What does a junior accountant do?

Average cost for an accountant and what to look for?

• Business is growing quite well and it's time to hire an accountant. What are some of the pointers (what to look for)? Also, what is the expected cost for an accountant or is there some sort of industry standard to match fees to? ie: I know web designers who would charge $3000 for the same project another would do just as well for $300 and an industry average would be about $500 ... so when it comes to accounting, I'd like to ensure that we don't end up with the "$3000 accountant" so to speak. At the same time, this isn't an area we want to be necessarily cutting costs... but knowing an industry average gives us a better ability to make the right selection.

• Answer:

  Hello, Given your example of a web designer I'll assume that what you are looking for is a year end accountant to prepare financial statements and income tax returns (corporate I assume), assist with additional government reporting requirements and any special projects that you as the owner may need help with. The first thing to look for is a designation. If the person is not a CGA or CA (and to a lessor extent a CMA) then you have no way of knowing their professional qualifications. They could have taken a 1 year course and now call themselves an accountant. Also, CGAs and CAs in practice are required to carry professional liability insurance which protects the client as well as take substantial levels of professional development each year to keep our skills up to date. As for rates, that's a little trickier without knowing where you are. Rates vary from area to area. In the city I live in the average rate for a designated accountant is $125 - $150 an hour, with the upper end going as high as $250. In Toronto though the average is closer to $175. As a general benchmark, regardless of location, anything in the $150 per hour range is fair. Work is almost always billed based on billable hours. If you can give me the city you live in I can try to find the average CGA in practice bill rate for that area for you. Cheers!