Form 1065 Balance sheet

[newbie]

Looking for a place to begin, have a Pship that has been in business for many years, this will be my first with this Pship and the past preparer never filled out a balance sheet. This year receipts are more than 250K so I need to fill it out.

Suggestions on where to begin reconstructing the past?

[S T]

Accounting

I am sure there will be other posts on this, but I would imagine I would start with 2007 accounting balance sheet, profit and loss and the tax return.

You need the ending 2007 to enter into the beginning 2008 and then the ending 2008 balance.

If no accounting balance sheet produced in 2007, then you would need the 2007 ending bank statements, a list of depreciable items (for assts) with accumulated deprciation already taken, other assets, and then of course your list of liabilities which would include any loans outstanding, credit cards, etc.

Good Luck!

Sandy

[newbie]

Showing my ignorance, can I just do the ending 2008? There has never been a balance sheet prepared this started as a little Mom and Pop operation, terrible records, good at what they do but not at the bookkeeping part of it.

Showing my ignorance again, if the accounting is done on a cash basis what receivables/paybles would you not include?

[JG EA]

Showing my ignorance, can I just do the ending 2008? There has never been a balance sheet prepared this started as a little Mom and Pop operation, terrible records, good at what they do but not at the bookkeeping part of it.

Showing my ignorance again, if the accounting is done on a cash basis what receivables/paybles would you not include?

Since you need a balance sheet then you need it all filled out as Sandy outlined. Cash basis would be balances in the bank account, assets and A/D from the depreciation list, Liabilities as Sandy said, but not receivables/payables. It would also include inventory which you should have on the return.

Another idea could you see if perhaps the accountant did do a balance sheet, but didn't file it? It wouldn't hurt to have the clients ask.

Another idea is to get all their tax returns and reconstruct. A nice ATS project.

[newbie]

I'm having a hard time with a cash basis balance sheet. How do you get the balance sheet to balance without the receivables and payables?

[JG EA]

You reconcile only the tax return to the book income on the M1. The balance sheet should match the books. It sounds like you have books to work from? If not you would need to use the tax return as a starting point and the "books" as they existed at year beginning and year end.

The accountant may have. I do that, keep the balance sheet but not file it if not needed. Sometimes I include it in the client's file with a note that it was not filed.

[newbie]

Appreciate your responses, don't know why but I'm just plain confused as where, how to start this B/S. Returns have always been prepared from a list of expenses provided by the client. A little old lady, now retiring because she is going blind always did the tax preparation. No balance sheet or basis tracking has ever been done.

Bad time of year as my mind is tired and don't seem to think as clear.

[Lion]

Fill in what you can

Fill in what you can on the balance sheet in the tax return for ending, and beginning if you can. You can get bank balances. Client will have to give you inventory, fixed assets, loans to and from shareholders, etc. If she has all the tax returns from the beginning, put her on extension and recreate after tax season.