Q: Why should you choose us to work for you...
A: Well, we are not new in town nor in the accounting profession. We don't just do income tax preparation from January thru April. Our practice consists of dedicated accountants with many years of experience and the right education to boot. Our office is open year-round to assist and represent your interests. 

We take our time to develop detailed knowledge of your business in order to work for you effectively and efficiently. We are confident that you will be so impressed with our professionalism that we give you one free consultation to meet with us and evaluate us  .

Q: Do I need an accountant or a bookkeeper?
A: Well, it depends.  Some businesses can get by with just a bookkeeper, or even just someone with a basic to advanced knowledge of bookkeeping. Those businesses are only looking for someone to crunch numbers and fill out a few forms. So, how do you know if you need an accountant? It comes down to the particular services they offer, and keep in mind, not all accountants offer exactly the same services.

Q: What should I ask the prospective accountant during the interview? 
A: The following questions should be asked during the interview:

• What are the primary services that you provide to businesses?
• Do you have knowledge about my industry or field? If not, ask them to describe whether or not they think this is important for the services they will be providing to you. In some circumstances this experience may not be essential, but in others it will be, so talk this through during the interview process.
• How will you be charged for their services? Most accountants will establish a monthly retainer for recurring services such as monthly or quarterly financial statement preparation and charge by the hour for audits and tax returns.
• What can you do to reduce your fees? Listen to the answers you get, and determine if you will be able to keep your accounting costs down using the tips provided.
• As my business grows, how will they be able to help you? Ask them to describe services to other clients that they have. You can learn a lot from an accountant that has helped other small businesses go through growing pains such as changing working capital needs, obtaining financing, raising venture capital or even selling their successful business.

Q: How do I select someone to help me with my taxes?
A: It's important to find qualified tax professionals if you need help preparing and filing your tax return. Unqualified tax preparers may overlook legitimate deductions or credits that could cause you to pay more tax than you should. Unqualified preparers may also make costly mistakes causing you to incur assessed deficiencies, penalties, and interest. Here are some suggestions to consider when hiring a tax professional:

• A paid preparer must sign the return as required by law.
• Avoid preparers who claim they can obtain larger refunds than other preparers. If your returns are prepared correctly, every preparer should derive substantially similar numbers.
• Beware of a preparer who guarantees results or who bases fees on a percentage of the amount of the refund. A practitioner may not charge a contingent fee (percentage of your refund) for preparing an original tax return.
• Understand that the most reputable preparers will request to see your receipts and will ask you multiple questions to determine your qualifications for expenses, deductions and other items. By doing so they have your best interest in mind and are trying to help you avoid penalties, interest or additional taxes that could result from an IRS examination.
• Choose a preparer you will be able to contact and one who will be responsive to your needs.
• Investigate whether the preparer has any questionable history with the Better Business Bureau, the state's board of accountancy for CPAs, the state's bar association for attorneys or the IRS Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) for enrolled agents or the oversight agency in states that license or register tax preparers.
• Check IRS.gov for information regarding abusive shelters and other tax schemes and scams. Remember, if it sounds too good to be true, chances are it is.  

Q: What questions should I ask a tax preparer I'm considering using? 
A: The following are suggested questions to ask before you hire a tax preparer:

• What kind of formal tax training do you have?
• How long have you been preparing taxes?
• Have you ever done a tax return dealing with my situation?
• How much do you charge and how do you determine your fee?
• Are you open year-round to assist me with any problems I may have later?
• Do you offer e-filing as a service?
• How do you stand behind your work?
• Can you provide me with the names of references I can contact about the quality of your work? 
• If the refund is direct deposited, is it deposited into your account or into an account owned by the preparer?