BUSY SEASON MANAGEMENT

Survey: Busy Season Goes Sour

February confidence melts under the harsh realities of March.

February’s 36% positive ratings slide to only 30% in March, as negative ratings climb from 32% in February to 49% in March, even as the number expecting the same results as last year declined from 32% to 21% from one month to the next.

By CPA Trendlines Research

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Remember those heady, sunny, optimistic days of January? Despite the government shutdown, CPAs and tax practitioners—more than a third of them, anyway—foresaw a productive and profitable busy season. They saw a swelling clientele and revenues to follow suit.

MORE on BUSY SEASON: Tax Refunds Up 1.7%|   Lessons Learned: How the Federal Shutdown Hit Busy Season 2019 | Lessons Learned: How the Federal Shutdown Hit Busy Season 2019 | Refunds Rebound, Up 1.3% from Last Year | Tax Refund Fury Roils Busy Season | Tax Pro eFiling Drops 12.5% after Shutdown

But then, apparently, something happened. The tides turned. The season soured. Suddenly, as February turns to March, the responses to the CPA Trendlines Busy Season Barometer readings are tipping into pessimism. Join the survey. Get the results.