This should frighten you:
Most people choose their accountants based on location, not on skills. What's worse, most tax preparers don't have any kind of professional certification. So, how do you choose? Here's how:
First, decide exactly what it is you're looking for. Do you need tax help, basic bookkeeping, tax planning, catch-up work, etc? How much are you expecting an outside accountant to do? How much can you spend? If you had an accountant before, what did you expect from that relationship? What did you like? What didn't you like?
Anyone you consider should be spending most of the initial meeting finding out about you instead of prattling on about how great they are. How will they ever know how to serve you properly if they don't find out about you and what you need?
Next, find out about the credentials and background of the prospective accountant. What qualifies them to handle your most sensitive financial information? What is their educational background? What are their professional certifications? Do their specialties match your business or situation? New IRS rules require all tax preparers to have a Preparer's Tax ID Number or PTIN. A PTIN means that the person has registered with IRS. IT DOES NOT MEAN THAT THE PERSON IS "CERTIFIED" IN ANY WAY OR HAS PASSED ANY EXAMS TO PROVE THEIR SKILLS!
And starting in 2013, anyone who prepares and signs a tax return must have passed an IRS-administered test to be classified as a Registered Tax Preparer. Initial testing is going on now, so your preparer must have met that minimum requirement by December 31, 2012.
Only Enrolled Agents, CPAs, and attorneys are "enrolled" to practice before the IRS. Of those, only Enrolled Agents are licensed, tested, and monitored by the IRS directly.
Find out about the prospective accountant's business. How long have they been in business? What is their business philosophy? What kinds of clients do they have? Are they in business as a single practitioner, or do they have partners and staff? Who covers if they are unavailable, on vacation, sick, or dead? How stable is the business? We're in a recession. Will your accountant be there in six months? Don't laugh. We've seen cases where there wasn't any backup coverage and the accountant died or went under, leaving the clients high and dry.
Watch out for wild claims. There are no "things the IRS doesn't want you to know." It is illegal to base fees on the size of your refund or to guarantee refunds. There are no credits or deductions that only a handful of legitimate CPAs or EAs know about. Be wary of "Tax Professionals" who want to sell something besides tax preparation. It is illegal to guarantee settlements of old tax debt for pennies on the dollar--and such situations are extraordinarily rare, too. The old cliche, "If it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is," actually is great advice. We'll be happy to talk about any of these schemes.
How many tax returns have they done? Repetition makes expertise in this business. Would you rather work with someone who has done a couple hundred tax returns, or several thousand?
Where will my return be prepared, and how secure are my data? At Acumen, your returns are always prepared in this area, NOT overseas. It helps to have your returns done by people who actually prepare their own USA returns. And do you want your personal information traveling vulnerable through the internet to countries where data security is uncertain, hackers abound, and you don't know who is seeing (and possibly stealing) your personal information? We do all returns ourselves, and we spend lots of money every year on the latest data security hardware and software to make your data as secure as possible.
Do an internet search on that accountant and the firm. There is a wealth of good information out there. Check for any disciplinary actions by the IRS or other regulatory bodies.
Get references. A lot of people think this is useless--why would someone give a reference that will be negative? You might be surprised at what you find.
What guarantees do they have that the work will be done competently? How secure are client data? Is there a written ID theft policy in place? The law requires this. Do they explain things clearly, in language you can understand? Again, ask for proof of credentials!
You get what you pay for. Cost should be secondary to you. There are hundreds of $20/hour accountants out there, and as long as they are there, we'll make a decent living cleaning up their messes.
It all boils down to this: Your prospective accountant should learn everything possible about you and your needs. You really don't care how big the firm is or their wide array of services if they aren't what you need. Make sure you are dealing with a reputable licenses person in a reliable firm.
We are prepared to answer all of the above questions for you. Let's grab a cup of coffee and talk.
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