When do I need an accountant or a financial advisor?

When you are looking for financial advice, you might be wondering whether you need an accountant or a financial planner. When looking at your circumstances you’ll need to think about which (if any) you will need.  Sometimes, you’ll need both.

There could come a stage where it becomes necessary for you to have assistance in filing your taxes. In this event, you will need an accountant.

You may, however, require someone to help you manage your money and finances, as well as organise and plan your investments or in many cases help with a large inheritance. In this case, you would need a financial planner. In understanding the difference it does help to know the primary services that each of these varieties of financial professional helps with.

Accountants

While a lot of people might not need an accountant, the cases where you might need one of their expertise is if you:

• Own a business
• Make a sizable amount of cash per year
• Plan to leave your inheritance to your heirs
• Own rental properties
• Are anticipating receiving a large capital gain

An accountant’s job is to help you with specific issues that most people don’t have, this includes reviewing your tax situation and helping to structure your finances. There is also a lot of situations where using an account can assist you in saving a deal of money.

If you are particularly wealthy or are a business owner, hiring an accountant helps you to understand the laws surrounding both bookkeeping as well as taxes.

If you own a rental property, this is very similar to owning a business, so when you hire accountants Conwy you can be helped with your books and tax returns.

You might want to hire an accountant if you have a very complicated tax situation. The majority of people will be able to do their taxes with the right software, but if you are a business owner or if you own several large investments then you might consider finding a certified public accountant, or a tax specialist to do taxes for you.

If you are undergoing a large life change that affects finances, such as adopting a child, buying a property, or receiving a large amount of money, then you will find that employing the help of an accountant can take a load off your back. You might just need to speak to them once, or just once a year around the end of the tax year.

Financial Planners

A financial planner is not the same as an accountant. If you’re looking for advice on budgeting, getting out of debt or investing in something – any kind of planning for your money it could be a good time to use a financial planner.

This can work several different ways, you can hire them under a flat fee basis to help you develop a financial plan, in this way you can build wealth.An advisor that works solely in your best interest and not to make on themselves is referred to as a fiduciary.

Alternatively, you can get a financial planner who receives a commission to products that are sold to you or on certain investments that are specific to your situation. However, in this event, you run the risk of getting a planner who is motivated purely by selling you something and making money. You should look for a reputable accountant on a good business directory.