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Provided by:  Brian Flynn, President Flynn Accounting Resources, Inc. Accident Reports / Claims (settled cases) 7 Years Accounts Payable Ledgers & Schedules 7 Years Accounts Receivable Ledgers & Schedules 7 Years Audit Reports Permanent Bank Reconciliations 2 Years Bank Statements 3 Years Capital Stock & Bond Records Ledgers, Transfer Registers, Stubs showing issues, Record of Interest Coupons, Options, etc.     Permanent Cash Books Permanent Charts of Accounts Permanent Checks (canceled – see exception below) 7 Years Checks (canceled) for important payments (i.e. Taxes, Purchases of Property, Special Contracts, etc.) ***Checks should be filed with the papers pertaining to the

By:  Michael Abramovitz Has your business identified potential tax risks that could affect the valuation of your company? Maintaining good corporate tax ‘hygiene’ is imperative to ensuring that a potential acquirer recognizes that the company has controls in place to ensure that, at a minimum, tax filing requirements have been addressed. That includes filing tax returns on a timely basis, even if the business generated a tax loss. Since penalties are generally assessed on any underpayment, oftentimes loss companies may not bother with extensions.  Even if an extension was filed, the loss company will file their returns late, since no

Contributed by SSA, P.C. After weeks, indeed months, of proposals and counter-proposals, seemingly endless negotiations, and down-to-the-wire drama, Congress has passed legislation to avert the tax side of the so-called “fiscal cliff.” The American Taxpayer Relief Act permanently extends the Bush-era tax cuts for lower and moderate income tax payers, permanently “patches” the alternative minimum tax (AMT), provides for a permanent 40 percent federal estate tax rate, renews many individual, business, and energy tax extenders, and more. In one immediately noticeable effect, the American Taxpayer Relief Act does not extend the 2012 employee-side payroll tax holiday. The American Taxpayer Relief

Contributed by Speed2Results, LLC In a recent presentation on the state of the economy, noted economist, Alan Beaulieu, of ITR Economics, announced a forecast for 2013 and forward.  Beaulieu’s group predicts a strong 2013, a mild recession in 2014, followed by a strong 2015-16.  Mr. Beaulieu recommends business owners who plan to sell or transfer their company in the future, should consider preparing now for a business exit or sale in the next three to five years. Business Value Drivers – Given the current forecast, it is important to take steps now to ensure your business is attractive to potential buyers,

By: John M. Stinar, Esq. With certain exceptions, Colorado law prohibits the enforcement of covenants not to compete. The assumption is that the State of Colorado wishes to have its citizens engaged in gainful employment. Specifically, Colorado Revised Statute § 8-2-113 provides that “it shall be unlawful to use force, threats or other means of intimidation to prevent any person from engaging in any lawful occupation at any place he sees fit.” The Statute further goes on to provide that any covenant not to compete which restricts the right of a person to receive compensation for performance of skilled or

We are seeing significant activity in the business acquisition market-place.   For example, we closed two transactions last week.  We also had funding approved for two additional transactions and have numerous other transactions in various stages of the closing process.  We attribute the activity to better economic performance by our client companies, increased confidence in the economy, as reflected by rising real estate values and the stock market, and the willingness of lenders to make commercial loans for solid transactions. Historically, manufacturing businesses have been a category of businesses in strong demand, but not all manufacturing businesses are created equal.  This

By David Mead Reprinted with permission from Issues for Growth It appears that we may be entering the next big surge in business transition activity fueled by the retirement needs of aging baby boomers. The first baby boomers turned 67 years of age in 2012 and we are beginning to enter the years having greatest numbers of boomers. We estimated that in 2012, based on slow activity in 2008-2011, there were between 1.2 -1.5 million boomers (with businesses between $2M and $80M in revenue) who would need to sell to provide liquidity for retirement. If you are a business owner contemplating a

Colorado is a service-based economy – there are more service businesses in the state than any other type of business. While the Rust Belt, Great Lakes regions, and both coasts have access to rails and waterways, Colorado is landlocked, lending itself to services, rather than heavy manufacturing. When it’s time to buy a service business, there will be many options. Service businesses run the gamut, from accounting firms, to drycleaners, to janitorial services, engineering, public relations firms, and many other options. Despite their disparity, they all have one thing in common: offering a service to clients. (Although restaurants, hotels, and

My team is often asked why businesses don’t sell. Although there are a variety of reasons, or a combination thereof, we believe that the pie chart below does a pretty good job of addressing this topic. For brevity purposes, I will briefly address the top three reasons: Why Won’t My Business Sell? Unrealistic Expectations It is human nature for most of us to believe that our assets (houses, cars, businesses, etc.) are worth more than the markets dictate they are worth.   The way to address this deficiency is to hire an outside expert that has the capability of providing you

Here are the 5 Phases and how we help manage the selling process: The Business Sale Process Phase 1 – Planning Define seller’s goals and objectives Conduct preliminary due diligence and presale audit Assemble advisory team (accountant, transaction attorney, broker/intermediary, financial planner) Assemble data from Seller Information Checklist Analyze financial statements and prepare valuation range (Opinion of Market Value) Phase 2 – Preparing Agree on range of business value and transaction structure Execute engagement agreement Develop timeline for the process Assemble additional company information Prepare comprehensive presentation package Phase 3 – Marketing Conduct market research and identify buyer prospects Activate marketing