schirallicpa Posted December 12, 2012 Report Share Posted December 12, 2012 Why is it that this time of year more than any other I cannot get anyone to pay me. I am scraping the bottom, I have next to no Christmas presents purchased, my CC is maxed. And I am begging clients to pay me. I have close to 7K in billing out right now. And the 3 big ones are weathly clients. And they just can't be bothered to pay. I am so sick of this. That is absolutely the worst part about being in the buisness. This time of year, there are no deadlines, and the clients are in no rush to get their paperwork and never consider that you are just a little guy needing to pay bills. I am looking at pulling money out of an investment this afternoon just to get my bills paid this week! I can't wait for the some deadlines to kick in again. Grumble Mumble!! Do others out there deal with this attitude this time of year? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rfassett Posted December 12, 2012 Report Share Posted December 12, 2012 Not so much. My wife did mention going into November that she hoped this November's collections were better than last November. She said it seemed as if nobody wanted to pay us last November. This November was fine. So far this December is looking OK. I have about twice what you have outstanding and fully anticipate collecting at least half of it before the end of the month. Anything more than that will be a bonus this time of year. So I guess I am in about the same boat, but I plan for it to be that way. Been in the business long enought to recognize these issues. On another note, I just went and checked - in spite of losing three significant accounts at the beginning of the year, income is up by 3%. Those three together would have pulled the numbers down 4% so I feel good about that. Merry Christmas!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HV Ken Posted December 12, 2012 Report Share Posted December 12, 2012 Perhaps you should consider eliminating/reducing the practice of carrying receivables. We require payment upon delivery of the tax return - payment can be made via cash, check, Fee Collect, or credit card (try to limit CC to those that are not receiving a refund). For monthly engagements, we require payment at the beginning of the month - they don't pay, we don't work! Helps with both cash flow and carrying very little A/R. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michaelmars Posted December 12, 2012 Report Share Posted December 12, 2012 i charge late fees and interest. once they get the late fee statement a check magically appears dated 2-3 days before the late fee kicked in. i also have most clients mail be the authorizations in my pre addressed envelope, most enclose my fee with them. my receivables are almost non existent. But on the other hand, i and my clients have always had cash flow issues this time of year. I think people just are busy with celebrations and vacations. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack from Ohio Posted December 12, 2012 Report Share Posted December 12, 2012 Combine what HV Ken and michaelmars do. No pay, no forms. For those you choose to have accounts, 2% late fee per month (and no abatements) will either motivate them to pay, or give you a very nice return on your investment when they do eventually pay. My Utility companies, grocery stores etc. do not tolerate such from me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Medlin Software, Dennis Posted December 12, 2012 Report Share Posted December 12, 2012 Agree on the penalty/interest. Some might say it is smart money (commodity) management by your clients to not be in a rush to pay you when there is no penalty. Money has a cost, and you are loaning it to them free. While I do not have any receivables in my current line of work, way back when, I did. My cost to carry receivables had to be more than my cost of money (getting a loan), plus a profit on my time to handle the receivables, plus a factor to account for noncollectable items. As long as I could borrow for less than what I was charging, and I accounted for a certain amount of noncollectable, I was making a profit both on my work and my loan. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kcjenkins Posted December 12, 2012 Report Share Posted December 12, 2012 I think those three you mention are due a personal visit or phone call. Start off with "I'm sure this was just overlooked, but I need your payment of your balance now. ....." You will likely get some feeble explanation, but you will get paid. Once they agree that they "overlooked" it and are going to pay you right away, you may go by and pick it up, take cc info, or whatever you choose. Just remember, it's easy to set a bill aside for 'later', but hard to ignore when dealing with someone in person. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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