How much for an accountant?

I went to see an accountant today to get an idea of how much they charge for making up yearly accounts and filling in your tax self assessment. I know it will vary depending on area, size of business etc but quote I got for sole trader was approx £400 including vat. How does this compare with yours?

Don't use one. So easy to do it yourself if your just on your own

Yeah it's simple enough & something to do on a rainy day.

I know it is easy and I always have done my own but I can never get a mortage without offical accounts drawn up by a certified accountant. Unless you know another way to get a mortage?

I confess I didn't know about the mortgage thing. Printed HMRC tax statements aren't enough then?

No I don't believe so. On my bank's website it says they want three years certified accounts and the accountant said the same. Any one else have a different experoence in obtaining a mortage? Also how much is your accountant charging?

Ahh rite. You never said that in your 1st post

I pay £250 for a chartered accountant

I pay £30 a month standing order. All i do when i get a bank statement is put the receipt in with it coded with a number and the accountant does the rest.

Scrim it i got a mortgage with self employed accounts. I phoned HMRC and as a special request asked them to print out the last 5 years tax returns and post them to me. Thankfully they obliged. Mortgage broker was well chuffed

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What bank or mortage broker was that with? That sounds good as I think £380 seems expensive for an accountant to just check over your books.

I also got a mortgage without an accountant (Santander). You just need to request your SA302 forms for your last 3 years. Whether you have an accountant or do your book yourself the banks want to look at the same thing, your SA302's. Its all about proof of earnings, if you have your forms you should be okay

Great, thanks for that Paulio. Did they just want the sa302 forms or your books too?

Santander only wanted my sa302 forms. They have all the information they want. I.e net profit/tax owed etc. it just shows them you have earned what you've said you've earned.

If you set up a meeting with the mortgage advisor in your bank he will explain it all to you, it's not as scary as people think!

great thanks did you have much trouble getting the sa302 forms off the tax office?

If you file your returns online you can download them when you log into the HMRC website. Otherwise you will have to ask for them to be posted. I downloaded mine so was no trouble at all.