by Stephen Dafoe
A garage may seem the wrong place to get financial advice outside of whether or not to put money into a major repair, but D.C. Transmissions on 100 Avenue is the new home of Money Management & Accounting.
Owner Amy Ballantyne has been in the business since 2013, originally offering mobile services to clients. But she decided to open the store-front location this year.
“I really focus on a lot of the money management side in advice and direction,” Ballantyne said. “I’m not just a bookkeeping agency that enters numbers. I like to coach my clients on the individual side and the business side on money management and life transitions.”
Whether that is a client’s ambition to buy a house or experiencing short-term disability, divorce, separation, or a death in the family, Ballantyne said she could offer her expertise to assist them with managing their finances, so they do not have to struggle.
Ballantyne said she charges flat rate packages for the bookkeeping and accounting side of her business, with reporting to clients monthly or quarterly as required. The life transitions and money management side is based on an hourly rate and individual situations.
The business owner has more than 15 years of experience in small business operations as well as working with corporations helping to grow both small departments and entire operations.
In 2013, Ballantyne wanted to expand from working for someone else to being able to help everyone. Certified in payroll management, in 2017, she decided to add the money management and legal documents components to the business.
Ballantyne said one of the most common personal or business-related money issues is planning for of goals.
“No matter what phase of your life you are at, it’s going to require financial analysis and paperwork to support that,” she said. “I really encourage people to consult someone before jumping into that new car payment or taking on more debt load because it only takes the Bank of Canada to make a significant interest rate adjustment and it inflates your monthly payments. Then you cannot meet your monthly obligations.”
For businesses specifically, Ballantyne said there is a misconception about the value in financials.
“The financials are the backbone of a business, and a lot of businesses don’t see that as the thing until it becomes time to sell or they are in financial chaos,” Ballantyne said. “Then they are playing catchup with their bookkeeping. At that point – it doesn’t provide a solid, accurate reflection of how their business has been performing. If you can be up-to-date on your financials, then you are setting yourself up and your business to be more successful in reaching growth.”
Ballantyne says her businesses approach to working with clients is far more strategic than simply entering numbers into accounting software. It is an approach she believes local businesses and individuals would benefit from.
Money Management & Accounting is open Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Fridays are by appointment only.
Amy Ballantyne can be reached at 780-719-7283 or amy@mymoneysolutions.ca. The business website is
www.mymoneysolutions.ca.
