Comments on: How to Decide to Do Your Own Taxes or Hire Help http://moneysmartlife.com/how-to-decide-to-do-your-own-taxes-or-hire-help/ Money Tips for a Better Life Sat, 20 Mar 2010 00:29:02 -0400 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Carol, CPA http://moneysmartlife.com/how-to-decide-to-do-your-own-taxes-or-hire-help/comment-page-1/#comment-2400 Carol, CPA Thu, 29 Mar 2007 00:11:48 +0000 http://www.moneysmartlife.com/how-to-decide-to-do-your-own-taxes-or-hire-help/#comment-2400 I'm a paid tax preparer (a CPA) and find that most of my new clients come for the reasons you list. This year I added 10 new clients. They had an inheritance, a death, a new business start, a letter from the IRS(!), a move, a new job; they started working from home, became an independent contractor, sold a business and just thought H&R Block wasn't personal enough. Sometimes around March (tax season peak) I wish for the "easy" single W-2, no itemized deductions sort of clients, but then I think, "Why would they come to me, a CPA? They can do simple returns themselves." Carol, CPA I’m a paid tax preparer (a CPA) and find that most of my new clients come for the reasons you list. This year I added 10 new clients. They had an inheritance, a death, a new business start, a letter from the IRS(!), a move, a new job; they started working from home, became an independent contractor, sold a business and just thought H&R Block wasn’t personal enough. Sometimes around March (tax season peak) I wish for the “easy” single W-2, no itemized deductions sort of clients, but then I think, “Why would they come to me, a CPA? They can do simple returns themselves.”
Carol, CPA

]]> By: 2007 March 23 : Generation X Finance http://moneysmartlife.com/how-to-decide-to-do-your-own-taxes-or-hire-help/comment-page-1/#comment-2174 2007 March 23 : Generation X Finance Fri, 23 Mar 2007 14:34:42 +0000 http://www.moneysmartlife.com/how-to-decide-to-do-your-own-taxes-or-hire-help/#comment-2174 [...] How to Decide Whether to do Your Own Taxes or Hire Help - Taxes suck, there is no arguing that. Since we have to file every year how do you decide whether to do it on your own or get help? [...] [...] How to Decide Whether to do Your Own Taxes or Hire Help – Taxes suck, there is no arguing that. Since we have to file every year how do you decide whether to do it on your own or get help? [...]

]]> By: Official Tax Attorney Site » Blog Archive » Attorney Oregon Tax - China to impose tougher taxes on resource exploitation - China Knowledge Online http://moneysmartlife.com/how-to-decide-to-do-your-own-taxes-or-hire-help/comment-page-1/#comment-1799 Official Tax Attorney Site » Blog Archive » Attorney Oregon Tax - China to impose tougher taxes on resource exploitation - China Knowledge Online Tue, 20 Mar 2007 07:48:22 +0000 http://www.moneysmartlife.com/how-to-decide-to-do-your-own-taxes-or-hire-help/#comment-1799 [...] How to Decide to Do Your Own Taxes or Hire HelpFor do-it-yourselfers with computers, the Internal Revenue Service s FreeFile program is aimed at some 95 million taxpayers with an Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) of $52000 or less in 2006 to prepare and e-file their federal tax returns … [...] [...] How to Decide to Do Your Own Taxes or Hire HelpFor do-it-yourselfers with computers, the Internal Revenue Service s FreeFile program is aimed at some 95 million taxpayers with an Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) of $52000 or less in 2006 to prepare and e-file their federal tax returns … [...]

]]> By: Jeremy http://moneysmartlife.com/how-to-decide-to-do-your-own-taxes-or-hire-help/comment-page-1/#comment-1699 Jeremy Mon, 19 Mar 2007 17:37:42 +0000 http://www.moneysmartlife.com/how-to-decide-to-do-your-own-taxes-or-hire-help/#comment-1699 One thing you may want to do before deciding to let someone else do your taxes vs. doing it yourself is to actually do your taxes online for free to determine what you owe or will be getting in a refund. For example, this weekend I spent about 45 minutes using Tax Cut online and did our taxes. You don't have to pay for the service unless you actually print out the forms and file. So I was able to go in and completely enter my tax information to the point of determining the results (unfortunately I owe). Now I'm faced with the option of paying the 42 bucks or whatever it is for their service and to file, or I can take that information and determine if I could see any additional benefit by hiring someone else. I planned on letting someone else do my taxes this year because my wife and I both had new jobs, we purchased a home and had a move over 50 miles due to employment so I figured I could get more accurate results from a professional. But now that I see how much I owe and had time to use the software to maximize deductions I don't think a tax professional would be able to reduce what is owed enough to offset the additional cost associated. If you have time anyway it might be worth going through the process online to see what the bottom line is, and then decide whether or not you think a professional can do better. One thing you may want to do before deciding to let someone else do your taxes vs. doing it yourself is to actually do your taxes online for free to determine what you owe or will be getting in a refund.

For example, this weekend I spent about 45 minutes using Tax Cut online and did our taxes. You don’t have to pay for the service unless you actually print out the forms and file. So I was able to go in and completely enter my tax information to the point of determining the results (unfortunately I owe). Now I’m faced with the option of paying the 42 bucks or whatever it is for their service and to file, or I can take that information and determine if I could see any additional benefit by hiring someone else.

I planned on letting someone else do my taxes this year because my wife and I both had new jobs, we purchased a home and had a move over 50 miles due to employment so I figured I could get more accurate results from a professional. But now that I see how much I owe and had time to use the software to maximize deductions I don’t think a tax professional would be able to reduce what is owed enough to offset the additional cost associated.

If you have time anyway it might be worth going through the process online to see what the bottom line is, and then decide whether or not you think a professional can do better.

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