As you close out the 2018 year, you’re probably readying yourself to begin 2019 with renewed motivation and energy, pursuing greater accomplishments and successes. Before you close out 2018, we’d like to help you avoid future headaches by giving you a short checklist of some important items to ensure you’ve completed before saying goodbye to 2018. Although some of these items may not apply to your business, we hope you’ll find most of these items helpful for you as you turn the page on 2018.
Reconcile bank account balances
Go through the entire year and ensure that you have a difference of zero. Review all uncleared transactions and look especially for duplicate transactions and outdated transactions.
Confirm Accounts Receivable
Run the Aging report for your accounts receivable and ensure that each customer’s balance is outstanding, adjusting as necessary.
Verify Inventory Balances
Compare your physical stock against your inventory report and ensure that all values in the report are reasonable.
Record the cost of major assets
Record the cost of any major assets like vehicles or equipment is recorded in a fixed assets account on your balance sheet. Be prepared to provide a copy of the purchase documents.
Confirm Accounts Payable
Run the A/P Aging report and confirm that each vendor’s balance matches the amount for which you’re liable.
Reconcile Credit Card Balances
Reconcile your credit card balances for 2018, accounting for this upcoming January if your statement has a mid-month end date.
Confirm All Liability Account Balances
For notes payable, loan mortgages, etc. confirm the balances by reconciling them with loan statements.
Review Owner/Shareholder Transactions and Distributions
Ensure that transactions within these areas are either personal funds put into the business or business funds withdrawn for personal use.
Confirm Payroll Reports
In the process of reviewing your annual payroll reports, confirm the total gross wages.
Confirm P&L Transactions
In your Profit & Loss statement, verify that all transactions are in the correct accounts.
