Bookkeeping for Houston Mental Health Practices
Bookkeeping for therapists, psychologists, and group practices in Houston. Aretha keeps your books current, clear, and ready for your tax preparer.
Bookkeeping for Houston Practices
Hi, I’m Aretha Dirden. Bookkeeping for therapists and other mental health professionals in private practice is the only work I do, and Houston sends me more practice owners than almost any other city. That makes sense to me. This is one of the largest practice markets in the country, with clinicians working everywhere from the orbit of the medical center out past the Beltway.
I’m based in Lancaster, California, and I work with Houston practices remotely, which spares you a drive across town at five o’clock. We talk by phone or video, your statements come to me through a secure portal, and the person keeping your books is the person you speak with. Before this work I spent more than 15 years as a licensed nurse in mental health, so you will never have to explain intakes, no-shows, or supervision hours to me. Whatever shape your books are in right now, I am happy to take a look.
Monthly Bookkeeping
Monthly Bookkeeping
Each month I categorize your transactions, reconcile your bank and credit card accounts, and send reports you can absorb between sessions. What came in, what went out, and what the practice actually kept.
Books That Are Behind
Books That Are Behind
If the books were never done, that is catch-up work. If they were done and nobody trusts the numbers, that is clean-up. I have seen both many times, and I will never make you feel bad about how it got that way.
Payroll and 1099s
Payroll and 1099s
If your payroll system is already up and running, I can run payroll for your clinicians and admin staff every pay period. I do not set up new payroll systems. At year end I prepare 1099s for associates, contract supervisors, and vendors.
Tax-Ready Records
Tax-Ready Records
I do not prepare tax returns. I keep your books clean and documented so your tax preparer can work directly from them without sending you a long list of questions in March.
Houston Practices I Work With
Houston is enormous and its practices are spread out to match. Offices in Montrose and the Heights, suites near the Texas Medical Center, group practices out toward Katy and Clear Lake, telehealth caseloads run from a converted bedroom in Kingwood or Spring Branch. Most of the clinicians I talk with learned the clinical work in school and picked up the business side as they went, often after years inside a hospital system or an agency here.
I work with practices that have anywhere from one person to about ten. Therapists and counselors, psychologists, clinical social workers, addiction and recovery counselors, psychiatric nurse practitioners, group practices, telehealth practices, and ABA providers. Houston also gets weeks that weather cuts short, and when the books are current you can see exactly what a stretch of canceled sessions did to the month instead of guessing at it. If any of this sounds like your practice, book a consultation and tell me where things stand.
Therapists and Counselors
Therapists and Counselors
Session revenue arrives in pieces. Private pay charges, insurance payments that show up weeks after the work, sliding scale adjustments, cancellations. I reconcile what your practice management system reports against what actually reached the bank, and I keep personal spending out of the practice books.
Psychologists and Testing Practices
Psychologists and Testing Practices
The medical center’s orbit is full of doctoral practices doing assessment alongside therapy. Testing engagements carry report hours, and consulting or evaluation work bills at its own rate. Bookkeeping for psychologists should show which piece of a mixed practice is carrying the rest, and that is how I set it up.
Group Practices and ABA Providers
Group Practices and ABA Providers
Houston has a lot of practices that grew from one clinician into a team, plus ABA providers sending technicians across the metro. Associate splits, W-2 clinicians, contract supervisors, front office staff. I record compensation the way you have it structured and report margin per clinician so you know whether the next hire helps. Classification questions belong with your attorney or tax professional, and the books follow whichever answer is true.
Telehealth and Hybrid Practices
Telehealth and Hybrid Practices
Plenty of Houston clinicians decided the commute was not worth it and moved most of the caseload online. Those books have their own shape. EHR and platform subscriptions, scheduling and video tools, processor fees pulled out before the deposit lands. I reconcile the payouts and keep the subscription stack visible so you know what the online side really costs.
Questions About This Area
Are you located in Houston?
No. I am in Lancaster, California, and I work with practice owners all over the country, including a good number across Texas. We meet by phone or video, your documents come to me through a secure portal, and you work with me directly the whole time.
What does monthly bookkeeping cost?
Full-service monthly bookkeeping starts at $165 per month. Your price depends on how many accounts you have, how much activity runs through them, and whether you have staff. I quote a flat monthly rate after we talk.
Do you prepare my tax return?
No. I keep your books accurate and organized so your tax preparer can work straight from them. If you already have a CPA in Houston, I am glad to send them clean financials at year end.
Do you handle insurance billing or claims?
No. I do not do billing, claims, credentialing, or coding. Your biller or billing service handles that work, and I reconcile the payments that land in the bank against your practice reports so the books match what really happened.
My books are almost a year behind. Is that too far gone?
Not at all. That is how many of my clients start. I bring the past periods current first, then keep them current every month so it does not pile up again.
Helping the People Who Help Others
Let's Start With
a Short Conversation
Tell me where your books stand right now, even if the honest answer is that nobody has looked at them in a year. I'll ask a few questions and give you a clear idea of how I can help.
Other Areas
