Getting Help With Your Taxes
Getting Help With Your Taxes
Preparing your taxes can be incredibly stressful .
In many cases, it just makes sense to get some help with them .
Save Me From This Misery!
When it comes time to file taxes, you can look to software or a real live person .
In this article, we are going to focus on living people, to wit, the tax professional .
You might be surprised to learn there are different types of assistance out there .
Tax Preparer
Generally, tax preparers have the least amount of experience when it comes to filing taxes .
Tax preparers are individuals that are trained for the job or pick up the knack over time .
An example of a huge collection of prepares would be the people that work at H&R Block .
The advantage of using a tax preparer is they are very cheap .
Just keep in mind that you get what you pay for .
Enrolled Agents
The IRS actually licenses certain individuals if they pass scrutiny with the agency .
Unlike tax preparers, an enrolled agent can represent you at an audit .
Enrolled agents are a step up from tax preparers, but the quality of work and knowledge varies from agent to agent .
Some can be excellent because they have an interest in the work and stay on top of changes .
Others are less impressive .
CPA
The Certified Public Accountant goes through a hellish process to obtain their license .
Getting licensed as a CPA requires significant study and the licensing test is absolutely brutal .
If you have a unique or complex financial situation, you want to use a CPA to do your taxes .
In fact, you should use a CPA throughout the year to not only prepare taxes, but plan to avoid paying as much tax as possible .
CPAs are expensive with hourly rates in the $200 to $300 range .
They can, however, be worth their weight in gold and a few of them are pretty heavy .
When picking a CPA, you want to find a proactive one .
a proactive CPA is going to talk to you about your life and finances .
They are then going to make suggestions to significantly lower your tax bill .
The savings typically far outweigh their fees, and you’ll be glad you hired them .
So, who should you pick? the answer is entirely dependent upon the sophistication of your finances .
If you are salaried employee earning $50,000 a year, you don’t need a sophisticated tax planner .
If you are a small business owner with three businesses, it is time to find a CPA.
