MBR Group

Is your business properly insured?

Adam — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 06:20:31 +0000

Business owners, we all need to be conscious of why we have insurance in place. What do you want cover for?

Do you know what you can insure for?

Yes, this video is an ad. But whilst the last 22 seconds is by Zurich, the first 4 minutes are for you.

Some examples for you, and me, and our families.

To discuss the cover you need, call us.

Are your SMSF’s assets secure?

Adam — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 09:33:29 +0000

The Federal Government has tightened the rules that apply to such investments in collectables and personal use assets rather than banning them.

For collectable and personal use assets purchased on or after 1 July 2011, trustees of self managed superannuation funds will be committing an offence if:
-The trustees enter into a lease or lease arrangement with a related party in respect of such assets;
-The item is stored in the private residence of a related party;
-The trustees do not keep a record of the reasons for any decision about the storage;
-The trustees do not insure the item in the name of the fund within 7 days of its acquisition; and
-The trustees dispose of the item to a related party at a price other than a market price determined by a qualified and independent valuer.

Trustees of self managed superannuation funds that had an existing investment on 30 June 2011 have been given a five year transition period before the new rules apply. If trustees of such funds are unable to comply with the new rules for those assets by 30 June 2016, those existing items must be disposed of by that date or the trustees will commit an offence.

All investments by self managed superannuation funds must be permitted under the fund’s trust deed, allowed for in the investment strategy and not breach the sole purpose or other investment rules in SISA. In certain circumstances, investments by a self managed superannuation fund in Section 62A items are a legitimate means of providing retirement benefits for members. The tightening of the rules in respect of collectables and personal use assets from 1 July 2011 mean that trustees need to be more careful then ever if such investments are made.

These rules change the landscape for some investors, so if you would like further information on this topic or unsure if your assets are collectables/personal use assets please contact our office.

We note that the key information in this post has been extracted from an article by HLB Mann Judd, and we advise that this document is general only and that you should seek particular advice for your individual circumstances.

New National Names Register (at last!)

Adam — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 00:43:25 +0000

On the 28th May 2012 a new National Names Register commences. The register will be managed by ASIC, and will replace the current business names registration process governed by each separate State and Territory.

Businesses operating in more than one State will only need to register once and the process can all be done online at www.asic.gov.au.

Existing business names currently registered will automatically be transferred to the new register.

Should your renewal be due before the commencement date, make sure you renew as required by the due date to ensure the seamless transfer.

Registration of business names can be made either yearly with a fee of $30, or for a 3 year term with a fee of $70.

When the business names are transferred from the State and Territory business name systems, there may be two or more identical (or nearly identical) business names recorded in the ASIC business names register.

Should this occur ASIC will provide additional information on the public register to assist the public in differentiating between identical business names, this additional information will NOT form part of the business name.

ASIC will notify you well in advance of your business name registration expiring and will send your first business name renewal notice to your address for service of documents (based on the information transferred from the state or territory business name systems).

We recommend you check with your current State or Territory agency to ensure they have your current details.

If you have any questions, simply leave a comment below or email adam@mbrgroup.com.au

Small Business Basics: Personal Property Securities Register, some practical examples

Adam — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 10:18:59 +0000

Whilst there has been some press about the Personal Property Securities Register, this week I recieved my first register document regarding our office photocopier.

So I thought I would explain how business owners might use the register, or may find themselves on the register.

Finance leases. The finance company will register its interest in the property concerned with the register.
Property lease. If a lease includes a clause where the landlord contributes to the fit out of a tenant (personal property), then you could expect the landlord to register the interest in the fit out.
Motor Vehicles. State based Vehicle Securities Registers have been replaced by the PPS Register.
Fixed and floating charges. The current ASIC register of fixed and floating charges has been migrated to the PPS Register. Importantly all future charges must be registered with the PPS Register
Business operators who sell personal property on credit, consignment, or on a retention of title arrangement need to register their interest in the property on the PPS Register.
Business owners who are about to purchase personal property, such as valuable second hand goods, should search the register before buying to make sure that the property is free of a security interest.

The above is intended to provide practical examples of the application of the PPS Register. It is by no means comprehensive, however the securities website www.ppsr.gov.au is quite comprehensive.

If you would like clarification regarding the Register and how it impacts your business, leave a comment below or email adam@mbrgroup.com.au

Congratulations Auction Rooms

Adam — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 09:32:42 +0000

On behalf of all of us at MBR Group we congratulate Andrew Kelly on the award given by Melbourne’s volunteer Coffee Army.

Tonight, following the review of over 1,000 coffee “haunts”, Auction Rooms followed up the award by The Age Good Cafe guide for the Best Cafe in Melbourne with the award for The Best Coffee in Melbourne.

This award was not by some writer, but by a volunteer “army” of coffee reviewers. Angus Holland, editor of The Melbourne Magazine recruited the army by social media, and offered training and tasting lessons to his army.

Let loose on the streets of Victoria (but really the best coffee is in the big smoke) the army diligently and passionately cruised the cafe scene in search of Melbourne’s best Coffee.

Following a rigorous process (an additional 500 odd reviews) Auction Rooms emerged as the winner!

Andrew Kelly was not present to accept the award, as he was in search of even better beans to keep Auction Rooms and Small Batch at the top of the game.

Hats off Andrew and the talented teams at Auction Rooms and Small Batch on a suitably crowning achievement.

The team at MBR Group.

The Power of a Performance Action Plan for your Business

Adam — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 04:52:59 +0000

In your business you may have a marketing plan, you may have a business plan, you may have a cash flow budget or financial plan but do you have a Performance Action Plan. You see for all of the decisions that are made when you prepare a marketing plan or business plan and for all of those expectations you may have when you prepare a cash flow, the reality is without action is little chance such plans will come to fruition.

If you are in business there is a good chance you would like to improve the performance.

Thats why I love the Performance Action Plan. It works like this:

1. Review business operations
2. Identify potential improvements
3. Whittle down to the activities that will drive the improvements
4. Document the action plan
5. Implement powerfully – provide both resources and accountability
6. Actions undertaken
7. Performance monitored
8. Next actions identified
9. Back to number 4.

Of course, not every action will provide the desired outcomes, which is why items 7 to 9 are the real power of the plan. And without 5, there is likely to be a difference between the actions documented at 4 and those undertaken at 6.

I have found that this method works brilliantly with a structured planning session where we sit down with our clients and go through their business and their goals and develop a clear view of the desired future. We have clients who have called it the best thing they have ever done for their business and for themselves. For me it is also a fantastic day, an opportunity to really help our business clients move powerfully towards their goals, supporting them and their future.

Thats why I love being an accountant. There is so much more we do that just numbers and tax.

So what do you think? Do you think a Performance Action Plan could help your business? Leave a comment below, and the best response will receive a coffee from me.

Did I not mention how much I love coffee?

Almost as much as Action!

Go on, take a little action, post your thoughts below.

Don’t be scammed by the Tax Office

Adam — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 04:16:05 +0000

Seriously, this is not a joking matter. If you are called by telephone or sent and email purporting to be from the ATO, you need to check that it is actually so.

If in doubt, call us immediately and we will help check it out. Below is a summary of a current phone scam in operation, kindly provide by the (real) Australian Taxation Office:

Phone scams

From time to time the ATO may contact you by phone but you should be wary of unsolicited phone calls claiming to be from the ATO and offering you a tax refund. Increasingly we are seeing these scams using names and addresses that have some correlation to actual ATO officers and buildings. We advise taxpayers to be highly vigilant when receiving phone calls of this nature.

The following are examples of recent phone scams:

1. You are called on either your private home or mobile number by a person claiming to be from the ATO. They say that you have been chosen for a business grant of $7000 (could be any amount) from the federal Government. You are told you need to phone a specific number straight away to organise the process to collect the grant.

Key indicators of this scam:

cold calling (unsolicited calls)
the caller advises that you have been chosen for a business grant
you are asked to phone to organise the collection of the grant. When phoning, you will likely be to asked for personal information, including financial details or requested to pay an amount to have the money released. You may also be asked to provide other personal information that could be utilised to steal your identity
the caller provides details which may be similar to actual ATO officer details or addresses. However the street name may be spelt incorrectly or the wrong postcode is provided with the address.

2. You are called on either your private home or mobile number by a person claiming to be from the ATO. They say that you are owed a tax refund of around $3000 (could be any amount) and that you need to make a money transfer to an Indian orphanage or other charity of around $150 in order to receive your refund.

Generally they provide a NSW phone number to contact the ‘ATO’ once you have completed the transfer. The scammers sometimes quote personal information such as address and date of birth during the conversation to show authenticity and also often have several private contact numbers for you.

Key indicators of this scam:

cold calling (unsolicited calls)
the caller advises that you have an unclaimed refund
you are asked to pay a sum of money to a third party in order to receive the refund
the payment must be made through a money transfer.

3. You receive a call from a person saying that they are from “The Tax Office’s Australian Government Grants Department”. The person asks to clarify your name and address and says you will receive a cheque for $5200, hand delivered the next day. In order to get this cheque, you need to call a phone number back to confirm eligibility.

Key indicators of this scam:

cold calling (unsolicited calls)
the caller advises that you will receive this money as they have “unclaimed taxes” and/or they “pay tax frequently”
all the call centre operatives refer to themselves as “Harry”
you call the number provided and are asked to go to Australia Post and complete a “Yellow Form” (presumably an International Money order) and call them back to provide a 10 digit confirmation number from the form
you must attach $99 and address the form to “Australian Government – Veerendra Kumar, Bareilly, India”
the phone number provided is (02) 6100 3889.

EMAIL SCAMS TOO!

This is an example of an email received by one of our clients:

From: Australian Taxation Office
Sent: Thursday, 8 December 2011 6:56 AM
To: Admin
Subject: Urgent! You filled out your tax form NAT3799 incorrectly!

To whom it may concern.

We are sorry to inform you that you have made mistakes while filling out the last NAT3799 tax return (ID: 958595122165) .
Please read recommendations and hints from our tax specialists HERE

Please correct the mistakes and send the revised tax return to your tax agent as soon as possible.

Kind regards,
Stacy Barr

So again, if in doubt, call us now or email admin@mbrgroup.com.au and we will help you.

School Expenses – Claim your refund!

Adam — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 04:07:10 +0000

With the closing of one school year, many of you will already have the booklists for 2012, and might be planning to shop over the holidays.

So we thought it would be worth reminding you about the Education Tax Refund.

What is the Education Tax Refund
The Education Tax Refund (ETR) helps with the cost of educating primary and secondary school children.

Eligible parents, carers, legal guardians and independent students are able to get money back on education expenses. These include items like computers, educational software, textbooks and stationery.

You may get 50% of your money back.If you get Family Tax Benefit (FTB) Part A, you probably are eligible for the ETR. There are also some payments that prevent you from receiving FTB Part A, but which still entitle you to receive the refund.

You can also claim the refund if you are an independent student. For more information, go to http://www.educationtaxrefund.gov.au/index.html

You need to keep your receipts as you need them to calculate your entitlement and you may need them as proof of purchase.

What items can I claim?

Eligible expenses include the cost of buying, establishing, repairing and maintaining any of the following items:

home computers and laptops

computer-related equipment such as printers, USB flash drives

disability aids to assist in the use of computer equipment for students with special needs

computer repairs

home internet connections

computer software for educational use

school textbooks and other printed learning material, including prescribed textbooks, associated learning materials, study guides and stationery

prescribed trade tools for secondary school trade courses

What items can’t I claim?

You cannot claim:

school fees

student attendance at school-based extra curricular activities such as excursions and camps

tutoring costs

sporting equipment

musical instruments

school subject levies – for example, payment for consumables for particular subjects such as woodwork, art or home science

building levies

library book fees

school photos

donations

tuck shop expenses

waiting list fees

transport

membership fees

computer games and consoles

So make sure you keep your receipts and let us know at tax time so we can maximise your refund.

If you have any queries, email admin@mbrgroup.com.au

Why I love Xero – perfect? or not?

Adam — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 11:41:04 +0000

Born and bred on a sheep farm in country Victoria, I came to Melbourne seeking knowledge and learning experiences.

I door-knocked the longest continuous shopping strip in the southern hemisphere (Sydney Road) to secure my first non-farm job.

19 years later I own that accounting business, and I can assure you, times have changed.

In 1993 after reconciling my fathers farm accounts on my custom macro driven Lotus 1,2,3 spreadsheet I discovered Quicken for DOS. Brilliant cashbook software, fast and efficient, I stuck with it through Windows 3.1 and beyond, before GST drove me to Quickbooks.

Now I have seen the future of business accounting software and, boy, does it have the “X Factor”!!

Xero is its name and I can happily describe it as Beautiful Accounting Software.

No updates for the user to install, no desktop software, no backups you or I have to do, mobile (iPhone/iPad/Android/laptop) access, and I can work with my clients on the same data hundreds or thousands of miles apart.

It is the way of the future, but best of all it is available today for Australian Business Owners.

For me, I love that one ledger means no data re-entry for Financial Statements, LIVE data feeds from banks so the information can always be up to date.

And did I mention platform independent! Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux… as long as you have a browser and an internet connection, you have Xero.

Great reporting, EASY to use, an open API (if you know what that means you will like it) so it can “talk nice” with other software. Saves you time, saves me time. What is not to love about that?

Perhaps it is not perfect. But it’s damn close for me!

I would love to hear what you think, or if you have any questions, just comment below and I will respond.

Xero breakfast briefing a great hit with our guests

Adam — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 10:11:46 +0000

We recently held our first Xero briefing for clients and local businesses, and the feedback was amazing.

At our breakfast briefing, clients and guests saw why everyone is talking about Xero. It really can make bookkeeping fun, save business owners time, and allows accountants to work with their clients in real time, not just with historical numbers.

We fully support the Xero product and love how it is easy to use, and this was always going to make for a great presentation.

And I am happy to say the feedback has been first class:

Presentation Underway

“Great session. Presenter provided information that was relevant and precise about the topic. Provided live examples on the software. Answered participants questions. Session was interactive.”

“Very efficiently and effectively done.”

“The presentation was a fantastic display of how MBR Group is being pro-active in aiming to deliver its clients better results.”

“Presentation was excellent. I can see a real use for this software in the market”

“I MAY need some help setting up abut am going OK so far.”

“I’ve rated it all 9 but there was really nothing that was unsatisfactory. I would also like to add that the time of the day was great for me and the effort to run on time was VERY much appreciated. The session was ‘just right’ in length and information load- and formality. Good to be able to ask questions as they popped into your head. As discussed we will follow up on the Xero product.”