Self Preparers Are Getting A Price Shock!

[ATSMAN]

Tax Day is less than a month away (April 17), and some taxpayers have taken to online forums such as Reddit or tax software providers' websites, to complain about being overcharged. Their biggest gripe? They don't know all the fees they're being charged until after they input all their data and are preparing to officially file.

http://www.morningstar.com/news/mark...ees.print.html

[Twin Turbo Z]

Thats a good thing !!!

[ATSMAN]

I had a new client get stuck with a $50 credit card charge just to retrieve her last 2 year's tax return copies because she misplaced her hard copies. We needed that for LT loss carryover. Supposedly if you use TurboTax free version you get only one copy of the tax return and once it is filed it is locked!

[TAXNJ]

Is there more....

I had a new client get stuck with a $50 credit card charge just to retrieve her last 2 year's tax return copies because she misplaced her hard copies. We needed that for LT loss carryover. Supposedly if you use TurboTax free version you get only one copy of the tax return and once it is filed it is locked!

information to the reason for the charge? Was it the "Free" or "Paid"version?

Because Turbo Tax says,
"If you’re in Free Edition, you’ll be prompted to register your product first. If you’re in a paid version of TurboTax, you’ll be prompted to pay first.
If you want a copy of your 2016 return
The best way to get help accessing your 2016 return is to sign in to your TurboTax account and search for "prior year return" in the upper-right corner. This will give you personalized help tailored to your specific situation."

We had many clients who used prior tax preparers who charged more than the amount your client was charged for extra copies of prior year returns.

Depends on the particular business policies realizing SOME businesses will provide FREE extra copies of all prior year returns copies to clients forever, no matter when asked.

[Twin Turbo Z]

All comes down to "Read the fine print" !!!

[John of PA]

I got a new client this year that did the return themself on Turbo Tax for last year. It was a complicated multi-state return. They gave me a copy and I looked it over and told them I was impressed, it looked correct. They told me they used the premium service that entitled them to free phone support from a CPA so that is why it was correct. They then told me the reason they came to a tax preparer this year is becasue that CPA had them on the phone for 6 hours. So the service we provide our clients is probably more valuable than we think.

[TAXNJ]

My goodness....

I got a new client this year that did the return themself on Turbo Tax for last year. It was a complicated multi-state return. They gave me a copy and I looked it over and told them I was impressed, it looked correct. They told me they used the premium service that entitled them to free phone support from a CPA so that is why it was correct. They then told me the reason they came to a tax preparer this year is becasue that CPA had them on the phone for 6 hours. So the service we provide our clients is probably more valuable than we think.

think they got a great value for the cost.

"...They told me they used the premium service that entitled them to free phone support from a CPA so that is why it was correct. They then told me the reason they came to a tax preparer this year is becasue that CPA had them on the phone for 6 hours. So the service we provide our clients is probably more valuable than we think..."

Hard to compete with a federal and multi-state returns (and spend 6 hours with a client) for what they paid for that service.

[ATSMAN]

6 hours x the average hourly wage of the taxpayer + TT fee = Approx. Tax Prep Fee!

[nwtaxlady]

6 hours x the average hourly wage of the taxpayer + TT fee = Approx. Tax Prep Fee!

Just think that person spent 6 hours on the phone... if they went to one of us professionals, they would spend an hour or less for an interview. Most would opt for an hour or less and not be stressed and leave it to a professional and be able to sleep at night.

[John of PA]

Yes taxlady, thats what the client said, they are very busy and do not have 6 hours to spend on the phone and were afraid if they used Turbo Tax again, they would get tied up again for 6 hours, so they wanted to use a face to face service like we provide. Even 2 hours can be a problem for most people.