Top 5 Red Flags to Look for When Choosing Your Tax Preparer
We know choosing a new tax professional can be intimidating: it’s hard to know what to look for if you’re not familiar with the industry.
In our latest podcast episode, we talked about the five most common red flags you’ll want to look for before you hire your tax preparer.
Let’s get right into it!
Red Flag Number 1: Your tax preparer isn’t willing to sit down for 1:1 strategy sessions with you.
The most important thing to watch out for is that you don’t hire a tax preparer who is just doing the bare minimum. Plugging your numbers in and just going with the tax amounts the computer spits out could be costing you a lot of money.
What you want is a tax preparer who will hop on the phone with you and ask questions that will help you save money and earn you some tax credits. You want someone who is willing to go over the numbers with you and strategize how you can do better for next year or quarter.
Red Flag Number 2: Your tax preparer doesn’t invest into continuing education.
At Prominence, our team is constantly pursuing continuing education credits in our field. Whether you’re interested in real estate or a specific high-end investment strategy, we want to make sure we’re prepared to serve you. There are many nuances to tax laws that can save you money if your tax professional knows about them, so make sure you hire someone who is up to date on all this knowledge.
Red Flag Number 3: Your tax preparer doesn’t serve your niche.
There are many niches to tax laws: real estate investors, non-profit organizations, etc. Making sure your tax preparer knows the specific exemptions and credits that you are eligible for in these fields is crucial to you saving the most money on your taxes each year.
At prominence, we specialize in small-business tax and real estate tax. If you’ve got an investment property that you’re looking to purchase, we’ve got you covered when it comes to tax prep!
Red Flag Number 4: Your tax preparer is focused on how much they can CHARGE you, not how much they can SAVE you.
The number one question we get from prospective clients is, “How much do you charge?”
Our answer is always the same: we charge you less than we can save you. The first thing we look at is how much you are paying in taxes that you don’t actually need to be paying. When we run the numbers, our fees are more than covered by your tax savings year after year.
Red Flag Number 5: Your tax preparer doesn’t provide you with numbers at your fingertips.
At the end of the day, you are always the one responsible for whether or not your taxes got paid, and whether all the forms and bookkeeping were done correctly. That’s why you want to make sure you have access to those numbers at all times.
At Prominence, we provide you with a client portal where you can check your Profit & Loss statements every month, as well as a copy of your tax filings. This accessibility and transparency is crucial to your success as a business owner.
Those are all the tips we have for today! We hope these can help you find the best tax professional for you.
Thank you for reading this week’s blog post!
As always, if you’re interested in working with us in the upcoming tax year or know someone who is, just use the link down below to schedule your free discovery call with us today.
See you next week!
Warmly,
The Prominence Team
P.S. If you enjoy our content, be sure to check out our podcast, YouTube channel, and Instagram account.
