I was recently interviewed by CBS 6 News about finding the right tax preparer. The story began with a woman who received a refund anticipation loan after being told she would be getting a refund. Turns out she actually owed taxes, and the preparer needed to file an amendment. Her tax preparer, who didn’t want to be interviewed on camera, said that he did not make a mistake. He explained that she failed to provide two key documents: her retirement and unemployment information.
Given that this tax preparer was not given all of the documentation he needed to correctly file his client’s taxes, it reminded us of the importance of conducting thorough tax preparation interviews. It’s imperative that you have ALL of your client’s documents and information before you prepare their taxes.
Here’s a quick guide to a good tax prep interview. You can read the full blog post that covers conducting a proper tax prep interview. You can watch the interview online here.
