FranLab is getting evicted

[nctnico]

how many of all those pages actually apply to the situation of an individual person?

1. You don't know what you don't know.

If you go that route, you can also question how reliable the accountant is that you hire to do the work for you. It wouldn't be the first time an expert is wrong.
The reality is that you can find information very easely at several places. Especially with internet. And you could just buy a book about the subject. How is that for an idea? A couple of years ago I wanted to understand more about setting up a 'limited' company so I simply bought a book about it and read it.

[Nominal Animal]

The reality is that you can find information very easely at several places. Especially with internet. And you could just buy a book about the subject. How is that for an idea? A couple of years ago I wanted to understand more about setting up a 'limited' company so I simply bought a book about it and read it.

If your assertion was correct, then nobody should hire university graduates either, because everything a worker needs to know is already on the internet.

The thing about a good accountant is twofold: 1) detail-oriented precision and accuracy, and 2) experience.

I've run a limited liability company, and did all accounting for a few years myself.  Yes, one can do it.  I got some books, went to some courses, and consulted quite a few experts –– funnily enough, here in Finland the tax office is very friendly to anyone who comes with accounting books and asks for details and reasons for some of the requirements/suggestions.  The best accountants here do that often.  No, the tax people here do not try to get you to pay a cent extra; they only want you to pay what the law says you need to.  All the ones I met clearly wanted the company to succeed, not bled dry, and were happy to help me abide by the tax code.  (I don't know if that is typical of Finns or universal, because I've only had to directly deal with the Finnish tax people.)
I would not be exaggerating much if I said the best service I've gotten in Finland was in a tax office.  Funky.  (As a normal private person the experience can be quite different, though.)

I'm telling you that whenever the business accounting work exceeds your personal accounting, it is time to get a dedicated expert to do it.  They are experienced, and don't make mistakes like someone new to accounting might; they have the routines down pat.  They have contacts they can use when a detail is unclear.  It's just like with lawyers, especially copyright and patent law: you don't pay them for the time they spend with you, you pay for their expertise.

And yes, the hardest part about accountants is finding a good one with experience.  Here, you need contacts among many small companies and entrepreneurs, so that you find out the ones to absolutely avoid.

[nctnico]

The reality is that you can find information very easely at several places. Especially with internet. And you could just buy a book about the subject. How is that for an idea? A couple of years ago I wanted to understand more about setting up a 'limited' company so I simply bought a book about it and read it.

If your assertion was correct, then nobody should hire university graduates either, because everything a worker needs to know is already on the internet.

You missed the point that A) as a business owner you need to know what an accountant is doing (for multiple reasons; like asking the right questions, understanding & steering what the accountant is doing), B) there is a lot you can actually do yourself. Accounting and taxes is not something only magicians can do; information is easy to find and from there you can decide whether to do it yourself of outsource. Especially for things that turn up regulary -like taxes- you can save a lot of money by doing it yourself. Even if not perfect but still cheaper compared to outsourcing. Accountants are not cheap so just hiring an accountant from a Pavlov or fear of paperwork reaction isn't the right route to take.

Everytime this subject comes up some people knee-jerk to 'hire an accountant because you can't do it yourself and it will save you money'. But neither is necessarily true. Somebody with an engineering background and thus someone who should be used to working with numbers can get quite far. And where it comes to saving money I have just one question: how much is actually saved? Spending $1k on an accountant to save $200 is not sensible.

Also be aware that accountants have limitations as well. Many small companies use them as a source for legal help besides taxes (like HR stuff) while accountants don't have the deep knowledge to give good advice on that subject. The same goes for more advanced financial advise like how to deal with building a retirement fund. For the latter you need a financial planner / insurance expert.

The thing about a good accountant is twofold: 1) detail-oriented precision and accuracy, and 2) experience.

I'm telling you that whenever the business accounting work exceeds your personal accounting, it is time to get a dedicated expert to do it.  They are experienced, and don't make mistakes like someone new to accounting might; they have the routines down pat.  They have contacts they can use when a detail is unclear.  It's just like with lawyers, especially copyright and patent law: you don't pay them for the time they spend with you, you pay for their expertise.

I agree. At some point your time is better spend elsewhere when running a big company.

BTW: I also have a very good relation with the tax office. As long as you stay polite and clear about what you want, a lot is possible. Over the years I had some audits from the tax office and never a problem.

[EEVblog]

Hopefully Fran has an accountant.  The fee for such a professional who knows the ins-and-outs of the tax system is rapidly paid back when they find a good way to save you a few percent here or there.

That is only true if you are illiterate or totally uninterested in tax matters. Most of this stuff is pretty simple to deal with if you put your mind to it. Accountants love to boast about how much money they save but if they save a lot, it is likely shady and could possibly land you in trouble later on.

In my case, the advantages are:
- Massive amount of time saved
- Software and bank account automation for reconciliation and tax reports.
- Extra time to put in my taxes (Oct deadline if DIY, April the next year if through a certified accountant), so delyed cash flow advantage
- The appearance of legitimacy to the tax department, and they deal with all tax department enquries. This is more important than you think. You generally won't get anally probed if you go through an accountant with a good track record.
- They can spit out reports for various needs at a moments notice
- They have direct portal access to the tax department to change thing.
- And obviously they are on top of all the latest tax legislation and all the other expertise that they bringing doing this for countless people every day.

My yearly business tax report is like 100 pages long. I just check a few things and sign on the dotted line.
Worth every cent and then some.
They do my business return, our personal tax returns, and our self managed super fund. Easy and painless.
If you are a Pty Ltd company in Australia and you do your own taxes, you are insane.
I used to do my own when I was a sole trader and granted, it's not too hard at that scale.

[EEVblog]

how many of all those pages actually apply to the situation of an individual person?

1. You don't know what you don't know.

If you go that route, you can also question how reliable the accountant is that you hire to do the work for you. It wouldn't be the first time an expert is wrong.
The reality is that you can find information very easely at several places. Especially with internet.

Yes, that hhapened to me with my old accountant. He said I couldn't claim meals and he pointed to legislation saying that.
What he didn't know and what I discovered on my own research was that that was overridden by an special ammendment. He admitted I was right.
That doesn't mean I'm better off doing it myself, far from it as I pointed out last comment.

This photo is just my Pty Ltd business return last year. Does not include our two personal returns and our self managed super fund return, whcih will soon have it's own Pty Ltd company to handle it.

If you are a small Pty Ltd business and you are dong your own return here without professional accounting portal access (which only certified accountants can get), the tax department will flag you for the rubber glove treatment. Good luck.

[EEVblog]

Seems like a catch-22.  The only way to break it is to go get a well-paying job, fix her personal finances, buy real estate (with a YT business in mind), do this a few years.  THEN, armed with savings, real estate, a good credit rating, and a career to fall back on if things aren't working out, move on to YT.
Frankly, the whole thing has that smell of "I'm going to do whatever I want and if I can't it's the world's fault."  But the reality is no one owes me or anyone else squat.

She said in the recent Patreon video (which doesn't seem like she is going to release) that she is unemployable. Every employer will google her and put her in the "not dealing with that" bin. She used the example that because she has a large audience, no business if going to risk hiring her in case she "outs" them if there is some sort of grievence. And she's probably right.

[nctnico]

Seems like a catch-22.  The only way to break it is to go get a well-paying job, fix her personal finances, buy real estate (with a YT business in mind), do this a few years.  THEN, armed with savings, real estate, a good credit rating, and a career to fall back on if things aren't working out, move on to YT.
Frankly, the whole thing has that smell of "I'm going to do whatever I want and if I can't it's the world's fault."  But the reality is no one owes me or anyone else squat.

She said in the recent Patreon video (which doesn't seem like she is going to release) that she is unemployable. Every employer will google her and put her in the "not dealing with that" bin. She used the example that because she has a large audience, no business if going to risk hiring her in case she "outs" them if there is some sort of grievence. And she's probably right.

For that reason they have NDAs so I don't see it as a particulary valid reason. Did she ever try to apply for a job that matches her skillset? I mean, Fran does have a lot of skills making all kinds of stuff so it shouldn't be particulary hard to find a job. Still, fitting in with the team is another thing but you can't really know that upfront and it depends on whether you are easy going or not.

[EEVblog]

Seems like a catch-22.  The only way to break it is to go get a well-paying job, fix her personal finances, buy real estate (with a YT business in mind), do this a few years.  THEN, armed with savings, real estate, a good credit rating, and a career to fall back on if things aren't working out, move on to YT.
Frankly, the whole thing has that smell of "I'm going to do whatever I want and if I can't it's the world's fault."  But the reality is no one owes me or anyone else squat.

She said in the recent Patreon video (which doesn't seem like she is going to release) that she is unemployable. Every employer will google her and put her in the "not dealing with that" bin. She used the example that because she has a large audience, no business if going to risk hiring her in case she "outs" them if there is some sort of grievence. And she's probably right.

For that reason they have NDAs so I don't see it as a particulary valid reason.

Nothign to do with releasing private company info that an NDA covers, it's about the bad press that could result from simply bad mouthing the company to a large audience. An NDA doesn't cover saying the company sucks and treated you poorly etc.

[Bud]

Thickness of a tax return paper pile is not an indicator of how difficult it is to produce. Most of it gets generated by the computer based on a few dozen entries on the entry form.

[nctnico]

Seems like a catch-22.  The only way to break it is to go get a well-paying job, fix her personal finances, buy real estate (with a YT business in mind), do this a few years.  THEN, armed with savings, real estate, a good credit rating, and a career to fall back on if things aren't working out, move on to YT.
Frankly, the whole thing has that smell of "I'm going to do whatever I want and if I can't it's the world's fault."  But the reality is no one owes me or anyone else squat.

She said in the recent Patreon video (which doesn't seem like she is going to release) that she is unemployable. Every employer will google her and put her in the "not dealing with that" bin. She used the example that because she has a large audience, no business if going to risk hiring her in case she "outs" them if there is some sort of grievence. And she's probably right.

For that reason they have NDAs so I don't see it as a particulary valid reason.

Nothign to do with releasing private company info that an NDA covers, it's about the bad press that could result from simply bad mouthing the company to a large audience. An NDA doesn't cover saying the company sucks and treated you poorly etc.

Perhaps NDA is the wrong term but I guess there are some legal constructs to prevent people from talking bad about a company. Also, there is something like slander as well. Besides that, bad mouthing a former employer you left recently, reflects bad on yourself in the first place.

Edit: it looks like the proper term is anti-defamation and anti-slander clauses in an employment contract.

[EEVblog]

Thickness of a tax return paper pile is not an indicator of how difficult it is to produce. Most of it gets generated by the computer based on a few dozen entries on the entry form.

Generated by the program, yes. From a few dozen entries, no, not even close.
That's not the point though. The point is knowing how the entire system works, having direct tax department portal access, knowing what they want and how they want it, etc etc.
If you are an individual small business owner doing this yourself, you are crazy IMO. But YMMV
BTW, mine business is a bit complex and requires more time and effort than an ordinary small business. You could probably get a simple business done for a couple of grand a year. Absolute no-brainer business decision.

[EEVblog]

Perhaps NDA is the wrong term but I guess there are some legal constructs to prevent people from talking bad about a company. Also, there is something like slander as well. Besides that, bad mouthing a former employer you left recently, reflects bad on yourself in the first place.
Edit: it looks like the proper term is anti-defamation and anti-slander clauses in an employment contract.

Yes, but the point is the mere threat of something like that happening means they are going to put you in the "why take the risk" basket. Especially if it's just a regular job they can hire anyone else for.
Doesn't mean you shouldn't try though. She did talk about it in the video so maybe she is thinking of it.
I agree that trying to score a decent job and getting on your feet finanically is certainly worth considering. If it means being able to do that for a year or two and then getting a loan for a property, even in Philly, would solve a major problem.
The thing is, her Patreon and Youtueb income really isn't going to change if she got a day job, she could easily keep the channel going after hours. She's single, can burn the midnight oil, and can keep doing relatively simple to produce videos.

[james_s]

There are jobs where they may not care, government for example. In Seattle they have had trouble hiring enough transit bus drivers, I saw a thing in the mail that they'll even pay for training. Surely Philly has a large transit system, doesn't take take any special skillset to drive a bus. Maybe some kind of maintenance gig, she obviously knows a thing or two about electrical and mechanical stuff.

[SiliconWizard]

Seems like a catch-22.  The only way to break it is to go get a well-paying job, fix her personal finances, buy real estate (with a YT business in mind), do this a few years.  THEN, armed with savings, real estate, a good credit rating, and a career to fall back on if things aren't working out, move on to YT.
Frankly, the whole thing has that smell of "I'm going to do whatever I want and if I can't it's the world's fault."  But the reality is no one owes me or anyone else squat.

She said in the recent Patreon video (which doesn't seem like she is going to release) that she is unemployable. Every employer will google her and put her in the "not dealing with that" bin. She used the example that because she has a large audience, no business if going to risk hiring her in case she "outs" them if there is some sort of grievence. And she's probably right.

For that reason they have NDAs so I don't see it as a particulary valid reason.

Nothign to do with releasing private company info that an NDA covers, it's about the bad press that could result from simply bad mouthing the company to a large audience. An NDA doesn't cover saying the company sucks and treated you poorly etc.

Yes absolutely. I don't see the link with  NDAs that only cover not disclosing confidential information, basically.

But bad mouthing is usually covered by a loyalty clause that should be in most employees contract. I don't really see someone having a large audience as being an obstacle to being employed really. I don't buy that. It could even benefit some companies/positions. And if the loyalty clause is not enough, the company can always add a clause in the contract to prevent you from saying anything negative about the company or any of its products for as long as the contract holds. As long as both parties agree. So this whole argument sounds moot to me.

[EEVblog]

But bad mouthing is usually covered by a loyalty clause that should be in most employees contract. I don't really see someone having a large audience as being an obstacle to being employed really.

Unless you are actually in that position, than you might find out the hard way.

I don't buy that. It could even benefit some companies/positions.

That's the trick, finding someone who can utilise your exposure. I think Fran should be put out a video asking if anyone wants to hire her, you never know who'll see it.

And if the loyalty clause is not enough, the company can always add a clause in the contract to prevent you from saying anything negative about the company or any of its products for as long as the contract holds. As long as both parties agree.

Why would they bother going to any extra legal effort for an average job they can give to anyone?
You likely won't even get past the HR department background check, and that's the point.
I've been turned down for jobs because I had a public website, even before Youtube.

[BradC]

BTW, mine business is a bit complex and requires more time and effort than an ordinary small business. You could probably get a simple business done for a couple of grand a year. Absolute no-brainer business decision.

Ours is a complex business with multiple entities and several sub-consultants. We use Xero to do our own coding and GST, but the total cost per year including the Accountant to do _all_ the official stuff is less than $4k, and that includes all the business registrations.

I used to pay someone to do the whole lot, and it was 3 times that. I then paid our current accountant to teach me how to do the 2 hours per month work it takes, and we're _way_ ahead.

[EEVblog]

BTW, mine business is a bit complex and requires more time and effort than an ordinary small business. You could probably get a simple business done for a couple of grand a year. Absolute no-brainer business decision.

Ours is a complex business with multiple entities and several sub-consultants. We use Xero to do our own coding and GST, but the total cost per year including the Accountant to do _all_ the official stuff is less than $4k, and that includes all the business registrations.
I used to pay someone to do the whole lot, and it was 3 times that. I then paid our current accountant to teach me how to do the 2 hours per month work it takes, and we're _way_ ahead.

Mine's about double that, sometimes less than that depending on individual stuff that year and dealing with the tax depertment. But that includes our personal tax returns, investments, Pty Ltd company, foreign currency stuff, crypto, and all the book keeping. I do zero coding or book work. About a few hours work per year to collate some stuff at tax time and that's it.
A friend of mine pays $25k/year for his business with half a dozen employees. Was shocked to hear I only pay $8k including personal returns and investments.
Started out about $3k/year but has slowly crept up as my business has grown, and it was way easier to have them do the personla returns as well whcih we used to do ourselves.

As I said, one huge advantage is that you get to delay your taxes by 6 months by having a certified accountant do it.

There is absolutely no way you could ever convince me to go back to doing my own taxes. Screw that.

EDIT: I do use myob essentials for the new stupid payroll legislation stuff though, few minutes work per month.

[SiliconWizard]

Why would they bother going to any extra legal effort for an average job they can give to anyone?

Yep but that's true for pretty much anyone for an "average job" anyway. They'll sure select the "easiest" profile. But shouldn't she (or people in her shoes) go for less average jobs if they want to get an employed position anyway? Now of course, the fact that she doesn't want to move is here too a major block. Severly limits her options, not just for housing, but for jobs too.

You likely won't even get past the HR department background check, and that's the point.
I've been turned down for jobs because I had a public website, even before Youtube.

I don't know if it's really because the person has public exposure per se and they fear badmouthing, or rather just because the person has an independent mindset - HR people often don't like that. People showing the mindset of an independent worker, even if it's just because they have a website (about their field of expertise of course, not just a random blog about cooking), make them uncomfortable. They think they'll never know if you'll be a loyal employee and won't just quit at any time just because you want to run your own business.

[EEVblog]

Why would they bother going to any extra legal effort for an average job they can give to anyone?

Yep but that's true for pretty much anyone for an "average job" anyway. They'll sure select the "easiest" profile. But shouldn't she (or people in her shoes) go for less average jobs if they want to get an employed position anyway? Now of course, the fact that she doesn't want to move is here too a major block. Severly limits her options, not just for housing, but for jobs too.

Yes, that's what I'd do if I was her. I'd put the word out that I'm open for jobs in my field of expertise, consulting work, promotion, etc.
I only mention it because she has used the example of a checkout person at the local supermarket etc in videos.

I don't know if it's really because the person has public exposure per se and they fear badmouthing, or rather just because the person has an independent mindset - HR people often don't like that. People showing the mindset of an independent worker, even if it's just because they have a website (about their field of expertise of course, not just a random blog about cooking), make them uncomfortable. They think they'll never know if you'll be a loyal employee and won't just quit at any time just because you want to run your own business.

Yes, but same end result either way, no job for you.

[EEVblog]

The art video was released:

[ebastler]

Feels more like yet another patreon/funding/problems video to me. 

[sokoloff]

"Hey Fran, When are the block prints you're making going to be for sale?"

"Oh, you mean all these prints that are already made and dried and getting in my way around the space? Here's a long answer as to why I don't really intend to sell those things, even though people are asking me if they can buy them..." 


State sales tax nexus is fairly straightforward to figure out. Fran wouldn't be obligated to collect and remit sales tax in most cases, unless her sales were so strong that her financial worries would be over:
https://www.avalara.com/us/en/learn/guides/state-by-state-guide-economic-nexus-laws.html

Very few places have local sales taxes. Those that do tend to be in states with high economic nexus threshold.
State and Federal Income taxes are something that Fran is already dealing with.

[EEVblog]

State sales tax nexus is fairly straightforward to figure out. Fran wouldn't be obligated to collect and remit sales tax in most cases, unless her sales were so strong that her financial worries would be over:
https://www.avalara.com/us/en/learn/guides/state-by-state-guide-economic-nexus-laws.html
Very few places have local sales taxes. Those that do tend to be in states with high economic nexus threshold.

So sales under $100k she pays no state tax at all?

[sokoloff]

There are income taxes (on profits) and sales taxes (on revenue, typically paid by the buyer [above the revenue line for the seller, but collected and remitted by the seller]). Sales taxes are like GST/VAT, but only charged on the final retail sale (and added on top of the advertised price).

If Fran sells below the threshold to have economic nexus in a foreign state (other than Pennsylvania), she won’t have to fool with sales taxes in that other state. She may have to do it in PA because her business is there.

Separately, if she sells enough to make a profit after expenses, she will owe income taxes on the profit, both federally and to the state. That’s a good problem to have, and avoiding it by not selling anything isn’t particularly productive.

[SiliconWizard]

This is enough work and trouble that she'll need an accountant, like many other small business owners do. The whole deal again is not really how complex it is (just pay someone qualified, as Dave does), but how much you'll make a year to cover all your expenses and hopefully get some extra.