We interviewed Giles Freeman, an architect and building renovator from Melbourne, to find out how with using Hnry he no longer worries about his taxes.
How did you hear about Hnry?
I found Hnry during Covid when I switched over from my normal job of being an architect to doing building renovation work as a sole practitioner. My pitch is I design it and I build it – picking up the jobs that are too small for a regular builder to do. I agree with the client on a design and price, then strip out the apartment and progressively build it.
Business went gangbusters. Because of Covid, everyone was at home, willing to pull the trigger on this kind of stuff.
I had an ABN and the rest of it but I just didn’t really have a clue [when it came to tax]. It’s exactly what they say at Hnry – you’re busy doing a job, but when you’re working as a sole trader there’s not really time to do this other job, the accounting part of it.
I came across an article on Hnry and the recommendations for it. Then I found it was now live in Australia.
How did you do your taxes before Hnry?
I was just saving up for a rainy day. I’d put money aside but I never knew how much was the right amount. My overheads were so extensive that I knew whatever I made that year would not be profit. The first year of ramping up to get the tools, car, expenses, etc. to build, was so extensive that it was eating through the salary. So I was just putting money against the ratio of what I thought I might be taxed at. Otherwise you’re just crossing your fingers.
So what tipped you over from thinking this looks interesting to actually becoming a customer?
I had bunch of Excel spreadsheets, tabulating expenses, profit and whatever, and I’d just feed that to the accountant. So they’d take your word for it and give you a figure at the end. But accountants don’t come cheap.
So I did my due diligence. You want to be certain that Hnry are really doing what they promise. And, yep, it all checked out.
In my line of work, particularly last year, there were all sorts of confusing caveats around Covid programs and what deductions you could claim.
I really value the surety that Hnry advertises - when it says you just tell us what you spent and how much you used that expense and we will work out the rest for your bottom line. It works.
And they have a really great system for logging expenses.
How did you do your tax previously?
I started off with an accountant that everyone else in the office used. He ended up getting a whole lot of architect clients and that was basically his client base.
But when I moved to being a sole trader, I spoke to two different accountants. They were friendly enough. One of them gave me a 10-minute video interview. That’s when I started looking around for something simpler and more responsive.
What was the process of moving to Hnry? So did you have to divorce your accountant?
No. I would speak to my old accountant every so often. But you’d never expect them to get back to you instantly. You’d wait maybe a couple of days for a reply. Maybe it’s because my business was such a small fry, and other bigger clients mattered more.
On the other hand, the chat function on Hnry is super helpful because their accountants get back to you really quickly. If something’s unclear and you have a question, they respond within hours. You don’t get that kind of communication from a traditional accountant.
What do you like most about Hnry?
For people like me who had switched from salaried employment to sole trader status, Hnry takes that absolute paranoia that you’re going to get whacked by the taxman at the end of the year out of the equation.
And the chat is incredibly helpful. You can read the ATO website until your eyes bleed and still not understand it. There are so many grey areas. You can’t get a definitive opinion even though they’re the ones setting the rules.
Hnry takes away the grey areas.
Any other issues?
No. I really like the way they represent the staff you’re talking to – they say so-and-so is looking at this now and so-and-so is an expert in this particular area. They are real people. Real accountants. You’re on an app, but it’s not a bot on the other side, it’s actual people. That’s so refreshing.
When you’re a sole practitioner you want the people dealing with your tax to be your best friend - and that’s exactly what you get with Hnry. The people who answer your queries are your own personal taxation brains trust. They’re chatty and friendly, super helpful and super responsive. You can’t ask better than that.
There is that implicit trust in the whole process.
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