Choosing the right tax professional can be complicated and stressful. After all, you\u2019re looking for a person with whom you will share your most sensitive and private financial data, and you may have a tight timeline to work with. We share some tips for consideration to make the process easier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
continued…<\/em> 6.\u00a0Determine the professional\u2019s availability.<\/strong>\u00a0In the initial discussion, determine their responsiveness by attaining answers to the following questions: a. How available to you are they? How often can you seek their guidance? It\u2019s great if a tax advisor is well qualified in terms of credentials, knowledge, and experience, but if they\u2019re not available to you when and how you need them, their skills won\u2019t help you much. 7.\u00a0Determine a style match.<\/strong>\u00a0Ensuring that their working style fits your needs is also critical. a. For example, do they communicate with you the way you desire (whether it is email, phone call, Zoom, or in-person meeting)? In the end, if you are planning to work with this person for a long time, your styles need to match. 8.\u00a0Confirm fees.<\/strong>\u00a0Make sure to establish the fees upfront. You will likely pay a flat fee based on the complexity of your tax return, or you may pay an hourly rate. Also ask if the fees include follow up meetings, calls, and emails. It\u2019s good to understand what\u2019s included and excluded as much as possible before you officially sign on for their service. The goals here are to best understand upfront the fee structure and establish a common understanding: It is not to find the cheapest service provider. Cheapest is not always the best, and you don\u2019t want to select a tax advisor based on price alone.
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b. How quickly will they respond to your questions? What is their communication process and medium?
c. Do they communicate by phone, Zoom, email, or in-person meeting? Are they available for tax guidance only during tax season or all year round?
d. Will you be working with them directly or through their support professionals?
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b. Do you prefer the professional\u2019s communication to be proactive or reactive?
c. Do you prefer someone who speaks in very technical tax jargon or someone who can speak in simple layperson\u2019s terms?
d. Do you prefer someone who spends a lot of time with you explaining every step of the filing process and explaining the calculations, or do you prefer someone who is more direct and just tells you the end-result?
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