Bookkeeping, Payroll Setup, Tax Planning & Advisory

Forward-looking accounting for owners who want to keep more of what they earn.

Steinhoff Accounting & Advisory helps owner-operated businesses handle the accounting essentials: clean books, automated payroll setup, useful financials, business and personal tax returns, and year-round planning around deductions, entity structure, S corporation decisions, owner pay, and tax strategy.

The goal is to give you one financial partner who thinks ahead on the accounting and tax side, so you can focus on running the business while your books, payroll, tax planning, and financial decisions stay connected.

Start With a Planning Review View What I Help With

Most business owners do not have a tax problem once a year. They have a planning problem all year.

Rising costs, uneven cash flow, payroll decisions, tax estimates, entity structure, and owner pay all hit the same place: how much cash the business keeps.

  • 75%of employer firms cited rising costs as a financial challenge
  • 56%cited paying operating expenses as a financial challenge
  • 51%cited uneven cash flow as a financial challenge

That is why clean books are only the starting point. The value is using the numbers to plan ahead, protect cash, and make better tax decisions before year-end.

Source: Federal Reserve Banks, 2025 Report on Employer Firms .

One person. Full accountability. No runaround

About Mark

Operational precision.
Forward-looking accounting and tax support.

I’m Mark Steinhoff. I spent years in the U.S. Navy on submarines, where details matter, systems matter, and problems are caught before they become bigger failures. That same standard shapes how I approach accounting, payroll setup, tax planning, and financial support for owner-operated businesses.

Steinhoff Accounting & Advisory was built for business owners who want more than someone categorizing transactions after the fact. Clean books, payroll setup, and tax returns are necessary, but the real value is using that information to think ahead: deductions, cash flow, entity structure, S corporation decisions, owner pay, and year-round tax strategy.

  • Books without planning

    QuickBooks may be updated, but that does not mean the numbers are useful. I help clean up the structure so the books support tax planning, cash decisions, and owner-level reporting.

  • Payroll without strategy

    Payroll affects more than paychecks. Employee wages, owner pay, reimbursements, payroll mapping, and tax filings need to connect with the books and the larger tax picture.

  • Tax returns without tax planning

    A tax return reports what already happened. Planning looks ahead at deductions, timing, estimated payments, retirement opportunities, entity structure, and decisions before year-end.

  • Growth without financial visibility

    As a business grows, the owner needs more than a bank balance. I help connect the books, payroll, tax position, cash flow, and financial reports so decisions are made with better information.

My background combines accounting, operations, private equity, oil and gas, real estate, monthly close work, reconciliations, revenue analysis, payroll coordination, process cleanup, and tax-focused small business support. I understand how the details behind the books affect reporting, taxes, payroll, cash flow, and owner decisions.

My goal is not to drown you in reports. The goal is to help you understand the levers that move your business: what is coming in, where cash gets stuck, what is going out, what tax decisions matter, and what systems need to be fixed before problems become expensive.

I’m currently taking on new clients. Start with a Planning Review and we’ll look at your books, payroll setup, QuickBooks file, tax position, entity structure, and planning opportunities.

  • U.S. Navy Submarine Veteran
  • CPA Exam Candidate
  • Accounting Degree
  • QuickBooks Online Systems
  • Small Business Tax Planning

Why work with Steinhoff Accounting and Advisory

  • Direct Owner Support

    You work directly with me, not a rotating handoff. That means better context, clearer answers, and accounting support from someone who understands the full picture.

  • Forward-Looking Judgment

    The goal is not just closing the books. I help you think ahead on deductions, cash flow, owner pay, tax timing, and decisions that affect your bottom line.

  • Systems That Scale

    QuickBooks, payroll setup, chart of accounts, receipt capture, and reporting should support the way your business operates instead of creating more cleanup later.

  • Tax-Aware Accounting

    Books, payroll, entity structure, S corporation planning, owner compensation, deductions, and tax returns all connect. I help keep that picture together year-round.

Accounting in the AI Era

AI can move the data faster.
Judgment is still where the money is.

Accounting is changing. Automation, bank feeds, receipt capture, payroll platforms, and AI tools can make routine work faster. That is a good thing. But faster data does not automatically mean better decisions.

Business owners still need someone who can review the numbers, understand the tax picture, connect payroll to the books, spot planning opportunities, and explain what should happen next.

My approach is simple: use technology to reduce the manual work, then use the time saved for review, planning, tax strategy, owner-pay decisions, cash flow visibility, and better financial conversations. The future of accounting is not less human. It is less manual and more strategic.

  • Automation for the routine work

    Bank feeds, recurring transactions, receipt capture, payroll workflows, and QuickBooks rules can reduce repetitive work when they are set up and reviewed correctly.

  • Human review for what software misses

    Software can categorize activity, but it does not always understand loans, owner draws, transfers, reimbursements, payroll mapping, entity structure, or unusual business activity. That is where accounting judgment matters.

  • Tax-aware planning before year-end

    The real value is not just producing clean reports. It is using those reports to think ahead on deductions, estimated taxes, S corporation decisions, reasonable compensation, owner pay, reimbursements, and tax return strategy.

  • Financial insight the owner can use

    AI can generate summaries. I help translate the numbers into owner decisions: what changed, what matters, where cash is going, what needs attention, and what should be planned next.

Services

One accounting partner for the books, payroll, tax returns, and planning decisions that shape your bottom line.

Steinhoff Accounting & Advisory helps owner-operated businesses handle the accounting essentials, but the real value is thinking forward: deductions, entity structure, payroll setup, S corporation decisions, owner pay, cash flow, and tax planning before the year is already over.

  • Clean Books

    Bookkeeping, cleanup, and catch-up

    Clean up behind books, fix misclassifications, reconcile accounts, organize QuickBooks, and rebuild the accounting foundation so the numbers are reliable enough to use.

  • Financials

    Monthly accounting and owner-ready reports

    Monthly bookkeeping, reconciliations, financial statement review, and plain-English reporting so you can see what is happening in the business instead of guessing from the bank balance.

  • Payroll Setup

    Gusto and QuickBooks Payroll workflows

    Payroll setup support, pay schedules, employee workflows, approval processes, payroll-to-books mapping, and owner-pay coordination designed to keep payroll cleaner and less manual.

  • Tax Planning

    Deductions, estimates, and year-round strategy

    Forward-looking planning around deductions, quarterly estimates, retirement opportunities, reimbursements, timing decisions, and tax moves that should be reviewed before year-end.

  • S Corp Strategy

    Entity structure and owner compensation

    S corporation election review, reasonable compensation support, shareholder wages, distributions, accountable plan considerations, and owner-pay planning that connects payroll and taxes.

  • Tax Returns

    Business and personal tax return support

    Tax return support for owners who need the business books, payroll, deductions, owner pay, and personal tax picture handled together instead of treated like separate problems.

Bookkeeping and tax returns are the foundation. The goal is planning ahead so more of your money stays useful to the business and the owner.

What I Help With

The accounting work you need today, connected to the tax planning you should be thinking about next.

Steinhoff Accounting & Advisory helps owner-operated businesses with the essentials: clean books, payroll setup, financials, business and personal tax returns, and forward-looking planning around deductions, entity structure, S corporation decisions, owner pay, and tax strategy.

Planning First

Every engagement starts by understanding the business, the books, the payroll setup, and the tax picture. The goal is not just compliance. The goal is better decisions before the year is already over.

  • Foundation

    Cleanup & Accounting Setup

    Starting at $500+ / one-time
    For owners whose books are behind, unreliable, overcomplicated, or not ready for tax planning and tax preparation.
    • QuickBooks cleanup and historical corrections
    • Bank, credit card, and loan reconciliations
    • Uncategorized transactions resolved
    • Income, expense, loan, draw, and transfer cleanup
    • Chart of accounts organization
    • Payroll-to-books mapping review
    • Clean financial statement package
    • Tax-ready handoff and planning notes
    Get a Cleanup Quote
  • Recurring Support

    Monthly Accounting & Planning

    Starting at $300+ / month
    For owners who want one accounting partner keeping the books, payroll workflow, financials, and tax planning connected year-round.
    • Monthly bookkeeping and reconciliations
    • Bank, credit card, loan, and balance sheet review
    • Income statement and owner-ready financials
    • Cash flow visibility and plain-English summaries
    • QuickBooks Online support and workflow cleanup
    • Payroll setup coordination and review
    • Tax-ready books throughout the year
    • Planning touchpoints before major decisions
    Start With a Planning Review
  • Tax & Advisory

    Tax Strategy, Returns & Owner Support

    Custom / based on scope
    For owners who want their business return, personal return, payroll, deductions, entity tax structure, and owner decisions reviewed together.
    • Business and personal tax return support
    • Year-round tax planning
    • Quarterly estimate planning
    • S corporation election review
    • Reasonable compensation support
    • Owner distribution and reimbursement review
    • Payroll setup for owner-employees
    • Planning meetings before year-end
    Talk Tax Planning

Pricing depends on complexity, transaction volume, number of accounts, payroll needs, filing type, cleanup requirements, and the level of planning support needed. Tax planning identifies opportunities and tradeoffs; it does not guarantee a specific tax result.

Accounting Systems That Support Planning

Tax planning only works when the books, payroll, and owner decisions stay connected all year.

The best tax strategy is not built from a messy file in March. It starts with a cleaner accounting system: QuickBooks structure, payroll setup, receipts, reconciliations, owner pay, reimbursements, cash flow, and reports that actually show what is happening. That is where better planning starts.

  • QuickBooks Structure

    Your reports are updated, but they do not help you make decisions

    Categories overlap, transfers get mixed with income, loans and owner draws are unclear, payroll is not mapped cleanly, and the financial statements do not tell the owner what is really happening.

    I help clean up the structure behind the reports so the books are more useful for tax planning, cash flow decisions, owner pay, and year-end preparation.

  • Payroll Setup

    Payroll needs to support both operations and tax planning

    Hours, employee records, pay schedules, reimbursements, owner wages, payroll categories, and QuickBooks mapping are not always set up with the tax picture in mind.

    I help set up cleaner payroll workflows through platforms like Gusto or QuickBooks Payroll, with payroll-to-books mapping and owner-pay planning considered together.

  • Tax-Ready Records

    Deductions are easier to support when the system captures them correctly

    Receipts, business use, reimbursements, contractor payments, meals, vehicle costs, home office details, software, equipment, and owner expenses can get messy without a clear workflow.

    I help tighten the process so deductions, documentation, and accounting records are easier to review before tax season instead of being reconstructed after the fact.

  • Owner Planning

    S corp and owner-pay decisions should not happen in isolation

    Reasonable compensation, distributions, payroll taxes, quarterly estimates, retirement planning, reimbursements, and entity structure all affect the owner’s full tax picture.

    I help connect the business books, payroll setup, owner compensation, tax return, and planning decisions so the strategy is reviewed before year-end, not after.

Project cleanup or ongoing monthly support.

I can help clean up the accounting system, improve the workflow, organize the books for tax planning, and either hand it back to you or support it monthly as your business grows. The goal is forward-looking control.

  • QuickBooks Cleanup
  • Chart of Accounts Rebuild
  • Payroll Setup
  • Gusto / QBO Payroll Workflow
  • Owner Pay Planning
  • S Corp Support
  • Receipt Capture
  • Reimbursements
  • Tax-Ready Books
  • Deduction Review
  • Cash Flow Visibility
  • Owner Reporting
Start With a Planning Review →
How It Works

From planning review to clear next steps.

A simple process for understanding where your books, payroll, tax returns, entity structure, owner pay, and planning opportunities stand today — then deciding what should happen next.

  1. Start with a Planning Review

    We begin with a focused look at your business, QuickBooks file, payroll setup, tax situation, entity structure, owner pay, and the financial questions you want answered.

  2. I look for the weak points and missed opportunities

    I review where the accounting system may be breaking down: messy books, unreconciled accounts, payroll-to-books issues, tax-readiness gaps, deduction tracking, cash visibility, S corporation questions, or owner-pay planning.

  3. You get a practical accounting and tax roadmap

    I explain what matters most, what should be fixed first, and whether the right path is cleanup, monthly accounting, payroll setup, tax return support, S corporation planning, or broader advisory support.

  4. We build the right support around your business

    From there, we scope the engagement around your actual needs. The goal is not just to keep up with compliance. The goal is cleaner financials, better planning, and more forward-looking tax decisions.

Start With a Planning Review →

What you can expect working with me.

Clear scope. Straight answers. Clean accounting support that connects your books, payroll, QuickBooks setup, tax readiness, and planning decisions.

  • Clear Scope & Pricing

    You will understand the scope and pricing before work begins. If a cleanup, payroll issue, QBO problem, or tax planning need is bigger than expected, I talk to you before expanding the work.

  • Plain-English Explanations

    I explain what matters in normal business language. You will know what changed, why it matters, what needs attention, and how it affects your books, payroll, taxes, or cash flow.

  • Reviewed, Useful Work

    The goal is not just organized transactions. The goal is reviewed, reliable work that helps you make better decisions and keeps your business better prepared for tax season.

Get Started

Ready to plan ahead on the accounting and tax side?

Email me directly with a short note about your business, what software you use, and where you need help. We can look at your books, payroll setup, tax returns, entity structure, owner pay, deductions, cash flow, and planning opportunities so you know what should happen next.

Start With a Planning Review
Direct Email

[email protected]

Fort Worth, Texas

Currently taking on new owner-operated business clients.