Oldenburg Accountants & Advisors

Oldenburg Accountants & Advisors I have a boutique CPA firm serving business owners. I help them structure a tax-advantaged deal when buying or selling the business.

I prepare accurate financial statements and meet regularly with business owners to help them interpret the financials. Since 1991, Oldenburg Accountants & Advisors has been committed to providing reliable, high-quality tax, accounting and advisory services to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in northern Illinois and Chicagoland. Our clients are family-owned businesses and often, multi-generational. Oldenburg Accountants & Advisors a small, boutique CPA firm where the owner, Sue Oldenburg, is directly involved with every business owner client. We have a reputation for sustaining long-term relationships with our clients. We work proactively with SME business owners to help them interpret and act upon the financial indicators of their businesses so they can make decisions based on reality instead of operating in the dark. We specialize in assisting our clients to:
--Track profitability by job, customer, product, department or location
--Forecast and improve cash flow
--Benchmark against their peers in their industry
--Determine critical success factors for their particular business
--Establish and measure key performance indicators
--Present financial information to banks to win loans

Owner and founder Susan A. Oldenburg is an experienced business owner with more than twenty-five years in the public accounting industry. As both a CPA (Certified Public Accountant) and EA (Enrolled Agent), Sue has a comprehensive knowledge of business planning and monitoring as well as a specialized knowledge of taxation. Under both designations, she has unlimited practice rights and is unrestricted to which taxpayers can be represented before the IRS. When she is not at the office, you can find her reading, listening to music, cooking, spending time with her cat Lizzi and relaxing with friends and family in Door County.

Are you thinking of launching a new business as a C corporation? Beware of double taxation. First, the company will pay ...
10/08/2026

Are you thinking of launching a new business as a C corporation? Beware of double taxation. First, the company will pay tax at the entity level. Then the individual shareholders may owe additional tax when they receive dividends and other taxable distributions or sell their shares. Reducing corporate taxable income can lessen the impact. For example, the company can generally deduct reasonable salaries, bonuses and eligible fringe benefits provided to shareholder-employees. This strategy also has potential downsides. Choosing your business entity requires careful consideration. Contact us at (847) 263-0303 to compare your options and determine whether a C corporation is the right structure for your start-up.

Small business owners: As the year wraps up, review your receivables for credit sales that have become wholly or partial...
10/07/2026

Small business owners: As the year wraps up, review your receivables for credit sales that have become wholly or partially worthless. If you use the accrual method of accounting, you may be eligible to deduct amounts that were included in income but later became uncollectible. You may also claim deductions for uncollectible business loans and certain guarantees, as well as for debts attributable to an insolvent partner. To qualify, you must take reasonable steps to collect the debt and show it’s unlikely to be paid. Contact us at (847) 263-0303 to review your potential bad debts for 2026.

For businesses to stay operational and attain profitability, liquidity is key. The good news is that working capital man...
10/06/2026

For businesses to stay operational and attain profitability, liquidity is key. The good news is that working capital management is a tried-and-true way to tackle this challenge. Working capital is a metric (current assets minus current liabilities) that measures liquidity. Regularly calculating it can help you and your leadership team determine, among other things, whether you have enough current assets to cover current obligations. The amount of working capital your company needs is known as its working capital requirement. To optimize your working capital requirement, focus primarily on three key areas: 1) accounts receivable, 2) accounts payable and 3) inventory. Call us at (847) 263-0303 for help.

According to the Federal Reserve, only 54% of U.S. households have saved money in a dedicated retirement plan. Unfortuna...
10/05/2026

According to the Federal Reserve, only 54% of U.S. households have saved money in a dedicated retirement plan. Unfortunately, most people can’t enjoy a secure retirement with Social Security benefits alone. If other priorities have prevented you from investing, contact us at {Phone%}. We can review your income, budget and goals and assist with establishing a retirement savings plan that can help you catch up!

Does your business hold intangible assets? Intangibles are nonphysical, long-term resources that can add significant val...
10/01/2026

Does your business hold intangible assets? Intangibles are nonphysical, long-term resources that can add significant value to a business. Examples include copyrights, licenses and customer lists. The tax implications can be complex. IRS regulations require the capitalization of costs to 1) acquire or create intangibles; 2) create or enhance a separate, distinct intangible; 3) create or enhance a future benefit identified in IRS guidance as capitalizable; or 4) facilitate the acquisition or creation of intangibles. Capitalized costs can’t be fully deducted in the year paid or incurred. They generally must be ratably deducted over the asset’s life. Questions? We’re here to help. Call us at (847) 263-0303.

Selling investments at a loss generally reduces taxes, but the wash sale rule can get in the way. If you buy the same or...
09/30/2026

Selling investments at a loss generally reduces taxes, but the wash sale rule can get in the way. If you buy the same or a “substantially identical” investment within 30 days before or after the sale, the loss may be disallowed. Fortunately, there are ways to avoid triggering the wash sale rule and still achieve your goals. Contact us at (847) 263-0303 to discuss balancing tax considerations with investment objectives.

When a business is acquired, its customers don’t always transfer their loyalty to the buyer. Among other things, custome...
09/29/2026

When a business is acquired, its customers don’t always transfer their loyalty to the buyer. Among other things, customers may worry about future pricing, quality and service. So if your business is anticipating an acquisition, plan how you’ll protect new customer relationships. Prioritize them based on factors such as their associated revenue, growth potential and strategic importance. Then communicate what will change and how those changes will benefit customers. To support continuity, offer retention incentives to the acquired company’s key employees. Call us at (847) 263-0303 for help crunching customer numbers and identifying risks.

Monthly financial statements are essential. But they often take weeks to prepare and may arrive after you’ve already mad...
09/28/2026

Monthly financial statements are essential. But they often take weeks to prepare and may arrive after you’ve already made critical business decisions. Flash reports can help bridge that gap by providing real-time snapshots of critical metrics — such as cash balances, collections and payroll. These reports provide timely insight into financial performance, allowing you to identify emerging issues before they become major problems. Because flash reports are preliminary, you should use them as management tools, not formal financial statements. Call us at (847) 263-0303 to discuss how customized flash reports can help your business make faster, more informed financial decisions.

Payroll administration can be challenging for small business owners — and errors can be costly. Common trouble spots inc...
09/24/2026

Payroll administration can be challenging for small business owners — and errors can be costly. Common trouble spots include incorrect withholding, late tax deposits, and failure to include taxable bonuses, awards or fringe benefits in employees’ wages. Mistakes can happen even with payroll software or an outside payroll provider. Reducing your risk requires two things: formal review procedures to identify problems quickly and prompt action to correct them. We can help you comply with your payroll tax obligations. Contact us at (847) 263-0303 if you discover a payroll error or have questions about the applicable rules.

Owning assets jointly with your adult child can invite unwelcome tax consequences that may outweigh potential benefits. ...
09/23/2026

Owning assets jointly with your adult child can invite unwelcome tax consequences that may outweigh potential benefits. For example, owning an asset together as “joint tenants with right of survivorship” can open up transfer tax exposure. If you add your child to the title of property you already own, it may be considered a taxable gift of half the property’s value. And when you die, half of the property’s value will be included in your taxable estate. A properly designed trust can be a more tax-efficient option. Call us at (847) 263-0303 for details.

Address

100 N Atkinson Road, Suite 106
Grayslake, IL
60030

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 5pm
Tuesday 8am - 5pm
Wednesday 8am - 5pm
Thursday 8am - 5pm
Friday 8am - 5pm

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