tax season 2013: hard-hit soloists voice their biggest problems

by rick telberg
卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 busy season barometer

tax and accounting professionals of all shapes and sizes, ranging in size from the soloist to the regional leader, are reporting a filing season markedly more problematic than the year before, according to the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 busy season barometer. the data for april, still coming in, shows majorities of firms in all class sizes reporting “somewhat worse” or “much worse” performance and results this year.

busy season barometer. join the survey; get the results.
busy season barometer

the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 busy season barometer, now in it’s tenth year, is a real-time tracking poll of tax and accounting professionals’ sentiment, performance and results. as a reward for joining the survey panel, participants get early previews of top-line results and notifications.

click here to join the survey; get the results

in this report, we present the first wave of in-depth details, starting with a chart that shows the number of respondents reporting on busy season conditions.

those reporting a “worse” season include:

  • 66% of solo practitioners
  • 60% of firms with 2 to 10 professionals
  • 70% of firms with 11 to 50 professionals
  • 72% of firms with 50 to 100 professionals
  • 53% of firms with more than 100 professionals

and:

  • we gather verbatim comments from the solo practitioners who reported a season “much worse” explaining their rating, and
  • we present their comments assembled into a word-cloud infographic that reveals at a glance the most oft-repeated issues and concerns.

for complete busy season coverage, click here. and stay tuned to 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 as we report on new developments in the data and analysis.

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worst tax season ever? “it’s supposed to get better!”

hoisted from comments.

in this article, ed mendlowitz takes issue with worst tax season ever and suggests five strategies for continuous improvement year after year.

barry melancon, ceo of the aicpa, and tom hood, ceo of the maryland society of cpas, both said that they heard this was the worst tax season ever.

i don’t know if it was or wasn’t.  for us it wasn’t that bad.  this raises a thought.  it’s supposed to get better – if not, then why do it, or why not make a serious effort to change what you are doing so it gets better?  i am reminded by a remark by jack nicholson in “as good as it gets.”  he said, “maybe this is as good as it gets!”  i don’t buy that.

here are five things that should be done to make tax season (and the rest of your practice or any business) better. read more →

tax practitioners end busy season 2013 short by 300,000 returns

untitledthe nation’s tax accountants failed in the final days leading up to april 15th to close the gap commonly attributed to early-season delays and confusion, according to the latest data available.

but if the shortfall holds through coming weeks of data gathering, 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 believes it could mark a significant and serious downturn in the future of the tax prep industry.

in this report:

  • tax professionals e-filed 63.3 million returns, down 0.4% from last year’s 69.6 million.
  • meanwhile, the number of do-it-yourself e-filers grew 4%, to 43.1 million, up from last year’s 41.3 million.
  • complete statistics on individual income tax returns, filings and filing rates, week by week, in year-to-year percentage change
  • number sent to irs
  • number processed by irs
  • number e-filed by tax professionals
  • number e-filed by self-preparers
  • irs.gov website traffic
  • number of refunds
  • total dollar amount of refunds
  • average refund
  • number of direct-deposit refunds
  • amount of direct-deposit refunds
  • average direct-deposit refund

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achieving partner unity: the competitive advantage

august j. aquila
august j. aquila

by august j. aquila
author of “leadership at its strongest

everyone knows that partner unity is one of the keys for success. and we know the benefits of having greater partner unity than the next firm – better client service, less employee turnover, superior profitability.

the problem that many firms face is this: they don’t know how to create partner unity.

this article shows you:

  • ways to create partner unity.
  • what it is and what it isn’t.
  • five steps to take.

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tax trends in small business: what drives them to seek professional help

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new data obtained by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 shows that 84 percent of small-business owners are now paying an independent tax practitioner or accountant to handle their taxes.

in addition, an increasing number of small business taxpayers appear to be taking advantage of sec.179 expensing and bonus depreciation.

the new report available from 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 includes information on:

  • the number of small business owners who use an outside tax or accounting service
  • how many hours per week a small business spends on payroll tax administration
  • average cost for using a payroll agency
  • hours spent on federal tax
  • various tax burdens
  • how to download complete report (pdf, 13 pages)

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12 good reasons for obtaining extensions

those who know ed mendlowitz, author of the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 tax season opportunity guide, know that he doesn’t like extensions.  however, there are valid reasons for extensions.

ed grudgingly admits to 12:

  1. you did not receive k-1s or 1099s or other documents with information that you need to report.
  2. you did not receive letters confirming charitable contributions that are required to be in your possession by the due date of your tax return.
  3. there is pending litigation and reporting certain transactions might prejudice your position, or you are awaiting resolution that might cause or affect an adjustment or estimate made for last year. read more →

tax season 2013 adds up to an exceptionally difficult year for many practitioners

chartexport(3)
about 23% of firms report a “significant” increase in extensions this year, overshadowing all other major benchmarks.

small firms and enrolled agents suffer the most damage from washington shenanigans and balky software. [pro member exclusive]

busy season barometer
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by rick telberg
卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research
join the survey; get the results

with tax season 2013 finally (gratefully) at an end, the latest soundings from the field show conditions continuing to deteriorate into the final hours, according to the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 busy season barometer.

in this report:

  • practitioners’ top five problems during the season (chart)
  • practitioners rate tax season from “better” than last year to “worse” (chart)
  • reports and analysis from practitioners around the nation, including florida, illinois, michigan, maryland, and pennsylvania.

in earlier reports:

 

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