FAQs
- What should the customer know about your pricing (e.g., discounts, fees)?
I have done my best to offer upfront pricing to my customers because the unknown cost of a professional service can often cause quite a bit of anxiety for some people. As posted on my website, I charge a flat fee of $69 for a simple return which contains an income document and no deductions, a flat fee of $119 which included itemized deductions and a rate of $150 per hour for self employed individuals or customers with non-typical returns. All of these rates include e-filing of both a federal and California return. I frequently send quotes for less than these fees depending on the information potential customers provide. It would be very unusual for me to adjust a quoted fee upward, but if the customer fails to mention a major aspect of their tax situation I may need to do so.
- What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
We are legally required to complete at least 20 hrs of continuing education annually for our tax preparation business through an approved continuing education provider, but this is no where near enough to keep up with the the constantly changing tax laws. I would estimated that I complete nearly 200 hours annually in continuing education. In addition I am registered member with the California Tax Education Council, am an IRS authorized e-file provider, have a degree in accounting, hold an active life insurance license (0G66721), and my business is a Registered Investment Adviser with the state of California.
- How did you get started doing this type of work?
Initially I just enjoyed talking about personal finance with people and being sort of a "know-it-all", but eventually I realized that there was a tremendous need for real honest financial advice. I've seen too many people seduced by a well presented sales pitch that ends up hurting them and helps the salesman. I first started providing tax advice and helping people prepare their returns nearly a decade ago and was eventually recruited by one of the major tax chains. My experience there was invaluable as I fine tuned my tax preparation skills and learned the importance of the compliance rules for tax preparation businesses. I was never happy with the fees the chains charged and particularity the tactics they used to target lower income families who would typically see large refunds do to various tax credits. While most of these families could hardly afford a $350 fee for tax preparation, the major tax chains developed a system to deduct the fee from the refund(for an additional charge) so low income families wouldn't pay a dime out of pocket, but the company could still collect their money. Eventually in 2012 I was able to start my own business and set any price that I felt was fair to both the customer and myself.