Tax season.....

[BOB W]

..... has gone very well this year for me. I have about 10 difficult returns to go and 40 quickies. For me, that is great.

This year's early rush in February is turning out to be a "god's sent". March went very smooth. Today, ended my appointments and I'm just focusing of remaining, already in house, returns.

For the most part, those early return didn't cause any new business for me, as I will probably do the same as last year. The only benefit gained was higher volumn when I was still mentally fresh.

Did anybody gain from the early filers this year????

[Brian EA]

..... has gone very well this year for me. I have about 10 difficult returns to go and 40 quickies. For me, that is great.

This year's early rush in February is turning out to be a "god's sent". March went very smooth. Today, ended my appointments and I'm just focusing of remaining, already in house, returns.

For the most part, those early return didn't cause any new business for me, as I will probably do the same as last year. The only benefit gained was higher volumn when I was still mentally fresh.

Did anybody gain from the early filer this year????

On par with last year

[Acownt4it]

up 40%

this year. Had a great year, but have had some really difficult returns. I will be hiring an additional preparer next year. The hours this year have just about killed me.

[Black Bart]

Worked very hard this time, but

think I'm down about 100 customers from last year (500 total then/400 now). Last year I raised "short form" (wages & int. only) fees to $45 from $30, but those who didn't ask the price in advance didn't know about it until they picked up the return (most of ours are mailed and we don't do them on the spot--we have them come back for pickup in about three days).

Anyway, I guess everybody's price sensitive in this area (lotsa pore folks around here) You wouldn't think fifteen bucks would run somebody off nowadays, but I guess frugality/economizing (or whatever you want to call it) never lightens up. I think I still made about the same money with less work, so that's a plus if you can look at it like that. I did this a few years ago with about the same result and then gradually built back up to the same number of customers.

I think the Jackson-Hewitt "Christmas loan" and January's "advance on last paycheck stub" programs (their parking lot looked like a flea market when those debuted) cut into my blue-collar trade. JH "owns" most of the dire straits crowd--nailing down their business by lending them a good chunk of their EIC/CTC in advance. I only did about 25 RALs this year (okay though; I don't like them anyway).

Many will come back next year if price is the reason they left--I know I'm the cheapest place in town. They will have found that out because Block & J-H charge $85 for the same forms (I checked). So, some righteously indignant clients will come back somewhat humbled. A little mean-spirited maybe, but I love to see a good comeuppance

[DB COOPER]

Llc Or S Corp Standard Miles

Can you take standard miles on vehicles used in an LLC used by a member or is actual the only way?

[veritas]

Hey DB

Nice of you to "drop in".

[Jiggers]

Worn out

Agree, I am worn out. Hired person that didn't work out. He knows taxes, been to NCPE seminars with me, just couldn't get past 1040A's and those took him about an hour each. Can't make money that way. Let him go in mid-March. I had to double check everything as he made spelling errors, etc. Very few math or tax calculation errors. He just couldn't grasp the procedures.

I made up my mind to do away with 75% of my monthly write-up and bookkeeping clients, either by giving them to other firms, or firing them if no one wants them. Will also change my office to myself and my wife/secretary. She can't do returns, but can answer the phone and process returns.

My house is paid for, my car is paid for, and my wife doesn't use charge cards!

[Black Bart]

Take the standard mileage allowance.

Can you take standard miles on vehicles used in an LLC used by a member or is actual the only way?

The LLC doesn't have any effect on that.

[Black Bart]

Hired persons.

Agree, I am worn out. Hired person that didn't work out. He knows taxes, been to NCPE seminars with me, just couldn't get past 1040A's and those took him about an hour each. Can't make money that way. Let him go in mid-March. I had to double check everything as he made spelling errors, etc. Very few math or tax calculation errors. He just couldn't grasp the procedures.

Your employment experience gave me a chuckle--it mirrors mine. People say never hire friends or relatives and it's true. My notable examples:

BB: I need you to make copies.
Niece: No problem. Do you have a stool?
BB: Uh; yeah, but why?
Niece: Well, I'll be standing up.
Endured it for a week. Pled "lack of work" (hard to do during tax season) and let her go.

BB: (To people in large, community office) Where's Sissy (sister-in-law/ left in charge of office while I was out)?
Staff: Said she was going home.
BB (on phone): Are you sick?
Sis: No.
BB: Are you coming back?
Sis: No.
BB: What happened?
Sis: Well, to tell the truth, I just got bored.
BB: Oh. Well...okay. 'Bye.
Sis: 'Bye.

[Jiggers]

Ditto on kin-folk

Don't loan money to kin, don't sell used vehicle to kin, don't buy used vehicle from kin, don't hire kin!

Been there, done that, won't do again!

Hired sister-in-law when I went out on my own in 1988. Paid her for all hours worked. Subleased office space to attorney (big mistake, but another story someday). He paid me for using her. She wanted to get paid from him for doing his work, plus get paid for 8 hours per day from me. Had a hard time explaining that to her and her husband.

One day during tax season she didn't show up. I called about 9:00, her husband answered and said she wasn't working no more.

[Black Bart]

Firing clients.

I made up my mind to do away with 75% of my monthly write-up and bookkeeping clients, either by giving them to other firms, or firing them if no one wants them.

I don't need to weed out the monthly people. Attrition (death/moving/going out of biz) has been doing it for me lately.

I got rid of 5 or 6 problem cases (two major ones) in the last two years. You wouldn't believe how much better I feel and what a stress-reliever it's been. To anybody that's got a worrier-case, I say this: Just take your best shot--tell them the truth if necessary/ make up something/ whatever excuse--just something to make them go away. You'll congratulate yourself at least once a week for now on.

[Black Bart]

Debts & CC

My house is paid for, my car is paid for, and my wife doesn't use charge cards!

My wife doesn't use cards very much. I do (no--make that have). I'd rather not talk about the rest of it.

[Matt Sova]

Still ahead

think I'm down about 100 customers from last year (500 total then/400 now). Last year I raised "short form" (wages & int. only) fees to $45 from $30, but those who didn't ask the price in advance didn't know about it until they picked up the return (most of ours are mailed and we don't do them on the spot--we have them come back for pickup in about three days).

Anyway, I guess everybody's price sensitive in this area (lotsa pore folks around here) You wouldn't think fifteen bucks would run somebody off nowadays, but I guess frugality/economizing (or whatever you want to call it) never lightens up. I think I still made about the same money with less work, so that's a plus if you can look at it like that. I did this a few years ago with about the same result and then gradually built back up to the same number of customers.

I think the Jackson-Hewitt "Christmas loan" and January's "advance on last paycheck stub" programs (their parking lot looked like a flea market when those debuted) cut into my blue-collar trade. JH "owns" most of the dire straits crowd--nailing down their business by lending them a good chunk of their EIC/CTC in advance. I only did about 25 RALs this year (okay though; I don't like them anyway).

Many will come back next year if price is the reason they left--I know I'm the cheapest place in town. They will have found that out because Block & J-H charge $85 for the same forms (I checked). So, some righteously indignant clients will come back somewhat humbled. A little mean-spirited maybe, but I love to see a good comeuppance

Think of it this way Bart, if all you did were simple returns, 500 x $30 = $15,000. 400 x $45 = $18,000.

You are ahead of the game as you have in your revenues by doing less work.

I myself do not strive to be the cheapest in town, and those simple returns I do for 100 - 125, unless it is the dependent child of an existing client, then it is free. I think you should go ahead and move it up another $5 next year, you really know your stuff and you should be compensated justly for that knowledge.

Matt

[Black Bart]

That's good math, Matt. Thanks.

Think of it this way Bart, if all you did were simple returns, 500 x $30 = $15,000. 400 x $45 = $18,000.

You are ahead of the game as you have in your revenues by doing less work.

I myself do not strive to be the cheapest in town, and those simple returns I do for 100 - 125, unless it is the dependent child of an existing client, then it is free. I think you should go ahead and move it up another $5 next year, you really know your stuff and you should be compensated justly for that knowledge.

Matt

Actually, I am a little ahead of the game because only about half my clients are the Jan-Feb "short form/refund-coming" bunch. The others (March and April customers) are small biz, itemized ducks, rentals, and semi-complicated "long" forms. Jackson has almost none of this last group and their office is practically vacant after February when the refunds peter out--I don't know about Block's March & April trade.

I'm not really striving to be the cheapest (we started at $3 over 30 years ago) and I don't blame you or anybody for getting what they can, but, as you know, you have to be competitive. Your $125 probably works fine in Michigan, but if I charged that here in Arkansas I'd have maybe 50 people left. I do have quite a few larger cases--$200 to $800 depending on complexity and time--so we're not dependent on the wages-only trade like J-H is.

Also we use "$45 for all comers" as an effective strategy against the chains' policy of "nickel-and-diming" people with extra charges for each W-2, CTC, EIC, whatever. We lose on some and we gain on some, but people like the simplicity of it very much--when somebody calls about a W-2 return, I can shoot them a $45 price and stand by it regardless.

[SueBaby]

this year. Had a great year, but have had some really difficult returns. I will be hiring an additional preparer next year. The hours this year have just about killed me.

I have had More difficult returns this year and things I haven't seen before then ever! As all knows from my posts.

I'm with you had more clients too. With working over 16 hours a day for 6 days til the END, I "feel like" burning my office down, getting the Insurance and retiring to the beach. But of course, I wake up to the real world and crazy clients again and keep pushing ahead.

So glad this does not last ALL YEAR!! I will probably hire another person next year. I learn from year to year what NOT to do and what to do.
Thank you again from this board and poeple like you all in helping me out of really bad times. (You too Brian)