the Cost of Personal Accounting Services

On a referral from a friend, I had an accountant do my taxes for the first time ever. It was my first year as a contractor, so it seemed like a good idea.

She provided forms to be filled out and asked that I arrive prepared with a bunch of information.

When I got to her office, she walked me through as she filled out all the documents, made recommendations, and asked questions. In addition to filing my 2006 taxes, she amended and re-filed my 2005 taxes because of some errors I had made.

This accountant calls herself discount, and I believe that is the case. I was very satisfied with the way she handled my 2006 taxes, as everything was very straightforward. She handed me a copy of the filing that she sent, and the stub to be sent with my payment. It was easy and simple.

The amendment and re-file of my 2005 taxes was a little more complicated. She left that until after the end of the 2006 filing season and wasn't very responsive when I would call to ask for status reports, since I was continuing receiving letters from the IRS. Scary!

Anyway, she finally got the amendment filed, and sent me copies of the forms, along with my pay stubs and her invoice for both filings. Her original charge was much more, but she reduced her fee by the amount of interest I owed as a result of the lateness in filing. This seemed a very fair consideration, and I was happy to pay her the $150 for her services.

As always, referrals from friends or associates are the best way to pick an accountant. In this case, I had a good idea what to expect and so I wasn't surprised by unreturned phone calls or the like.

If budget is really an issue for you, look for someone who will check your work, rather than generate their own tax forms.

My opinion is that paying someone else to do your taxes is well worth the money for getting it done right.