CPA and Bookkeeping Huntsville AlternativeQuestions Huntsville owners ask before they hire usStraight answers for owners weighing a CPA in Huntsville against us, the Tax CFO alternative.

Can you help if my books are months behind?

Yes, and that's usually where we start. Tell us the last month you think is right, then count how many months come after it. Twelve months behind and one messy July are different jobs, and our first reply will tell you which one you have.

You don't need to walk us through your software. Your bank activity and your last tax return are enough to start. Paper statements work too.

No computer at the shop? The Huntsville Public Library has public computers for adults, teens and children, and you can send us a note from there. The most useful thing you can tell us is the last month your books matched the bank. If the answer is embarrassing, tell us anyway. A whole year behind takes longer than one messy July, and we'd rather know that before we quote a fee. Bring last year's tax return too, even if it's a paper copy. You don't need anything else.

You run payroll after we set it up

Payroll stays on the payroll service you picked. We set it up with you, but we don't run payday for you, and we aren't a payroll department.

When you change someone's pay in the payroll service, your books need the same change. Let us know when it happens, or your payroll and bank numbers won't match.

If you don't have a payroll service yet, tell us in your note. We'll set one up only if you're going to run payday yourself after we're done. We won't install a tool you won't use.

We prepare it from the books we keep

We prepare your business tax return from the same books we kept all year, so no stranger has to learn your year from scratch in March. Steven Palmieri, the Tax CFO, stays with you through the return.

We won't promise you a refund. We'll show you which tax choices you can still make this year and which things can only be reported.

If last year's return doesn't match this year's books, mention that first in your note. Usually the cause is a month that was never matched to the bank, a deposit recorded twice, or owner pay that was agreed on but never entered.

A CPA signs those reports

If your lender wants a signed report, such as an audit or a review, tell us on the first call. Only a CPA can sign that kind of report. We can still get your books in order, so the CPA who signs gets a year that matches the bank.

Our disclosures page explains in more detail what we don't sign. Read it if your lender's letter is the thing that's worrying you.

Start on your books before the signed report is due. If the CPA who signs gets books full of unexplained differences, they'll send them back, and the delay will come from the books.

We don't make loans or promise results

We don't offer loans, and we won't promise what your tax return will show. What you get is monthly bookkeeping, payroll set up on your provider, financial statements you can read and your tax return. If hiring us would waste your money, we'll tell you.

A letter from the state can keep an owner up at night. If it asks for records, we can help you pull them from your books as part of the monthly work. We don't handle tax audits or appeals.

If your question isn't covered here, write it the way you'd ask a friend over lunch at Cafe Texan. Plain, everyday questions are exactly what we want.

What's the difference between a Tax CFO and a CPA?

A CPA can sign audits, reviews and compilations. A Tax CFO like Steven Palmieri keeps your books, sets up your payroll, prepares your business tax return and plans your taxes with you during the year.

Many small businesses in Huntsville never need a signed report. They need books that match the bank and a tax return done right. If you do need a signed report, we'll tell you, and we can still keep your books.

Our page on slow Julys explains why a quiet month still needs bookkeeping. Our slow July example walks through the steps we'd take, using a made-up business with no real numbers.

Our tax dates page lists the school tax rate, sales tax, the May franchise tax report, the property rendition and the hotel tax in one place.

You can read any of these and never send us anything. We won't pressure you into filling out a form.