How and Why I Hired My Tax Accountant

John Canter on Startup Journal:

Until I owned my business, I had always prepared my own income-tax returns. No longer. I’m glad to say that I have an accountant.

In short, I quickly concluded this was no job for an amateur. Plus, for small-shop proprietors like me, time is money, and unless I hired a professional, I’d be doomed to taking the latest tax-preparation class instead of focusing on my business.

…

I interviewed several firms in my area. These ranged from independents to local offices of the Big Four. My criteria for choosing a firm were the amount of service I’d receive, the fees involved, their general philosophy and approach, and something I’ll call the “personal touch.”

Most of the firms offered similar services, such as federal-tax preparation and filing monthly local and state taxes, with a couple specializing in particular areas such as payroll taxes. The range seemed somewhat dependent on the size of the accounting firm, with the larger firms offering “one-stop” service — they’d do all my tax work — compared to the small outfits, which would do only payroll taxes. But hiring a big firm didn’t necessarily mean I’d be working with the most experienced people. Although I was meeting with the partners of the large firms, I learned lower-level staffers would do the work, and the “senior” accountants would simply sign off on it.

As for fees, I’d be charged by the hour, at rates that also varied by size of the firm. Although I expected some variance in the fees, I was surprised by the disparity. The larger firms charged between $150 and $300 per hour, while smaller ones cost between $75 and $100 an hour. For a small company like mine, paying $300 an hour isn’t an option.

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