Rent, wages and suppliers all due at once? Untangling the pile-up

It is rarely the total that hurts. Across a month, the business can pay everything it owes. The trouble is that eight things want paying between Monday and Thursday, and money arrives on the 30th. Pile-ups are a timing problem, and timing problems can be solved.

Why bills collide

Some dates are built into the system:

Typical date	What tends to be due
1st	Rent, some loan repayments
Fortnightly or weekly	Wages
20th	PAYE and KiwiSaver to Inland Revenue (most small employers)
28th	GST in most periods
Month end	Supplier statements
Throughout	Insurance, rego and subscriptions

Layer unpredictable bills on top and the days around the 20th and the 28th are routinely the tightest of the month. For the tax part of this, see the pages on PAYE and KiwiSaver cash flow and the GST return crunch.

Step 1: put it all on one calendar

Open a calendar or spreadsheet. For the next 60 days, list every payment with:

• the date
• the amount
• whether the date can be moved
• who to speak to about moving it

Add the money you expect to receive, with realistic dates. You will see the pile-ups at once. Often there are two or three heavy weeks and many light ones.

Seeing a pile-up on your calendar? Start the 60-second enquiry and a real person will help you work through it.

Step 2: move the movable

Before borrowing anything, ask for new dates:

• Landlord: can rent move from the 1st to the 10th? Some leases allow it.
• Suppliers: can statements run to the 20th of the month following, or be split in two?
• Finance providers: can a repayment date shift to after payday?
• Subscriptions and insurance: can they be spread monthly or moved to a quieter week?

Even moving two bills by a week can flatten the worst day. Our guide to negotiating supplier terms offers scripts.

Step 3: use the tools that already exist

• Inland Revenue arrangements. If tax is the heaviest item, an instalment arrangement can spread it. File on time first.
• Staggering payroll. Some businesses move from weekly to fortnightly pay, if agreements allow, to cut the number of pay days.
• Early invoicing. Send invoices the day work finishes so receipts land earlier.

Step 4: bridge the remainder

If the calendar still shows a dip, a bridge covers it.

• A cash line suits a pile-up that repeats most months. Draw in the collision week, repay when receipts arrive. See the business cash line.
• A short-term loan suits a one-off pile-up, such as GST plus insurance plus a repair in the same week.

Match the repayment to the date the extra cash arrives, not to some arbitrary schedule.

Step 5: stop it recurring

A permanent fix beats repeated rescues:

1. Open a bills account and move a fixed amount in weekly, so bills are paid from a pool rather than from takings on the day.
2. Review dates each quarter, especially after adding a supplier or a lease.
3. Keep a buffer equal to your quietest week’s essential costs. The cash runway guide shows how.

Questions to ask yourself

• Which three bills cause the most strain, and when do they land?
• Which could I move by ten days, and who do I ring?
• If a customer paid a week late, would the account survive?
• Do I hold GST and PAYE separately from operating cash?

A simple weekly routine

Put fifteen minutes in your diary every Monday. Open the bill calendar, tick off what was paid, and scan the next three weeks for collisions. Update expected receipts as customers confirm dates. If a pile-up appears, you now have weeks, not days, to move a due date, chase an invoice or arrange a bridge. Owners who do this rarely describe their cash as chaotic, because surprises are rare and anything unusual is spotted early. The routine costs nothing, and it is often more valuable than any facility you could arrange.

An illustrative example

Illustrative only. A Nelson building firm finds that on the 20th it pays PAYE of $14,600 and a materials account of $21,000, on the 21st rent of $6,200, and on the 28th GST of $17,900, while its main client pays on the 30th. The owner asks the supplier to move the statement to the 30th and sets up a small cash line for the rest. The 20th to 30th stretch is now covered without drama.

Get a second pair of eyes

If the calendar looks frightening, share it. The enquiry takes about a minute, asking involves no credit check, and your details stay with one team. A real person looks at your dates and calls you back.

The more accurate your bills and receipt dates are, the better we can match a bridge to the collision weeks.

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