A steady monthly salary fits neatly into a form. Many real households do not. Casual shifts, small trading income, maintenance payments and help from relatives can arrive at uneven intervals. Treating the highest month as normal overstates means; treating a quiet month as permanent can understate them.
Begin with the period, not the total
Choose a review period that reflects the income pattern. Three months may show ordinary salaried activity but hide seasonal work. Six or twelve months can be more useful for tourism, agricultural or year-end trading income. Record why the period was selected.
Separate kinds of inflow
Not every deposit is income available to the household. Transfers between a person’s own accounts, reimbursements and borrowed money should be identified. So should once-off asset sales. Repeated deposits from customers may indicate trading, but gross receipts are not the same as profit.
A simple schedule can classify each material inflow as recurring earnings, grant, maintenance, family contribution, business receipt, transfer or unexplained amount.
Look for a pattern and a range
An average is useful only alongside variation. Note the lowest and highest ordinary months, gaps that have a credible explanation, and whether recent activity differs materially from the longer period. A retrenchment letter or new contract may make current circumstances more relevant than the historic average.
Ask questions that can be answered
“Explain all deposits” is burdensome and vague. A better query points to a date, amount and account description, then asks whether it recurs and what it represents. Materiality matters: a small unexplained amount should not hold up a decision if it cannot change the finding.
State remaining uncertainty
Informal income may not be provable to the nearest rand. A fair report can present a supportable range, explain assumptions and mark limitations. Precision should follow evidence, not replace it.