If you use a tax preparer do they...?

[china mom]

For those who pay someone to do their taxes, does your tax preparer sit with you while they enter everything and ask questions or do you just drop off your files?

The reason I am asking is that I have used the same tax person for the past 25 or so years. She used to sit with you for about ab hour and do everything right there, asking and answering questions while doing them. She was awesome. I refer to her as a tax goddess. Until last year. Due to health concerns, she had all of her clients just drop off her taxes last year and she e-filed them and then emailed a copy to me.

She didn't get mine done until mid day the day they were due. Her communication has always been bad but last year was horrendous and I have lost all faith in her.

I am looking for someone new this year. I am trying to figure out what the standard is. Is it typical to just drop off the files or is it usually a face to face?

 

[ronandannette]

Our stuff is not particularly complex - we have used H&R Block for several years. We drop the stuff off and then have to make an appointment to have the preparer review the return with us prior to us signing it.

 

[NYCgrrl]

My taxes tend to be a bit complicated but like the OP I've used the same CPA for a long time. He is also my financial planner so we have a continuous relationship throughout the year. I fill out the forms to a certain extent then drop them and any requested documentation off at his office or mail them to him. Should he need any further paperwork or direction he calls me. He mails my completed forms directly to me as I invariably owe money and choose to pay it as late as possible.

 

[holden]

We drop our stuff off and she prepares the taxes. Our taxes are a little complex, so she sometimes calls with questions, etc. We don't have a "sit down" visit with her.

 

[tvguy]

CPA. I sit down with him for an hour, he enters everything, I know the final numbers when I leave. I get the hard copy in the mail in a couple days. He does not do electronic filing, so I still have to sign and mail the final return.
Most years I probably could do it myself, but there are just enough major life issues (like settling a parents estate) that come up where having him do everything is helpful.
He has been doing my taxes since 1977, he took over his dad's practice then. His dad did my parents taxes from 1950 to 1977!

 

[DawnM]

I hand everything over and walk away. When he calls me to tell me I owe money, I tell him to keep working the numbers!

And he does!

 

[tvguy]

Our stuff is not particularly complex - we use H&R Block for several years. We drop the stuff off and then have to make an appointment to have the preparer review the return with us prior to us signing it.

My mom used them for a couple years, but they really messed up one year when my mom had an annuity come due. The tax guy said my mom had to pay tax on not only on the gain, but on the original principal. When mom called her broker to withdraw the $12,000 to pay the tax, he realized that something was wrong. To their credit , H&R block, when notified, escalated it within their system to a CPA who filed an amended return with the correct tax owned. about $300.
She also found them rather expensive, almost $200

 

[china mom]

She also found them rather expensive, almost $200

That bring us another question....how are they paid. Fixed price? Hourly?

The lady we had been going to charged us a fixed price and she usually spent an hour.

We are usually pretty complicated but this year we are super complicated. Mom died last Spring so we have her taxes for part of the year and the estate taxes for the rest.

 

[tvguy]

That bring us another question....how are they paid. Fixed price? Hourly?

The lady we had been going to charged us a fixed price and she usually spent an hour.

We are usually pretty complicated but this year we are super complicated. Mom died last Spring so we have her taxes for part of the year and the estate taxes for the rest.

Flat prep fee plus a fee for the tax software he uses. The software maker charges him $25 for every return he does in their software, and he passes that on without a markup.

 

[jaiminee krikit]

Yes. Even when I used H&R Block in the past, I would sit with them. I started using an actual accountant several years ago and he was able to get me deductions that H&R didn’t. I would be looking for someone new if I were you...

 

[jam217]

I make an appointment and he goes through a paper checklist and makes sure that everything is there that he needs. The actual taxes are then done after I leave. I then get a call in a couple weeks to sign and drop off his payment. I pay about $200 for him to complete local, state and federal. It is well worth it to me.

 

[MomOfDisneyPrincess]

I work for a CPA and we prepare all kinds of returns. Our base price is $275 and it goes up from there if you have a more complicated situation. We typically schedule one hour meetings for each client. However, we have a few people who are out of town or whose tax situation does not change from year to year and they either mail in or drop off. My boss, the CPA, does plug some numbers in during the meeting, but we always have another person in the office double checking the work. We try to have about a one week turn around. We do have a millionaire who comes in for about a three hour appointment on a Saturday. We have another millionaire who just mails his stuff to us. We also have a few small businesses who drop off their bookkeeping for us and we have to compile that information before we can begin the return. Every situation is different, but we make every effort to accommodate the needs of the client. Also, we do send out tax organizers to each client. It references all of the income/deductions they had in the prior year, so they have a checklist of what to bring in this year. It also has a bunch of questions to ferret out things that may change their tax situation or new tax law stuff that might affect them.

 

[dotfurio]

We work with an Enrolled Agent. She's always sat with us to go over everything. Takes about an hour. It's a fixed price, around $250. We know what our return is when we leave and she files electronically for us with direct deposit to our checking account.

 

[Aimeedyan]

Our taxes are complicated; our accountant sat down with us on year 1 but now, we snail mail a packet to him and he emails with questions (he always has questions or needs more info). We now live 5 states away so sitting down with him isn't practical.

He mails it all to us since we always owe and wait until the last minute to send it in. Since we pay quarterly payments, too, he even includes addressed envelopes with the correct insert info and stuff, too, for us to use throughout the year. It's like taxes for dummies which I appreciate

Time wise, he's incredibly efficient. We mail it, he receives it in a day or two, we get an email from him almost immediately and a few days later, get it all back. Maybe a week turn-around, with mailing time built in? Then I leave it on the counter for a few days while I find the strength to see how much we owe this year HA!

 

[elaine amj]

We drop off all the paperwork to our accountant. If she has questions or needs extra papers, etc she emails us a quick question.

 

[somcgregor]

My accountant is amazing. She downloads all the forms and entered it all and tells me if I’m getting something back or I owe. My accountant is also me. I have been doing ours for years but um a cpa by nature. My return for this year is mostly done.

 

[low-key]

you say "tax preparer", I think mine would better be described as a "shyster"

 

[mnrose]

We've used the same tax guy for years. The first time, we had a fairly lengthy discussion when we dropped the stuff off so he understood the situation. Now, we drop the files (or email them as appropriate). He sends questions via emails and prepares a draft which we review. Final changes are made and it's filed. Cost us about $400 for this. Worth every penny.

 

[aprilgail]

My mom used them for a couple years, but they really messed up one year when my mom had an annuity come due. The tax guy said my mom had to pay tax on not only on the gain, but on the original principal. When mom called her broker to withdraw the $12,000 to pay the tax, he realized that something was wrong. To their credit , H&R block, when notified, escalated it within their system to a CPA who filed an amended return with the correct tax owned. about $300.
She also found them rather expensive, almost $200

H&R block are the worst-they are like a no frills type place! They are like the "supercuts and lemon tree" of salons LOL.

I don't drop mine off- my guy sits with me and does them right there and goes over everything with me.

 

[QueenIsabella]

Our accountant sends us an organizer, as a PP mentioned, which contains all of last year's information for reference. We fill it out and send it back, along with all the documentation. They call or email with questions. WE pay a retainer fee upfront, then any balance after the return is done. My older kids file separate returns, that we also pay to have done. Our returns are fairly complicated, so it's worthwhile to have them done by an accountant. Also, they were extremely helpful last year--my DD22 got a nasty letter from the state of MA stating she was a resident and owed $$$. She was technically a resident of North Carolina, since she was a student. Accountant cleared it up with 1 phone call. It was a scary experience for a 22yo, but they made it a whole lot easier.