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Getting an accountant

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siniang

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We desperately need to get our finances in check and we desperately need help with it. I’m terrible with money and it’s ended us in a REALLY bad place, now.

Is anyone here using an accountant? (I think @Friday you mentioned something along those lines?) How to even find one? How to be able to even afford one when your problem is that you already have no money? What generally to expect?

Doing all these adult things at the moment (first time ever I talked to an attorney, yesterday), desperately trying to change my life for the better, but feeling very overwhelmed.

Thanks!
 
I used to have an accountant when I was self employed. Depending what you want from them, they can be pricey. I picked them through recommendations from people I knew, which might be a good way of getting someone reliable?


What would you want your accountant to do?
Are you looking for advice about how to make the most of your finances? If so, maybe they aren't the best type of professional but maybe someone who can offer more advice might be better? (and whose services may be free?).
I don't know what country you are in, but in the UK there are organisations that can give free financial advice such as the citizens advice bureau.
 
We need someone to help us come up with a strategy to pay off our debt. We need someone to help us figure out where we can safe. We need someone to help us manage our income and expenses.

Not just once, but continuously.

I’ve tried it myself. We tried it with the accountability of family members. Gazillions of gazillions of budget spreadsheets, itemizes credit card/other expenses lists to figure out major culprits, summary statistics, color-coded graphs... nothing has worked for us so far.

Maybe an accountant isn’t the actual right person, but we do need professional help. We tried it privately. Heaven knows we tried.
 
Maybe an accountant isn’t the actual right person, but we do need professional help. We tried it privately. Heaven knows we tried.
Have you looked at the resources that might be available through your bank?

I think what you are looking for would be called "financial counseling services", or "financial advisor", as @barefoot suggested.
 
This is a U.K. site offering free advice and tools for managing money, budgeting, debt etc:
https://www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk/

I don’t think you’re in the U.K. so some of it (eg accessing benefits) won’t be relevant to you. But I’ve posted it in case any of the general advice and tools may be helpful.

We also have similar sites for help with debt.

And, as @Movingforward10 mentioned, Citizens Advice Bureau.

Is there anything like this available to you where you are?

There are also lots of coaches working in this space - usually called money coaches or financial coaches. They’ll look at things like how to change/improve your relationship with money and your mindset as well as helping you come up with a practical plan and holding you to account. I’ve never worked with one but I suspect they charge quite a bit for their services. It might be worth a look though - you may even find that some are lowering their rates or even doing some pro bono work in the current climate.
 
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