We will remember them. Lest we forget.

Happy Easter! C.T. Harris & Company wishes you a safe and happy holiday.

Queensland has been hit hard in the past few weeks, first with Cyclone Debbie and then with the resulting floods.  We sincerely hope that you and your families are safe and that the clean-up process is as quick as possible.

If your rental property has been damaged and repairs are required it's important that you understand the tax consequences before you outlay any money so that you can make an informed decision.

Repairs and maintenance relate to wear and tear or damage such as replacing worn or damaged curtains, replacing broken windows and replacing the plaster board in a wall damaged by flood inundation.  These types of expenses are fully tax deductible in the year they occur.  

However, not all outlays are repairs and maintenance; some expenses are classified as capital and are deductible at the rate of 2.5% over 40 years such as:

• Replacement of an entire structure such as a complete fence or building
• Improvements, renovations, extensions and alternations such as replacing a fibro wall damaged by flood with a brick wall
• Initial repairs such as remedying defects, damage or deterioration that existed at the date you acquired the property

Your insurance policy should cover damage from natural disasters however we encourage you to check your current policy for coverage and update if necessary.  Please also remember that if you receive an insurance payout for repairs, the amount you receive should be included in your assessable income. 

C.T. Harris & Company is available to help with any queries or concerns you may have about repairing your rental property.  

An experienced support team is crucial to the success of any business.  Our support team has over 20 years experience working at C.T. Harris & Company which provides them with the knowledge and skills to ensure that you have a positive experience. 

They perform a wide range of tasks including internal administration duties and client related tasks such as lodgement requirements, corporate compliance and client correspondence.

As the first point of contact at C.T. Harris & Company our support team strive to ensure that you feel valued and supported at all times.  This video outlines ways in which they achieve that.

While it may seem like Christmas was just yesterday, we've now powered through the first quarter of the year already.  It is a good time to sit back and evaluate your progress towards the SMART goals you set for yourself and your business.

What milestones have you achieved?

Are you on track to reach your goals?

Are there any goals which need to be adjusted due to unexpected opportunities or challenges?

If you need assistance to clarify your goals and determine a plan for how to achieve them we would be happy to assist.  The aim is to make sure there is continuous progress towards these goals so that you don't reuse the same goals for next year's resolutions.

The Australian Taxation Office increased the instant asset write-off threshold from $1,000 to $20,000 on 12 May, 2015. 
This means that any asset purchased for less than $20,000 GST Exclusive will be immediately deductible (rather than deducting for several years over its useful life). 
This includes both new and second hand assets.

Assets that cost $20,000 GST Exclusive or more cannot be immediately deducted; they will be deducted over time using the small business pool. 
The changes apply for assets acquired after 7:30pm on 12 May, 2015 until 30 June, 2017. 
After 30 June, 2017 you will only be able to claim an immediate deduction for assets purchased for less than $1,000 GST Exclusive.

If your business is eligible and was thinking about utilising this incentive we recommend that you do so before 30 June, 2017.
Please note that certain assets are excluded from these deprecation rules such as horticultural plants, in-house software and capital works.

In order to be eligible for the instant asset write-off you must meet the definition of a small business entity, which is one with an aggregated turnover less than $2 million. 
Aggregated turnover is the sum of your annual ordinary income and the annual ordinary income of any entity connected or affiliated with you for the income year.

If you are unsure whether your business and potential purchases would qualify then contact us so that we can review your situation and provide some clarity around these matters.

While qualifications are certainly valuable, most would agree that nothing can substitute for experience within an industry.  While business conditions are always changing, an experienced operator can synthesise information about past trends with data about business outlook and potential opportunity to create optimal decisions.  Here at C.T. Harris & Company, we are lucky to have a wealth of experience on hand for our clients to draw upon when making key business decisions. 

Paul Harris, an associate of C.T. Harris & Company, is an extremely experienced accountant and businessman, having been a Chartered Accountant and Certified Practicing Accountant for over fifty years.  He has helped many local businesses achieve great success over that time, and his insight and advice are shared with staff and clients of C.T. Harris & Company.  In this video, he outlines his role at C.T. Harris & Company. 

Business owners face many challenges.  While having a crystal clear understanding of your financial position may not seem important compared to the busy day to day demands of operating your business, if your business is not using financial data as the basis of major decisions, it is pursuing a very risky course.  It is vital that you not only understand your financial data, but have someone who can help you interpret it and use it to make optimal business decisions.

Chris Harris is the Principal of C.T. Harris & Company and has first-hand experience in operating multiple businesses.  Over his time as a business owner Chris has seen good and bad strategies and has the experience to know the difference.  This video outlines his experience and shares some of the ways he can help you make optimal business decisions based on your financial data. 

Last night I attended a great event organised by Advance Queensland and Startup Capricorn outlining pathways to become an entrepreneur.

The line-up of presenters was impressive:

Mark Sowerby – Queensland Chief Entrepreneur, Founder Blue Sky Alternative Investments

Stephen Baxter – Entrepreneur and investor, Founder RiverCity Labs, Startup Catalyst and RiverPitch, Shark on Channel 10's Shark Tank Australia

Chris Titley – Adviser Morgans, podcast anchor with Morgans Startup Series

Patrice Brown – Founder of CQG Consulting and two startups, Telstra Business Women's Queensland Entrepreneur 2016

Stephen Phillips – Co-founder, We Are Hunted

Lucas Patchett – Orange Sky Laundry, a free mobile laundry service for homeless people

It was great to hear their personal stories of what they have done to get to where they are today.

They were also quick to point out that there are always unforeseen problems to overcome and that it can take a long time for ideas to get off the ground and become successful.

They had a genuine interest in being the catalyst for people with ideas to take the first steps to progress their ideas and turn them into something.

Also you need to have conviction and determination to continue on your path and overcome the challenges which will surely arise.

Equally important was the ability to determine whether your idea needs to pivot slightly to achieve a better outcome and even more sobering was the ability to determine whether your idea is not commercially viable in which case you may be wasting your time.  Knowing whether you are on the right path can be critical to the success or failure of your venture.

At C.T. Harris & Company we are happy to provide independent feedback about your ideas.  We can discuss your ideas at a concept level or sign a confidentiality agreement if you would like to discuss all of the finer details. 

There's a great saying 'Don't die with the music in you'.  When it comes to startup ideas 'vision without action is merely a dream'.

We wish you well for your own entrepreneurship journey.