s not paying. Why’s that I hear you ask? Because if you don’t ...

Appreciate the personal approach

I am very pleased to provide this testimonial for Nick Roberts. A few years ago, I had had a negative experience with a previous accountant when I was looking for someone to help with my rental tax returns.I happened to see an advert for Nick's services and I have been more than satisfied with Nick's personal approach and feel very confident in the advice he gives, and the way he deals with you on a professional and personal level. He is very responsive to queries and has a willingness to explai...

How To Talk to And Handle Issues with the IRD

The IRD can be a scary bunch, even if you don’t get offside with them, so it’s best to be very wary of how you talk to them and handle any issues that arise. The consequences of getting it wrong can deplete your wallet considerably, perhaps even leading to bankruptcy and financial ruin as many have found.Ideally of course, it’s best to avoid getting into a situation where it’s necessary to even have contract with the IRD. If you file all your returns and pay all your taxes on time and ta...

Nick goes out of his way

My parents and I have known Nick as an accountant for many years and we have always found him easy to deal with and very quick to respond. You can ask him quick questions on business or tax and he always answers promptly without extra charge.Nick is also great on setting up new businesses and he has recently helped me with my new exciting business venture for free!I have already recommended Nick because I know he always goes out of his way to look after clients, whether new to business or establ...

Marketing Made Easy - Effective Blogging

Blogging is one of the most effective yet free - yes FREE - ways of marketing yet few venture into this area. It can position you an expert in your field, build your profile and brand, and draw prospects to your website. Here are a few tips to get started:If you don’t know what to write, don’t worry unduly, just pick on an area you know well, the sort of thing you’re probably discussing regularly with customers or staff. This could be the key frustrations customers suffer when dealing with...

Fast and easy to deal with

We are a small business and Nick is just amazing, always answers telephone calls there and then to help us out, especially with the computer side of things. Nick is fast and so easy to deal with. To anyone wanting a change or starting out, Nick is your man. Rob & Sarah Grayson, R & S Farming ...

How to Buy a Business

It’s fairly easy to buy a business but much harder to sell one, so before you take the plunge and lock yourself into potentially bankrupting financial commitments there are a number of things you need to do to ensure you’re on the right track:Ask yourself some deep searching questions. This is key. Are you really the right person to own and run a business? Are you dedicated, a hard worker, committed, a leader, passionate, self-sufficient and multi-skilled? And what about your experience? Hav...

Things to Consider When Buying a Franchise

Starting a business can be risky and buying a good franchise can be an effective way of minimising the risk. However, there is still a substantial amount of risk involved in buying a franchise and there are a number of very important things you need to understand BEFORE you buy a franchise:You are not the master of your own destiny. You have to follow the franchisor’s rules and procedures, buy from them or their specified suppliers and do things their way which means that effectively, the...

How to Sell a Business Successfully

Did you know that the average age of business owners in New Zealand is estimated at 58 years? Unless they’re going to work until they die (thanks BNZ great commercial!) this means there’s going to be huge numbers of businesses coming up for sale in the next 10 years or so. If you’re thinking of selling, you’re going to be one of many so you’ll need to make sure you prepare properly well before you’re planning to sell. These are a few of the things you should be doing before you sell:...

How to pay less tax as a business owner

While there may be no way to avoid taxes, understanding how to manage your tax affairs as a business owner will help keep payments to a bare minimum.After many years in public practice accounting, I regularly get asked by business owners how they can pay less to the Inland Revenue Department (IRD). Unfortunately, while there’s no simple magic answer, I do have a few tips.Some business owners take the most amazing risks to avoid paying anything to the IRD. But if you’re looking to avoid the s...

Approachable, patient and focused

Nick is a fantastic accountant. He is knowledgeable, helpful and gives great advice. He is professional and passionate about what he does. We’ve been with big accountancy firms in the past and treated as just a number. It’s been a far more positive and personal experience with Nick. He is approachable, patient and focused on our best interests. If you’re looking for a top accountant you won’t find anyone better! Tomomi Bowcock - Rural Pest Services...

How to avoid paying too much GST

Nobody likes paying more than they need to, and understanding how to control your GST payable as a business owner can save you money over the course of the financial year.Tax time is looming and many business operators are looking more closely at their accounts and wondering how to minimise, or streamline, the costs associated with EOFY.Read more here...

7 ways missing IRD returns and payments makes running a business ‘bad busy’

The challenges of running a business are often all-consuming, but if there’s one thing you can’t afford to let out of your sight, it’s taxes. Here’s why. Getting to grips with the admin commonly associated with the ‘back office’ side of a business isn’t for everyone. And that’s fair enough, too. Dealing with the myriad requirements and complexities of local (or in some cases, multiple) taxation law is probably the hardest part, and that’s why many small business owners and entr...

8 common ways to trigger an IRD audit

There are many things to avoid in business, and one of the most unpleasant is triggering an IRD audit. Here’s how it commonly happens. Having been involved in many tax investigations (on behalf of clients of course), I can confirm they are not very pleasant and can result in stress and serious financial difficulties, often leading to relationship breakups and bankruptcy. What is an IRD audit? According to the department, an Inland Revenue audit is an ‘examination of your financial ...

Business size categories in New Zealand: Definitions and why they matter

What does a “medium” business look like? Understanding how various organisations define business size categories is important for several reasons. New Zealand is a nation of small and micro businesses representing more than 97 percent of all firms. They account for 28 percent of employment and contribute over a quarter of New Zealand’s gross domestic product (GDP). New Zealand has a higher percentage of small and micro businesses than most other countries, noting that, unlike New Zealand, ...

5 more small business GST mistakes to avoid

Many small business owners are rightly concerned about making errors with Goods and Services Tax (GST), so here are some of the more common and costly to avoid. As I wrote in my last piece on this topic, if you expect your business to bring in revenue of over $60,000 over the financial year, then you should be registered for GST. But even once you’ve made the call, there’s plenty more you’ll need to know about how your business handles GST in order to get it right. Read more here....

Does New Zealand have a Capital Gains Tax on property?

A hallmark of NZ’s taxation system has long been the absence of a Capital Gains Tax on the sale of property, but is that strictly still the case?A new client of mine is upset about having to pay tax at 39 percent on the sale of a property, saying that when he immigrated here he was told NZ doesn’t have a Capital Gains Tax (CGT), such as you might find in Australia.Is he correct, does NZ have a CGT on property? In this article, I’ll explore the concept of taxation on the sale of properties,...

5 common mistakes small businesses make with GST

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) is a tricky tax to come to grips with for those who don’t deal with it on a day-to-day basis, so here are a few items to make certain you get right. As a financial advisor and accountant, there are a few errors I see frequently made by businesses when it comes to handling GST. From the outset, the one consideration small businesses and sole traders should have regarding whether or not to register for GST is a matter of their expected income. If you project inco...

NZ Budget 2021: An accountant’s take

The ‘Wellbeing Budget’ announced yesterday may have arrived in a pretty fancy looking folder, but the shine could be wearing off for small business owners.On Thursday, Finance Minister Grant Robertson alighted on the steps of Parliament brandishing a glossy looking folder embossed with a map of New Zealand.For small and medium businesses still struggling with border restrictions and high levels of uncertainty, what Robertson has dubbed the ‘Wellbeing Budget’ appears to overlook this econ...

Safeguarding your business against unexpected disruption

Crisis management seems to have become a core skill for the modern business owner — how prepared are you in the case of emergency?Whether it’s lockdowns, earthquakes or like a client of mine in Napier, NZ (the recent flooding), it matters not; business owners need to be prepared for the worst.What can you do to put yourself in a better position to survive an unexpected crisis?In order to provide the simplest view of your priorities and how to treat them, I’ve prepared a list of 10 crit...

Outstanding Performance & Professionality!

We would like to thank you again Nick for your outstanding performance, professionality and friendship. We have dealt with many Accountants over the years, but you will have to be the best we ever had! You have made everything so easy for us, right from the start and we would not hesitate to work with you again at any time. Unfortunately the world’s development lately forced us out of business and we / you had to close down the business. This was for us, thanks to you, a completely painless an...

10 things you must consider before buying a business

Before you come close to signing on the dotted line, there are 10 important factors to consider closely, writes accountant and business advisor Nick Roberts.Starting a business from scratch and going without income in the initial period can be a daunting prospect, so it’s tempting to buy a business instead.But before the excitement clouds your objectivity think carefully — the corporate world is littered with disastrous business acquisitions. So how can you avoid ending up the same way?T...

Just how useful is the NZ Temporary Tax Loss Carry-Back Scheme?

It has its detractors, but is the Government’s tax loss carry-back scheme helping struggling NZ business owners?One of the responses to COVID-19 from the Government was a new temporary tax loss carry-back scheme.Some cynical commentators felt that the tax part of the SME Relief Package (of which the loss carry-back scheme was part) was more about political spin than providing real help to small businesses, so just how useful is the loss carry-back?The scheme enables businesses making a loss (w...

7 Key Considerations for Taking a Business Online

From figuring out what you do to goalsetting – here are your top priorities to help you hit the ground running. Starting and running a successful small business can be the most amazing opportunity to gain independence and build wealth, yet it can be very risky because of the high percentage of startups that fail. So if you’re an aspiring entrepreneur with a burning desire to break free of your wage slave bonds and achieve fame and untold riches, what should you be thinking about well before ...