Anyone use a CPA this year for taxes?

[KTP]

I guess what I would want to know beforehand is what does a CPA bring to the table that I do not already have?

I have had 6 courses in calculus, probability and statistics (the engineering version that will eat your brain and ask for seconds), and I spend hours each day on investment sites. I read IRS publications all the time when I have tax questions.

Do most of the CPAs keep current and up to date on all aspects of tax law? I am not convinced with my extensive sample set of one.

[disneysteve]

Do most of the CPAs keep current and up to date on all aspects of tax law? I am not convinced with my extensive sample set of one.

I don't think it is humanly possible for any one person to keep current and up to date on all aspects of tax law. What is it now - over 70,000 pages? So I think you raise a valid point. If you are going to employ a professional to do your taxes, you may need to interview a few people before you choose one. Just having CPA after their name doesn't guarantee that they are the right person for the job or trained to handle your situation.

Still, it is downright scary that the pros teaching the tax courses don't know pretty basic stuff like recharacterizing Roths. No wonder the CPAs love those places - they bring them so much business.

[MonkeyMama]

Do most of the CPAs keep current and up to date on all aspects of tax law? I am not convinced with my extensive sample set of one.

No - *most* CPAs and *many* tax professionals do not keep up to date on all aspects of tax law.

Anyone who takes their tax professional designation seriously does, but there are going to be areas you are more familiar with and deal with more, and areas that are more rare.

I find it hard to believe any serious tax professional could mess up ESPPs where I live, but they are extremely common here.

It largely comes down to both experience and keeping up with the current tax law. Someone who has been in the business longer has simply seen a lot more.

There is no comparison between someone getting paid minimum wage to be a H&R tax preparer and someone who has gone to school, studied tax, done a million tax returns, and who does taxes full-time. There are plenty of shades of grey in the middle.

[MonkeyMama]

I just had to add that there is nothing about the title CPA, by itself, that designates a thorough knowledge of tax. H&R Block employees may have more tax training. There may have been some general tax questions on the CPA test (Which I took ages ago), but I do not need to know *anything* about tax to keep my license.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

ESPP can be difficult. You can't characterize it as LTCG unless it's been 1 year plus also date of anchor so it usually is 15-24 months. Something a CPA didn't tell us but rather we had to learn by reading.

I don't think it's necessarily worth it.

[elessar78]

I ran across an interesting angle for the use of an accountant yesterday. I'm a part-time photographer and I was talking to the actor we were shooting. Basically, they have complex taxes because they're not exactly self-employed or independent contractors. Anyway, long story short—it's good to be a CPA with a niche, like actors/models/performers.This is what this actor's CPA did.

[disneysteve]

I ran across an interesting angle for the use of an accountant yesterday. I'm a part-time photographer and I was talking to the actor we were shooting. Basically, they have complex taxes because they're not exactly self-employed or independent contractors. Anyway, long story short—it's good to be a CPA with a niche, like actors/models/performers.This is what this actor's CPA did.

With the complexity of the tax code, it only makes sense that tax preparers would develop specialty practices just as doctors and lawyers have. You wouldn't go to a cardiologist for a knee problem. You wouldn't go to a real estate attorney to handle your divorce. Why would you go to a tax preparer, CPA or otherwise, who has little to no experience dealing with clients like yourself?

[Dvoll]

In retrospect had I known a little more about what I was getting into I could have told the CPA to focus solely on this year to cut the time in half, but sort through stock sale entering mistakes over the last few years would be time consuming looking at all the data for the first time. I think they were just trying to be thorough and maximize any refund I may have been entitled to in years past and also fix errors that could be ammended if you were to be audited.

I think for the vast majority of people, turbo tax is just fine (speaking as a tax preparer). Some things that will add to the complexity are businesses and investments. More complexity? - more help may be needed.

But what I really wanted to say is be very careful about people you do hire to do your taxes. If you can find someone diligent and honest, that is great. But Steve mentioned talking to an accountant who spent a lot of time fixing people's mistakes. We spend a *lot* of time fixing other tax professional's mistakes, ourselves. It has been particularly bad the last couple of years. Be wary and remember that ultimately you are responsible for getting your taxes done correctly.

The price sounds reasonable to me, but OP could likely be paying for a lot of tax expertise that they don't need. There are certainly cheaper tax preparers that focus on simpler tax situations. Which would make much more sense than paying a higher end tax preparer for a lot of expertise you won't ever need or use.