Where to find work from home accounting jobs

By Angie Nelson

latest version December 8, 2020. Disclosure: We may receive compensation if you sign up or purchase products linked below. Details of offers may vary and you should confirm them with the company before taking action.

There is a huge market for freelance accountants. After all, every business owner – big or small – needs to keep proper books. If you have the education and skills, there are many home accounting jobs waiting. Here’s what you need to know about getting started and succeeding.

Establishing clients in the world of freelance accounting

If you’ve decided to go ahead and try to establish yourself as a freelance accountant, building a client list is probably your top priority. To do this successfully, you need to understand how to market yourself and your services effectively, what the workflow process actually is, and how to prepare the content that each client will want to see. Let’s look at these requirements in more detail:

• Marketing yourself as a freelance accountant – The best way to do this successfully is to understand the value and benefits you offer your clients. Come up with a pitch that emphasizes the benefits that proper accounting can bring to their business. Show them how understanding cash flows between debtors, creditors, customers and governments can be analyzed to make wise business decisions.
• Understand your workflow process – Although each account will be slightly different, you will find that the same basic process will be followed for most of your clients. Their bookkeeping includes creating and tracking invoices, disbursing funds to their appropriate accounts, and then paying salaries or vendors depending on individual transactions. As a side note, be sure to set aside enough money to pay taxes at the end of the year; A self-employed person’s earnings are usually not withheld like a regular paycheck.
• Generate reports – For most basic accounting tasks, clients only need to see a few simple documents. Typically, this will be their general ledger, balance sheet, profit and loss statement and income statement. You should familiarize yourself with the content and purpose of these documents, and learn how to accurately and quickly prepare them for clients, as they will be some of your most used tools as a freelance accountant.

Obtaining client information is no longer a major challenge for freelance accountants

If you have experience in an industry where you rely on clients providing accurate information in a timely manner, you know how difficult this can actually be to achieve. This trend is even worse for those looking for work as a freelance accountant, since you can literally do nothing without access to the right documents and data you need to start your calculations.

However, some software programs and packages can make life easier. There are some that help you directly with accounting tasks, others that facilitate the transfer of information between you and your clients, and others that facilitate communication in general. Let’s take a look at four software programs that should be in any freelance accountant’s toolbox:

• QuickBooks – The great thing about QuickBooks accounting software from Intuit is that it is compatible with many other third-party programs, and has relatively powerful data import and export features. This means that whatever your client is able to provide you, you can probably rework it into some format that QuickBooks can use to automate the process, saving you a significant amount of time.
• shoeboxed – This tool helps turn paper documents into a scannable and searchable archive suitable for use as IRS documentation. Encouraging your clients to use this program, or doing it themselves using their paper documents, is a great way to help keep their accounting data streamlined and up to date.
• Dropbox – This is a free file sharing program that mimics the file structure of a hard drive, yet is stored entirely in the cloud. You can share access to directories you create, which can quickly and easily access digital archives, PDFs, images, document scans, or other digital files as a freelance account.
• skype – Skype is a free communication platform that works like a telephone combined with text messaging. The big advantage of using Skype is that almost everyone worldwide has it, which means you can use it to connect with potential clients no matter where they live or do business.

Many women come from administrative or accounting backgrounds making work at home bookkeeping jobs which are highly sought after although sometimes not so easy to get. There are many companies that offer home-based accounting jobs but require different levels of experience.

Companies offering work at home accounting jobs

accounting department.com Recruits CPAs with five years of experience and general accountants with a minimum of one year of experience in accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll and general administrative duties. Some travel or in-house hours may be required.

Bateman & Co. Specializing in tax preparation for individuals, partnerships and corporations. Positions are permanent and Texas residents are preferred. Three years experience in public accounting is mandatory.

Bookminder Accountants offer both part-time and full-time positions. A bachelor’s degree and five years of experience are required. Personal meetings with local clients may be required.

First data There are often work-at-home locations available. Posts based on experience.

Intuit Offers seasonal and permanent tax assistance positions to remote workers. In this position you will assist callers with tax return preparation. You must be a CPA, enrolled agent or tax attorney to qualify for this job opening.

Nationwide loan processing There are work at home positions available for loan processors with 3-5 years of experience. Underwriting positions also available.

OSI Business Services Recruits bookkeepers with minimum 4 years experience and CPA. A QuickBooks exam is required.

TAD There are home openings for accountants, bookkeepers and tax preparers living in the United States

United Health Care Occasionally telecommutes offer accounting clerk positions. They require a minimum high school diploma and two years of experience.

Don’t limit yourself to the list above. Many accounting and bookkeeping tasks can easily be shifted to work at home. Many telecommuters in this field started in a traditional office setting and moved their position to a home office.

You shouldn’t overlook going into business for yourself if time and financial freedom are your ultimate goal at home. Many freelancers, bloggers and home business owners don’t have the knowledge or desire to keep their own books. With today’s digital world transferring files between parties can be easy and secure. You may even be able to find some clients in your local community in need of your services.