Cleanup guide
How Long Does a Bookkeeping Cleanup Take?
It depends on six things, and you control two of them. Here is what speeds a cleanup up, what slows it down, and how we work when there is a date to hit.
What decides the timeline
- How many months are behind
- How many accounts there are, since each is reconciled separately
- How many transactions pass through them
- What state any existing file is in. Fixing a bad file can take longer than entering a blank period
- How quickly statements and reports arrive
- How quickly questions are answered
The first four are fixed by the time you call. The last two are yours, and in practice they make the most difference. A cleanup rarely stalls on the bookkeeping. It stalls waiting for a statement from a closed account or an answer about a transfer.
What speeds it up
- Requesting reissued bank statements on day one, for every account at once
- Giving read-only or accountant access to the bank, the processor and the bookkeeping file, so reports can be pulled directly
- Sending statements as PDFs with balances showing
- Answering each batch of questions in one sitting
- Telling us at the start about every account, including closed and personal ones
- Naming one person who can answer for the business
What slows it down
- An account discovered halfway through
- Statements arriving a few months at a time
- Loans and advances with no paperwork
- Several businesses sharing accounts
- Cash activity with no records
- Questions left unanswered while new ones accumulate
When there is a deadline
Tell us the date before anything else. We work back from it, do the parts the deadline depends on first, and say at the start whether it is realistic. If it is not, we say what can be ready by then and what protects you in the meantime, such as an extension or an interim set of figures for a lender.
We do not publish a number of days, because one honest figure cannot cover a single account three months behind and seven accounts five years behind. You are given a timeline for your own situation with the quote. The cleanup planner shows what yours is likely to involve.
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take to catch up a year of bookkeeping?
It depends mainly on the number of accounts, the volume of transactions and how quickly statements and answers arrive. A single account with complete statements moves quickly. Several accounts with gaps take longer. You get a timeline for your situation with the quote.
Can a cleanup be rushed for a deadline?
The order can be changed so that what the deadline depends on is done first, and that is often enough. Reconciliation cannot be skipped, because unreconciled figures are the ones that turn out wrong. See a tax deadline and no books.
What is the most common cause of delay?
Waiting for records. Reissued statements for old or closed accounts and paperwork for loans take the longest to arrive, which is why they are requested first.
Not the question you had? The full tax FAQ covers more ground, and our client reviews say what the work is actually like.
Related situations and guides
What a cleanup costs
What a quote is based on, what waiting adds, and how to keep the figure down.
Learn moreWhat to gather, and how to get it
The full document list, ranked by how much each item helps, and how to replace what is lost.
Learn moreA tax deadline and no books
The return is due and there are no numbers. What gets done first and what an extension really covers.
Learn moreCleanup Planner
Eight questions, then a plan: what comes first, what to gather, and which guides apply.
Learn moreCleanup Planner
Eight questions, then a plan: what comes first, what to gather, and which guides apply.
Part of Messy Books Help, alongside our catch-up bookkeeping service.
Tell us what you need
Send a short note about your situation and we’ll come back to you with a straight answer — whether that’s a quote, a next step, or a referral if it isn’t something we handle.
Prefer to talk it through first? Book a consultation and we’ll find a time, in the Easley office or virtually.
Send us the mess. We will send back a plan.
Call (864) 781-4035 or book a consultation, in the Easley office or virtually.