surveys & research

refunds up, filings down at end of tax season 2017

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irs filing season data for week ending april 21, 2017
irs filing season data for week ending april 21, 2017

 

pros keep the edge in e-filings and some people just won’t give up paper.

by beth bellor
卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

a season of down notes for individual income tax returns ended the same way.

more tax season data: with 4 days left, tax stats were still down | refunds edge up as tax season winds down  | tax refunds catching up to last year | tax professionals accelerate filing pace as busy season heads for the home stretch | individual tax filings still lag behind 2016 | tax pros filing only 51% of e-returns | tax refunds up slightly | tax filings data looking less squirrely | tax return filings still lag, but pros hold 57% of market | tax filings down, but irs blames the calendar
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data for the week ending april 21, the week in which the filing deadline fell, was just released and it paints the same picture we’ve seen since january: overall returns and e-filings down, with refunds the only scant positives.
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survey: offshoring on the rise

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clients demand real-time accounting. by chris frederiksen it’s been was another good year for accountants, with demand for services continuing to outrun supply, thus allowing for price increases. firms continue to struggle with the issue of finding enough “good” people … continued

how savvy cpas use benchmarking to make smarter business decisions

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composite image of hand writing with marker

drilling into firm technology and operations provides a roadmap for strategic success

by rick telberg

every day in the united states, more than half of all accounting firm owners are thinking about a merger, an acquisition or both. m&a is now as routine to the day-to-day operations of running a tax and accounting practice as turning on the lights in the morning and taking out the garbage at night.

fortunately, the new accounting firm operations and technology survey by the research team of randy johnston and leslie garrett provides a one-of-a-kind roadmap for growth-minded professionals seeking the hard-boiled data essential to making smarter strategic decisions. with thousands of key metrics for firms of every size, you can compare your firm against similar firms. better yet: you can compare where your firm is today to where you want it to be tomorrow.

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taxpayers tell how they really feel

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pie chart of when people plan to pay their taxes
^ when people plan to pay their taxes

they don’t like the irs, but they might get an irs tattoo to skip out on taxes.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

let’s put the shoe on the other foot for a moment.

more on tax season: five-point action plan for turning tax scam threats into new opportunities | liberty tax earnings down 48% | h&r block lagging behind last year | tax pros filing only 51% of e-returns | tax refunds up slightly | tax filings data looking less squirrely | tax return filings still lag, but pros hold 57% of market | tax filings down, but irs blames the calendar
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

we know how accountants view tax season. but how about the average taxpayer?
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survey results: security and id theft emerge as top tax season worry

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even as irs sees declines.

by rick telberg
卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 busy season survey is turning up a disturbing finding, one that looks like it’s only going to get worse.  join the survey. get the answers

late and unprepared clients scored high, indicated by 41.6 percent of respondents. staffing issues, at 34 percent, was right up there, too. but the most common concern was security, privacy, and identity theft, checked off by 46.2 percent.

more on busy season: tax refunds up slightly   |   irs budget: penny-wise, pound-foolish   |   irs taxpayer advocate questions preparation of tax preparers   |   future state or future shock? irs watchdog warns of dubious irs plans   |

join the survey. get the results
join the survey. get the results.

tax season productivity hacks   |   tax filings data looking less squirrely   |   letting staff go after tax season   |  how to sell bundled tax services   |   survey results: who’s afraid of busy season 2017?   |   a little tax humor   |   tax return filings still lag, but pros hold 57% of market   |   checklist: 46 avoidable tax-filing errors – if clients only knew   |   survey results: practitioners bullish on busy season 2017   |   free instant download: sample fee schedule for 1040s   |   tax filings down, but irs blames the calendar   |   busy season 2017 gets off to strong start   |  2017 fee survey: price for non-itemized 1040s advances 6% to $176    |   the annual tax meeting is dead. clients killed it.   |   mandatory saturdays stir controversy 

goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

it isn’t often that one category of concern reaches the mid-40s. in 2016, “clients late or unprepared” is the only one that’s consistently up there, ranging from a low of 47.3 in 2016 to 59.3 percent in 2010. but generally, the numbers for that category have been improving.

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the economy’s biggest winners & losers from immigration

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cpa firms with clients in coastal and southern border states may be most vulnerable to loss of immigrant economic activity.

economic impact of immigration, ranked by state. source: wallethub

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

if there’s ever any massive curtailment of immigration into the united states, cpa firms in states along ocean coasts and in major metro markets may be the most vulnerable to losing prospective clients and future job candidates.

a new study of demographic trends nationwide finds that immigrants play an especially key role in economic growth on both coasts with california, new jersey, florida, new york and hawaii, ranking as the states with highest percentages of jobs created by immigrant-owned businesses.

the study, conducted by the personal finance advisory web site wallethub , further finds that california, new jersey, new york, delaware and massachusetts are where foreign-born people hold the greatest percentages of jobs in the fast growth technology science, technology and engineering fields.

meanwhile, new jersey, along with the district of columbia and its neighbors virginia and maryland, are where households headed by immigrants have the highest incomes.

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staffing: the how and why of upward surveys

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word "survey" on computer screenincludes 19 sample questions, industry norms and how to decide who evaluates whom.

by marc rosenberg
cpa firm staff: managing your #1 asset

why do firms conduct upward evaluations?

more on staffing: survey to find out what your staff think | mps chime in on recruiting, development, retention | how to set your firm apart to recruits | why staff scheduling should be centralized | compensation: money and beyond | how to make mandatory saturdays a thing of the past | what staff mentoring is and isn’t | do flexible hours help or hurt us? | 8 keys to keeping staff engaged
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

many firms believe staff are just as important as clients. the no. 1 reason why staff stay with their firm is their relationship with the boss. in the case of a cpa firm, “the boss” is the firm’s supervisory personnel, mostly partners and managers.
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survey to find out what your staff think

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blue pencil on survey formincludes 28 sample questions plus industry norms for results.

by marc rosenberg
on staffing

if you truly and honestly want to make your firm a great place to work, the first thing you need to do is ask the staff what they think.

more on staffing: mps chime in on recruiting, development, retention | don’t underestimate communication with staff | why firms can’t afford not to develop women partners | 8 recruiting strategies: how many are you using? | 6 keys to advancement programs | guidelines for flexible work policies | staff need meaningful recognition | survey: 97% of leading firms now offer flexible work arrangements | how to create a talent management strategy
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

two primary types of surveys:
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survey results: who’s afraid of busy season 2017?

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卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research projects shake-out of weaker firms.

join the survey. get the results.

by rick telberg
卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

the difference between the potential winners and losers this busy season could hardly be more stark, according to a 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 analysis of the annual busy season outlook tracking survey.

while some 56 percent of accountants so far say they’re looking at a “better” or “much better” busy season this year than last year, a distinct minority of about 16 percent is bracing for problems, trouble and setbacks.

more on busy season:  bullish on busy season 2017  |  46 avoidable tax-filing errors – if clients only knew  |  tax prep gets off to strong start  |  sample fee schedule for 1040s  |  tax filings down, but irs blames the calendar  |  survey results: busy season 2017 gets off to strong start   |   2017 fee survey: price for non-itemized 1040s advances 6% to $176   |   the annual tax meeting is dead. clients killed it.   |   reader sound-off: mandatory saturdays stir controversy    |   tax season opportunity kit free instant download   |   world envies low u.s. tax rates on luxury real estate transfers   |   the new small-business loophole you can drive a truck through

goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

the annual survey tracks the attitudes, behaviors and benchmarks of tax and accounting professionals throughout the season, providing real-time metrics and trends by which practitioners can chart and steer their business plans. the survey remains open throughout the season, as an invitation to professionals to participate regularly. as a reward for joining the survey, participants are provided the first look at new topline findings. join the survey; get the results.

in examining some of their other responses, the reasons emerge with clarity. for instance, those expecting a “worse” year, are three times more likely than those expecting  “better” season to cite the “general economic situation” as a chief concern, twice more likely to blame “competition from others,” a third more likely to report “technology or software problems, and a quarter more likely to be having problems with “new accounting and auditing” and staffing” issues. those issues cut to the heart of fundamental and basic operations. read more →

survey results: bullish on busy season 2017

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busy season bulls outnumber bears three to one. via 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

profession plows ahead with high hopes.

how’s your busy season so far?
join the survey; get the results.

by rick telberg
卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

if expectations pan out, busy season 2017 might be a banner year, according to the first soundings from the 18th annual 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 busy season barometer. there’s optimism in the air.

a full fifth of respondents tell us they foresee a busy season “much better” than last year’s. and more than a third—36 percent—believe their season will be at least “somewhat better.” together these optimists make up 56 percent of respondents, more than three times the number who are dreading a tougher slog than last year.

more busy season: tax prep gets off to strong start  |  sample fee schedule for 1040s  |   tax filings down, but irs blames the calendar  |   survey results: busy season 2017 gets off to strong start   |   2017 fee survey: price for non-itemized 1040s advances 6% to $176   |   the annual tax meeting is dead. clients killed it.   |   reader sound-off: mandatory saturdays stir controversy    |   tax season opportunity kit free instant download   |   world envies low u.s. tax rates on luxury real estate transfers   |   the new small-business loophole you can drive a truck through

goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

granted, that number isn’t as high as 2016’s, when 61% reported improvements over 2015, but 2015 was the infamous annus horribilis, the year of tax prep hell. it wasn’t hard to imagine the next year being better. so 2016 wasn’t so bad, making it surprising that so many see 2017 turning out even better. three upbeat respondents typify the three main causes of optimism.

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survey results: busy season 2017 gets off to strong start

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join the survey. get the results.

i.d. theft and security issues emerge as top concern.

how’s busy season so far?
join the survey and get the latest updates

by rick telberg
卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

tax and accounting professionals are kicking off busy season 2017 with the highest confidence levels in years, but their optimism seems guarded and unsure, according to the latest results from the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 busy season barometer.

see the charts below for additional detail. and stay tuned as the busy season unfolds. join the survey to get the latest updates.

goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

so far, the survey shows that more than 58% of tax and accounting professionals expect a better season this year than in 2016, which, by comparison, was 61% cheerier than 2015.

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