How do you make money after April 15th?

[Skate1968]

Have any of you taken on a second non-accounting job over the summer for extra cash? Does anyone out there have ideas about supplementing one's income during the slow season?

Black Bart, I recall you referring to a "cash-scarce summer" in another post. Any tips on how i might manage this situation?

My situation
I need to decide whether I should continue doing tax preparation.

I have an offer from the government for a good steady paycheck and a pension. But it might not be available in my area if i don't take it w/in 24 hours.

I'll soon be caught up in CPE credits and my CPA license will be fully active again on November 1, 2007.

[JoshinNC]

Bookkeeping, Payroll, Financial Planning, Consulting

Insurance Sales, Securities Sales, Seminar Speeches

Depending upon your particular strengths and weaknesses there are many things out there that you can do to make moeny during the "off season", although I must admit I don't have much of an offseason anymore. I have over 30 extensions out there that will generate another $20,000 in income between now and October. If you only want to do taxes and nothing else than maybe you should go to work for a very large (Deloitte, Ernst, etc) operation, where they can keep you busy doing nothing but tax returns all year long.

Good luck in whatever you decide to do!

[erchess]

Hmm

It's hard for me to imagine an individual who would be happy and successful as the owner of a business but could also be happy and successful working in government or for a large corporation. I think you should decide which sort of work you like and then seek to maximize your income within that framework.

Since you are a CPA you could seek "write up" clients. I would think that you would also be in the market for individuals who own their own very profitable businesses and/or are successful investors. Both categories need to make estimated tax payments and may wish to hire you to figure out quarter by quarter what to pay. This enables them to pay no more than necessary while ending up with a return that features a pleasing bottom line. They could of course simply pay one quarter of 100 or 110% of the previous year's tax four times but then they could end up owing more than they want to pay when the return is filed. These high dollar clients also need help with tax planning. And of course you will always have clients who get audited or who discover on their own the need to amend their returns. You could supplement your income by teaching accounting and taxation at your local community college. And you could seek the necessary license(s) to sell financial products.

My Dad worked for the state of NC all his adult life. He never earned what he could have made in the private sector but he had more time off than he would have in the private sector and great benefits including pension and health insurance. On the other hand a few years back a state that found itself in financial trouble was allowed to file for bankruptcy and walk away from its pension obligations. It would pay you to examine the fiscal soundness of your state's pension plan.

[jainen]

I turn in

>>supplementing one's income during the slow season<<

I turn in all the aluminum Coca Cola cans I've used the last three months.

[Skate1968]

Thanks Josh,

I know people who've worked big 4 and it's worked well for them. but i wouldn't want to go back back to being an employee of a firm (turn em and burn em).

I enjoy servicing my own clients. But doing gruntwork for someone else's client, whom i often don't meet, is less exciting.

But maybe i could contract myself out to them in the summer. I know a girl at Deloitte who's tried to recruit me. maybe i'll approach her with the contracting idea.

[Eli]

>>supplementing one's income during the slow season<<

I turn in all the aluminum Coca Cola cans I've used the last three months.

Copper is a big seller in S Texas. People have actually torn apart the boxes the phone company uses for phone service to steal the wiring for the copper. Even manhole covers aren't safe anymore. Those are being sold as well (for the steel)

Eli

[geekgirldany]

I do payroll and bookkeeping during the off season. Also Quickbooks support. I've got several new customers from the QuickBooks Pro Advisor database. I have also looked at getting involved in marketing IRA, retirement benefits, etc. But I am getting my EA first. Another thing I do is weekly bookkeeping for 3 customers. Two bring me their bills and payroll every week. The other one I go to his office for two hours. This can add up to some good monthly income.

I think the best thing I ever did was my yellow page listing. I put in there that I specialize in helping small businesses. This has been a plus in getting new customers that need bookkeeping and payroll help.

[jainen]

one better

>>have actually torn apart the boxes the phone company uses for phone service to steal the wiring for the copper<<

Ummm, okay, Eli. You are definitely going me one better on that. I'm just recycling my own Coke cans.

[Jiggers]

Money after April 15th!

Bookkeeping, which I do all year.
Payroll Reports, which are due 4/30, 7/31, 10/31, and 1/31.
Corporations with fiscal year ending dates.
Corporation franchise tax returns (Texas).

Plus 24 extensions. Most won't bring in their information until August or later.

Year-end tax planning in December.

[Black Bart]

Skater

Have any of you taken on a second non-accounting job over the summer...?

Never have since I went into tax prep full-time. Seems like that would be admitting I couldn't hack it in this biz.

...ideas about supplementing one's income during the slow season?

I'm with Jiggers on this -- try to drum up payroll, bookkeeping, and get all the extensions you can.

Black Bart, I recall you referring to a "cash-scarce summer" in another post. Any tips...?

See above. It's still scarce, but that's because this is a "pore-folks" area. May not be such slim pickin's where you're at.

I have an offer from the government for a good steady paycheck and a pension. But it might not be available in my area if i don't take it w/in 24 hours.

I always wanted to think I'd like to do this and have such a safe harbor (incompetence no barrier: you just about have to murder somebody to get fired from a "government" job) to paddle around in. There's much to be said for it if you can "go along and get along" and I have worked as an employee except I have a problem with authority. First employer let me come and go as I pleased as long as I got the job done -- that worked fine for 15 years 'til they closed. Next guy (worked there one year) wanted to know "where were you from one 'til three P.M. Wednesday" and I told him to take that job and shove it. Still, I kinda miss those pensions that everybody else has.

I guess you just have to weigh it between money and independence (what a choice, eh?)

[Joe Btfsplk]

Putting up with the boss

I spent several years working for a big corporation under an obnoxious boss. Finally he retired and things got better. Later we got a boss who was Mr. Personality, but had some idiotic ideas. Finally we got a level-headed boss (and I got a promotion). I was headed for another promotion when downsizing occurred and I took early retirement since I couldn't see working for the difference between my pay and the retirement benefits I would get if I took the retirement.

[Skate1968]

Thanks very much to all of you for responding

Lots of good ideas and food for thought.

One thing i neglected to mention was that this particular government job would require that i not do any tax prep whatsoever.*** I don't yet make good money on my own clients. But I hate to give up something that I'm finally starting to get good at. (Good meaning relative to the kind of clients i was messing with years ago.) One of the ideas that i was considering was getting some other employment which would allow me to keep good clients and maybe even acquire a few more.


***The offer is from the IRS, and working for the IRS is another whole seperate question. I know many of you have animosity towards agents.

[erchess]

I have absolutely no

animosity toward IRS Employees but I say again that it is hard for me to imagine a person who could be happy and successful owning and running a business but equally happy and successful working in a large organization but not as its head.

[DaveO]

Judging from the last few days

It looks like audits are going to fill up the summer. Spoke with an agent today who said he and 4 other agents are in a brand new group of auditors in the small business group. Two new audits in three days, I'm on a roll!

Monthly books and payroll are the usual manner in which I prefer to while away the summer. It that slows down there is always fishing and rockhounding.

[Black Bart]

The job.

...particular government job would require that i not do any tax prep whatsoever...The offer is from the IRS...I know many of you have animosity towards agents.

Like erchess, I don't have any animosity toward IRS agents. For one thing, you don't see 'em that much. Besides, a job's a job (any port in a storm) and, too, you're the only one who can decide if you'd be happy there or not -- it's not really important what we think about it.

About the "no tax prep" rule though -- years ago a friend worked at the Memphis IRS office and he said that if he later quit the job, he wouldn't be allowed to do tax prep work for five years. Is that still part of the deal (or do you know if that was accurate)?

P.S. If you do take the job, I don't think there's any rule here against sleeping with the enemy (Brad & Paul probably won't ban you from the board).

Good luck.