I am seeking a professional to prepare our taxes. We are not doing it this year, becasue we have used turbotax in past and have been audited twice. Not taking that chance again. Rather pay someone who knows what they are doing. Thanks in advance for your advise!
Randal Jones has been doing mine for years. He is very no-nonsense and reasonably priced. ###-###-####. 1300 N. McClintock, Suite B4, Chandler.
I have always used Taxact online... My hubby used to use H&R block, but they screwed up on his taxes for 2007... he was audited last year for them and they found a $500 discrepancy... H&R screwed it up. They claimed the income for one job twice. (They even admitted their mistake when we took all the stuff to them for their '100% guarantee') BUT since he didn't pay for the 'peace of mind protection plan' HE had to pay the IRS back for the mistake. (They did refund the money they charged him to prepare the taxes in the first place... oh, how nice of them. GRR!) They didn't even tell him he had to pay extra if he wanted their work guaranteed. It was in the fine print. Sooo, if you DO pay someone (Outside of a personal associate) make sure you get in writing a guarantee that they will be responsible for any penalties if you get audited.
I work for a CPA, so she looks over our stuff before we send it in. She's pretty awesome, if you were in our area I'd refer you.
Well... I use my husband! It's very nice to have a CPA in the family. But, unless you really want to take a trip north, you'd better find somebody in your own state because state tax laws can vary. You're smart to get a pro and a REAL PERSON this time! :^)
just Make sure they are a CERTIFIED Public Accountant. (or CPA)
You should be able to find them in the yellow pages and call them. I personally would look for a business rather than a person. I am in accounting and I also do not do my own taxes..they are 1. a pain in the rear and 2. the CPA's know the tax laws more and were actually able to maximize our return.
Good luck
Carol King does ours every year and we have yet to be audited. Her number is ###-###-####. She is very thorough and asks lots of questions so she does get everything in. Yes she is a CPA.
D. P.
I use TaxAct online... I use to use Turbotax, but one year I went through it and told me what my refund was, my mother and sister used TaxAct the previous year and it was much cheaper, so I went online tried and and said I was going to get the same amount as Turbotax plus the first year it was free to file with them. Every year since I've paid like $7 to file, with a good refund each year.
Just something I've heard about IRS, once they audit you, they usually will keep you on radar for a long time. One of my old coworkers was audited and turned up he should have received more money back, well, then every year for like 15+ years he's been audited.
Like Mary, we have a family member (my FIL) who is a CPA. I agree with her completely that it is well worth hiring someone. He is trained to get us the most money back he can, and he knows everything that we need to give him (i.e. did you know that high medical bills can usually be deducted?). Anyways, I would suggest looking in the phone book for a small local business. The bigger guys (H&R Block) are not nearly as concerned about the "person" as the little firms are. My FIL co-owns his, and he knows all of his clients on a personal level. That's what I would look for!
I am a CPA and work for an accounting firm in the Phoenix area. It's a great firm. Send me a message if you want add'l info. You don't have to be local to us...we have 2 clients in Hawaii. I agree, DON'T go to H&R Block. They just want to move people through You won't get personal service. The IRS has a program call Volunteer Income Tax Assistance in which low income people can get their taxes done for free (I also am a volunteer). If you're income is below $50,000, google it to find a location in your area. Good luck.
We use TurboTax for personal BUT, my husband's undergrad degree is in accounting and he is very good with numbers and knows what he is doing.
Our CPA does review our personal taxes because he manages the taxes for our company.
My suggestion would be to hire someone refered to you as a good qualified CPA.. You also need to meet this person before you do business to know that you "click" and understand each other. It's important to have a good solid busuness relationship with your CPA. Your CPA looks after you.
I would not go to some chain such as HR Block and other chains. They are just a factory to get the job done and make their money. They are more likely to NOT be around if you need them.
We have used Jackson Hewitt for years no problems.
I highly recommend them.
Hubby and I had issues with H&R Block and will not go back to them!
