Short answer: Bookkeeping cleanup in the Inland Empire fixes months that are in the file but wrong, such as duplicate income, loan payments booked as one expense or owner spending mixed into expenses. A bookkeeper reviews the file, agrees the scope with you, fixes the chart of accounts and opening balances, then reconciles every account to its statement.
Cleanup is not catch-up
Catch-up means months are missing. Cleanup means the months are there, but they are wrong. Often it is both. A file can be current to last week and still be useless because half the expenses went to "Ask My Accountant" and the bank has not matched since the old bookkeeper left.
We find out which problem you have before we quote anything.
What we usually find
These come up again and again in Inland Empire files, no matter the industry:
- Duplicate income: a deposit recorded once from an invoice and again from the bank feed
- Loan payments booked as one expense instead of split into principal and interest
- Equipment and truck purchases expensed instead of set up as assets
- Owner draws and personal spending mixed into business expenses
- Undeposited funds that pile up for years
- Accounts receivable full of invoices that were paid long ago
- A chart of accounts with 200 accounts, 40 of them named "misc"
Why the books went wrong
There is usually a story. A bookkeeper who coded by vendor name and never looked at the receipt. A software change halfway through the year that left two sets of opening balances. A busy season when the office manager accepted the bank feed in bulk to get through it. A previous accountant who forced reconciliations to make the screen go green.
Knowing the story tells us where to look first. It also tells us what setup to change so it does not happen again.
How a cleanup runs
- Review We read the file, the bank statements and last year's tax return. We list what is wrong and how wrong.
- Agree the scope You get a plain plan before work starts: which accounts, which months, what changes.
- Fix the foundation Chart of accounts first, then opening balances. Nothing ties out if the starting point is wrong.
- Fix the months Recode, remove duplicates, match deposits, set up loans and assets the right way.
- Reconcile and hand back Every account ties to its statement. You and your CPA get a summary of what changed and why.
What you need to give us
- Access to your QuickBooks Online or Xero file
- Bank, card and loan statements for the cleanup period
- Last year's business tax return, if one was filed
- Answers to a question list, usually in one or two rounds
After the cleanup
A cleaned file goes bad again within a few months if nobody keeps it. Most owners move to monthly bookkeeping right after. Some keep it in house with a cleaner setup. Either way, you start from books that tie.
Where we work
We keep books for businesses across Riverside County and San Bernardino County.
- Chino
- Corona
- Fontana
- Moreno Valley
- Murrieta
- Ontario
- Rancho Cucamonga
- Redlands
- Riverside
- San Bernardino
- Temecula
- Upland
Questions
Will a cleanup change numbers my CPA already filed?
It can. If a cleanup changes a year that was already filed, we tell you and your CPA exactly what moved so they can decide what to do.
Can you clean up QuickBooks Desktop?
We work in QuickBooks Online and Xero. A Desktop file is often moved to Online as part of the cleanup. We talk through that on the call.
How long does a cleanup take?
It depends on how many months and accounts are involved and how fast questions get answered. You get the scope before work starts.
Do you need my old bookkeeper's notes?
They help if they exist. If not, we work from statements, the tax return and the file itself.
Can I keep using the file during the cleanup?
Usually yes, for daily work like invoicing. We agree on which months we are changing so nothing collides.