Whether you’re a first timer or a seasoned expert in the game of property, managed fund or share investment, having the right team to support your endeavours can make all the difference – and, alongside a financial adviser, an accountant is just one of the indispensable figures to have by your side. A good accountant can help you in a range of ways:

Tax management

The thing that most people think about when an accountant comes to mind is how they can help you deal with all the ins and outs of tax. In particular, they can minimise the risk of getting into trouble with the Australian Tax Office (ATO) by making sure that you file your tax returns for the income earned from your investment.

In addition, they can actually make sure that you aren’t paying too much tax – which is a big plus for the profitability of your investment in the long term. This can be through a combination of having the right ownership structure set up for your investment, and claiming all the deductions that you should be. Tax planning is fine; tax avoidance is not.

What’s more, they can make sure that you’re on top of all your obligations by sending you reminders that you have tax to pay, as well as help you set up arrangements or strategies when you don’t have the money at the right time.

Advice

The second thing is that they can be a source of good advice and assistance in setting up and running your investment. For example, you can have them do all your bookkeeping, produce your management reports (cash flows and so on) and put together your year-end accounts. Crucially, an accountant is a fountain of cash flow knowledge, enabling you to compare your income and expenditure against it. This can let you make make any changes to your budgeting strategy as necessary.

As you can see, an accountant can be a useful navigator to have on your property and share-based investment journey. Combined with the know-how and expertise of a financial adviser, your investment should be well on the way to success.