Walk the loop

The monthly close: what to check before the call

The monthly close.

Why it matters: A month that is closed once, on purpose, is a month you can trust. An open month is a story that keeps changing.

Answer it and see your picture.

What lives here

Reconciliation of every account
Accruals and the cut-off
The report pack
The close calendar

What good looks like

Closed by the tenth.
The same three reports every month.
One person who signs the close.

Do this yourself

Pick a close day and write it down.
Open last month's reports and check the date they were run.
If they were run before the bank was reconciled, the month is not closed.

Four-year arc

Illustrative composite. Not a real client.

Cinder Mesa Landscape LLC · October 18, 2026

One profitable year in the extract

Read gross margin and net income. 2026 income of $750,000 across ten months is a pace of about $900,000 for a full year, against $800,000 in 2025. The pace is not a forecast.

Income by year. 2026 stops at October 18.

Net income by year. One year in the extract is positive.

Year	Income	Gross profit	Margin	Expenses	Note interest	Net income	Read
2023	$1,080,000	$550,800	51.0%	$260,000	Not in this extract	$378,800	The only year in this extract with a profit.
2024	$960,000	$384,000	40.0%	$410,000	Not in this extract	−$16,119	The year turns to a loss.
2025	$800,000	$416,000	52.0%	$620,000	Not in this extract	−$211,800	Gross margin is the high year. The year still loses money.
2026 YTD	$750,000	$315,000	42.0%	$455,000	$112,000	−$134,800	Through October 18. Gross margin is ten points under 2025.

2023 net income is $378,800. Operating income that year is $290,800. The gap is other income in the extract. Note interest for 2023, 2024, and 2025 is not in this extract. The 2026 interest figure is the cost line.

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The monthly close: what to check before the call