Michelle Bahena

I tried asking this (as a sample chart of accounts) a couple of years ago, but never got any real responses. Since then, I have started using Wave Accounting and it has been VERY easy to use.

Here are my expense categories from Wave. Much of this is from the default categories initially provided by Wave, but some are categories I have added to…[Read more]

If you use a free accounting software like Wave Accounting, you can just use the default categories they have. But in general, I wouldn’t worry about it too much. When you add expenses, you can add new categories at that point if your existing categories don’t fit.

This explanation is very helpful- thank you! Agreed that it’s best to check with the state/county as California always seems to be an outlier haha.
Again, I appreciate the detail you’ve provided. I’m making a bar, which I guess one could consider a “biscuit” (hopefully) and therefore not taxable. Thanks again!

Don’t know about California – I’m in Florida, but the following may be helpful as some general guidelines to help you find the answers that would be specific to California.

Here, in Florida, most items sold under cottage-food law would NOT be taxable, but CANDY is ALWAYS taxable. Thus, bread, cookies, cakes, muffins, etc. would not be taxed but…[Read more]

Sandy, in which state are you starting your cottage-food business. Some require inspections and some don’t. It’s also possible that some municipalities may require inspections, even if the state does not.