Originally Posted by blzzrdqueen
I don't expect to make much money the first year or so, we're still purchasing supplies (the least expensive first) and equipment. I plan to do the financial stuff myself, so is an accountant absolutely necessary? How much does that usually cost? I could get Quickbook on my own at some point. I've been reading a ton of info on state and local sales taxes and we will soon have our Certificate of Authority so we can collect tax. How often will I be paying these taxes, is it quarterly? I have a lot of questions! So please bare with me! Thank you ALL for the advice, I'll be looking into it all diligently!
I would start with Quickbooks right now, that way you don't have to try to play catch up & enter everything later. If you don't already use an accountant to prepare your personal taxes, then no, you don't *need* to hire one, but often times it makes things MUCH easier.
As for how often you have to pay the taxes, it all depends on your state/region. I have to pay monthly, even though I have less than $1,000 in annual sales. When you are making significant income through the business, you will need to make quarterly tax payments to the federal government, but you probably are quite a ways off from that still.