the eminent sage, august j. aquila (right), has an eminently practical to-do list to help firm managers get ready for tax season. (related: click here for more about managing busy season.) 1. prioritize issues and work on the low hanging … continued
major metrics suggest rebounding business.
most tax and accounting professionals heading into busy season are expecting meaningful improvements over last year in revenues and profits, according to new 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research.
rates up only $4 in two years for “main street” firms.
most tax professionals will be charging an average of $233 for a typical itemized return this year, relatively unchanged since the beginning of the recession, according to a new survey of national society of accountants members.
the new $233 benchmark represents barely a $4 increase in the two years since the last biennial survey, when accountants posted a 10% advance from the 2007 poll, which followed a scant 2% gain from $201 in 2005.
the survey of nearly 8,000 tax preparers by the nsa found that the average fee for preparing an itemized form 1040 with a schedule a and a state tax return cost taxpayers only $233 this year. rates for non-itemized returns are also largely unchanged at $128 for a form 1040 and state return without itemized deductions.
small but measurable advances.
preliminary results from a survey by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 suggests that tax and accounting professionals are expecting a better busy season this year than last year.
last year at about this time, practitioners rated the then-upcoming 2.35 on a five-point scale with 5 being “much better” than the year before and 1 “much worse.”
in other findings from the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 busy season barometer and related reports:
complete findings are published in the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 practitioner’s tax season performance review and outlook report. (learn more here)
new and preliminary data rate the outlook a 2.42, a scant but perceptible improvement.
practitioners and experts seem to agree this coming tax season should be markedly better than last year’s.
and last year, for most, was better than the year before. we caught up with a few of the best-informed people in the business at the 2011 cch user conference.
click on this video to start the playlist:
…i want to be a tax accountant. charming, cute, and so true it’s sorta sad…
mark luscombe, jd, llm, cpa , and cch principal federal tax analyst, tells practitioners what to watch out for in the busy season ahead.
it’s the best time to learn the tough lessons to apply next year.
with busy season a frenzy, most professionals keep their heads down and their noses to the grindstone.
but if you’re in management, you can’t afford to waste the once-a-year opportunity to take notes on what’s working, what’s not and what to do about it before the next busy season.
with that in mind, roman h. kepczyk, cpa.citp, lists seven tech tends to watch: read more →
last chance to take care of yourself, your career, your firm — before busy season begins.
get the briefing paper on the “american jobs act.” with hopes of stimulating national job growth in the near future, president obama is urging congress to pass a $447 billion jobs package. but many tax practitioners just want to know: … continued
nine rules for tax season success, including: bartering services for ammo, if necessary.
by thomas avery blair, ea
tomblairea.com
i believe that in order for the registered tax preparer/licensed tax attorney, cpa and enrolled agent to remain in business now and in the future, there will have to be a resurgence in the attitudes of conventional and unconventional “personal service” to the individual tax client.
i bear witness to the fact that my own small tax practice now requires that more personal attention be given to the individual client. “one size fits all” simply won’t work. the tax code is growing ever more complex while the public’s education in federal taxation matters is waning.
here are some examples of what i mean:
1. my clients needed year around access to a notary public… so i became and now remain a commissioned notary public.
2. my clients needed cost-effective access to legal advice, especially over matters of wealth retention… so i fostered a business relationship with an attorney with a desire to have her own practice who had the precise skills my clients asked me to find for them. she gets free office space in my office three days a week by giving my tax clients $50 an hour discounted rates on initial consultations in the “off season.”
if tax season 2011 seems particularly hectic, you’re not alone.
roger russell at accounting today attributes the compressed tax season to a hold on e-filing schedule a returns and a later deadline for delivery of form 1099s.
overall, the irs processed 132.5 million individual returns through june 3, up 2.7% over last year. over 106 million were e-filed, a 12.3% increase, including 68 million by practitioners, up 12.1%.
“mandatory e-filing caused us to make significant changes in our internal process and be much more proactive in educating and communicating requirements to our clients,” jodi robinson, director at the kansas city, mo., office of cbiz mhm, tells accounting today.
they make all the hard work pay off.
by rick telberg
some tax and accounting practitioners are showing how to deal with the same problems as their peers and competitors, and yet rise above them.
the results can be dazzling.
overall, 45% of accountants say this busy season was better than last year’s, including 12% who said “much better.”
indeed, for those lucky few, it was better by almost any measure. among those who reported operations were “much better” this year: read more →