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    Corporation Return Charges

    Just to get an idea, what would some of you charge as a minimum for an 1120S form or an 1120 form including State Return. (So Calif) In this case one client would file 1120S form with 2 shareholders, and another client would file 1120 form. Review accounting (ugh! either in house or a fired accountant) and I would ask for documentation of items of concern, and make manual correction notations. Both companies are mfg, so uniform cap is involved. Minimal depreciation.

    Some basic minimum charges to judge where I need to start. Base fee and/or then do you charge by the hour to arrive at your fee for the corporate returns? and if so, what would be a basic hourly charge.

    Thanks,

    Sandy
    Last edited by S T; 08-02-2006, 03:07 AM. Reason: clarify

    #2
    Our basic corporate return fee for preparation is around $600. If I have to do review, fix bookkeeping problems it's extra. However we do the bookkeeping for most of our business clients. Again I don't like preparing returns off of other people's bookkeeping. I somehow aquired one this year and he sends me his information in excel format. It's (excuse me) crap. I want to send him down the road.

    Comment


      #3
      Returns $$$

      I've been thinking like Sandy because I have 3 current clients that have formed S-corps this year and I'll be doing those returns for them. I really have no idea what to charge for them either.

      I'm in Orange County, CA, so a little pricier than other parts of the country. Veritas, you're in Portand, but not sure how this would compare to my area.

      Jainen, you're in Santa Clara, which would be a higher income area also. May I ask what your basic price for one of these would be? I'm really not trying to be nosey, but more curious due to variations of locations throughout the country.

      Thanks,
      Dennis

      Comment


        #4
        Corporation Return Fee

        For C & S, I charge my top hourly rate, plus 30%, plus $50 for the cost of my annual CPE (seminar, hotel, travel, meals รท # of returns), all rounded up to the next $25.

        EXAMPLE: 2 hrs X $100 = $200 + 30% = $260 + $50 = $310, rounded to the next $25 = $325.

        The + 30% is for my many years of education and experience.

        The + $50 for the CPE helps recover my costs.

        I know it seems a lot, but C & S returns are not easy. At least not the ones that I do. If they were easy, the client could do it.

        I also charge extra for preparation of the work papers.
        Last edited by Jiggers; 08-02-2006, 08:17 AM.
        Jiggers, EA

        Comment


          #5
          I'm with Veritas,

          $600 base, plus $35 per K-1, plus $100 for each extra state (resident state is included), plus $50 per hour for any bookkeeping.

          Average fee for a 2 shareholder S-Corp is between $750 and $1000.

          JoshInNC

          Comment


            #6
            Fees

            Gosh, I just have to move somewhere else and start making dough. If I charged like you guys do, my clients would die a present death. I'm telling my $400, C-corp, pizzeria client that, henceforth, I'm charging furriner's rates. Now -- how to break the news?

            BB: In accordance with standard practice throughout the accounting industry, I am forced to raise your fee to $600.
            C:
            BB: Would you like a glass of water?
            C:
            BB: Well anyway, as soon as your color comes back a tad, we need to explore this issue.
            C: (Gasps) Have you lost your mind?
            BB: No, no. Actually, I was just doing a thread with my colleagues and...
            C: You're in a sewing circle? Oh my Lord! Whoda thunk it? Well...listen, ...as long as we're telling all; did you know that I'm an alcoholic?
            BB: Uh, no; I thought the red face was from the pizza oven. But let's not get away from the matter at hand. In this neck of the backwoods, we're perceived by urbanites as being somewhat bumpkinesque. Everything may be "up-to-date in Kansas City" but it's not in Dogpatch, so I gotta start doin' thangs like they do in Texas and California. Besides, I've got expenses.
            C: Such as?
            BB: Well, there's my regular fee -- 8 hours at $50 is $400. I'm gonna start countin' pit stops and take 10 hours to do your taxes. That's $500 right there -- plus the extras.
            C: $50 an hour? A bit much, ain't it? My employees get $5.25 per hour. And the extras?
            BB: I have to add (what was that formula?)...umm...$30, I think it was, for my many years of education and experience. That makes it $530.
            C: I happen to know you flunked Accounting 101 and made a "D" when you retook it. Besides, your old man showed you how to do these taxes.
            BB: Never mind that...there's also CPE -- that costs $50 which brings it to $580.
            C: I took that course and the Red Cross doesn't charge anything.
            BB: No, no, not that one...this was a tax seminar I went to last week -- it's the cost of hotel, travel, and meals for it.
            C: I was by your office that day -- your wife said you left at noon, took a bologna sandwich and a Coke with you, that it started at one and you'd be back at five. It was in Doodleburg -- ten miles from here.
            BB: It's lots of trouble anyway. Oh, and there's a roundup fee which brings it to $600.
            C: You ain't sprayed the weeds around this office since 1995.

            Comment


              #7
              Lol

              BB you are outstanding! LOL







              Where I don't know.

              Comment


                #8
                Bart

                Very Good. Made my morning.

                Comment


                  #9
                  Corporation Return Fee

                  You charge what you have to.

                  When my clients, employees of these C & S Corporations, have W-2's that exceed $100,000, drive better vehicles than I drive, have nicer offices than I have, own nice RV's, take nice vacations several times a year, have better retirement plans, and live in better homes, I decided that I want to do the same.

                  And to get there, I have to charge for it.

                  And my clients pay!
                  Jiggers, EA

                  Comment


                    #10
                    BB, we have a lot of Yankee transplants,

                    from areas like Long Island, NY and Fairfield, CT and Boston, MA. My fees are 1/2 to 1/3 of what they paid up there, so they don't mind what I charge. I'm with Jiggers, I'm providing a professional service, and need to exude a professional image. This costs money, and my clients realize that. I have price shoppers who are clients, but they don't hang around for long. Raise your rates 25%, lose some of your clients. In the end you'll most likely end up making more money doing less work!

                    JoshInNC

                    Comment


                      #11
                      My average S, C or LLC return starts at around 550 and moves on up the scale depending on complexity and other issues. My highest one is 1250. I likely average about 650-700. No state income tax in washington but if they need one for another state I usually charge 100-150.

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Charge for your area

                        The 1120 or 1120S is $500, and that is if they did not have anything extraordinary. If they traded some equipment or sold some the fee goes up. Most of my clients have Peachtree or Quickbooks and it is in pretty good shape. However, any accounting cleanup I have to do, or accounting from source documents, I charge $150 per hour. You make what you can for the area of the country you are in. If Michigan does not get turned around I will have to charge Black Bart's prices.

                        Matt
                        I would put a favorite quote in here, but it would get me banned from the board.

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Fee

                          I can't picture charging less than $600 under any circumstances, other than a "no activity" return. The first year of no activity would be $400 ( lots of setup time) and the second year around $300 with no activity.

                          The worst condition is working from a "walk in" with a G/L from their program.

                          Set-up fees start at $100 (new Corp), $200 from an existing Corp. I guess I could go on, like depreciable assets, equipment and commercial loans. For it to add up to $1,500 is very possible, depending on complexity and time.
                          This post is for discussion purposes only and should be verified with other sources before actual use.

                          Many times I post additional info on the post, Click on "message board" for updated content.

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Please notice that Bob W is on LI,

                            which speaks to why my transplants don't complain too much.

                            Bob lives in an area of the country with a very high cost of living, which means he has to charge more to pay his own bills.

                            Example: Client sells modest 3 bedroom, 2 bath (1800 sq ft) home in Smithtown, NY for $580,000 and moves to Wake County, NC (voted best place in the country to live more than once) and buys 5 bedroom, 4 bath (3500 sq ft) home for $350,000 and two new Lexus's (or would that be Lexi?) and pays tuition up for their two children's private school through 12th grade, and gets to live on a golf course, and gets to put money down on a new beach house, etc.

                            Location, Location, Location!

                            JoshInNC

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Originally posted by Black Bart
                              C: $50 an hour? A bit much, ain't it? My employees get $5.25 per hour.
                              I have never liked the idea of identifying an hourly rate for tax and accounting work. I know it is industry practice, but I feel it puts us into the lawyer category, where people gasp at $200 to $500 per hour billable fees from those guys. I don't want my clients to know how fast or how slow it takes me to prepare their return. Plus, some things I can do in ten minutes that might take them 10 hours to do if they did their return on their own. So why should we expect them to understand why we get so much per hour when they have nothing to compare it with...except lawyer fees?

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