I had a fun day in the office doing taxes. I had a woman come in who has been a client of mine for years. After I finished her return, I went to tell my wife that she was here, so that she could say “hello” (part of the fun of tax season is that we get to see so many old friends). Sasikarn said “[she] is here already!” I replied, “she is getting $10,000 back. Yes, she is here already”.
I had a bankruptcy client come in, because one of his creditors has not come off of his credit report. I will be tying up that loose end for him. He told me that his old tax preparer did not do a good job, and wanted to know how much I charge. I asked how much he paid last year, because I will discount anybody’s fee by $10. He said $150. I told him that I charge $90 for a return like his. He was so happy. He said he will be back when he gets his W-2.
I did taxes today for a guy who had no health insurance, and got hit with an Affordable Care Act (“ObamaCare”) penalty. I reviewed the various ACA exemptions with him. When I asked him if he filed bankruptcy, he replied “no, but I need too”. I will be doing that for him. One reason that I do not mind preparing taxes for the same price as ordinary tax preparers is that it feeds my law practice as well. This gentleman had been a tax client of Tom’s who came to me when I took over from Tom. I have had a number of people who have come to me to do taxes end up hiring me to be their lawyer. If you add in all of the legal fees that my tax service has generated, then I am making as much as a CPA off of my tax filings, and not a simple tax preparer.
I had several auto accident clients take advantage of the fact that I am now open seven days a week and come in today to see me. Nothing out of the ordinary about these meetings, except that my clients know where to find me, even on the weekends.
I had a new to me client come in to do taxes today. She had been a client of Tom’s, which helped a lot. I did need to access some of her old information to get her depreciation right. Unfortunately for both of us, she had been going to a tax preparer who used to be in my building, instead of to me. She had big problems last year, so she is never going back to him. It was a pleasure to welcome her to our office.
I had a tax client come in today with an interesting problem concerning last years taxes. She was involved in an eviction action. Her lawyer tried to negotiate a “cash for keys” arrangement in which the bank that foreclosed on the house she rented would pay her $3000 to move out. That deal fell through, and she did not receive any money. However, the bank issued her a 1099 saying that they did pay her the $3000. I asked her to speak with her eviction lawyer, before I do anything. It is possible that the lawyer gave the money to her husband and her husband “forgot” (it’s been known to happen). It is also possible that the lawyer has the $3000 and has been “trying” to find her to give it to her. My wife, who was translating, gave the client her business card. I intervened and gave her my business card, and specifically told her to give my card to the lawyer. If the lawyer does have the $3000, there is no way that she is going to deny it, knowing that I will then investigate it. However, if the lawyer did not receive the $3000, then I will contact the bank and demand that either they send me a copy of the cancelled check, or that they issue a new check for $3000. It is good to have a lawyer as your tax preparer. Most tax preparers would just say, “this is not my problem, just pay the tax”.
I prepared taxes today for a client of mine who told me that she got called by someone claiming to be with the IRS and demanding money. I told her that she needs to “Like” my office on Facebook, because I have put up a number of posts about this scam. They say that my clients should simply say “my tax preparer is an attorney. Please call my attorney/tax preparer”. She told me that she did see one of my posts as a friend had “shared” it, and she did tell them to call me. Apparently, they swore at her and hung up. The IRS never calls demanding money.
I had another client come in to do taxes, while my wife was out. She went to Zumba this morning, although next week, I think I am going to have her come in with me Saturday morning. His English was not very good, but I did not mind. His was a basic return for a single guy. I charged him $70.00. He tried to pay me $120. I asked him why he was giving me so much, and he told me it was because I was so nice to him. I appreciated that, but gave him the extra $50 back.
The rest of my day was pretty routine. Afterall, this time of year the returns are not that complicated, and most people are returning clients. They are in and out in 10 minutes (longer if we have time to chit chat). One tax client came in with her teenage son. She had her W-2, but he did not have his. He was a student, but had a summer job. I told him when he comes in to make sure that whoever prepares his return knows that I have already done his mother’s return. He eventually asked why, and I told him that if he doesn’t, he will not get his discount. Then we will charge him the full $70.00 for an individual return.
One thing that I was very happy about today is that every returning client getting the Earned Income Credit brought their proof of residency for the children with them, except one. She asked me for the form that we give our client’s for the landlord to sign. This business of asking for proof of residency has been a great source of aggravation over the past two years. I am glad that my clients have gotten comfortable with it. I am especially happy that they are doing this as a matter of course now, because the document requirement actually protects them. I get these documents and I report to the IRS that I have verified residency. Some tax preparers do not ask for documents, and tell the IRS that they have not verified residency. As I reported in an earlier blog, when a tax preparer reports that no documents have been reviewed, the IRS will eventually challenge the taxpayer’s eligibility for the Earned Income Credit, and demand the money back (plus interest and penalty of course). Obtaining and storing documents is extra work for me, but I do not mind, as if protects my clients.
The new coffee maker that my wife ordered came in today. We have a lot of people come in each day during the tax season. The law office’s coffee maker just wasn’t keeping up. Now things have slowed down. I will be here until 7:00, but I suspect that I will mostly be catching up on paperwork. That is OK too. I have a lot of paperwork to do, which only seems fair. After all, we lawyers invented paperwork.