Here’s what you’re looking for: CPA Trendlines Research

BUSY SEASON MANAGEMENT

Survey: Tax Season Launches with a Whimper

Tax practitioners say they’re ready for anything. And they may get it.

CPA Trendlines readers speak out on Busy Season 2019. Clockwise from top left: Eckelkamp, Alexander, Lewis, Plum, Williams.

Today’s Bonus Question:
The TCJA Impact on Your Practice and Your Clients
Join the Survey: Get the Results.

By Rick Telberg
CPA Trendlines Research

Despite it all. Despite a brand new tax law with last-minute final regs. Despite a government shutdown that crippled the IRS – and the threat of another one in a couple weeks. Despite confused, price-sensitive clients, and the usual software glitches.

More Busy Season: 16 Big Questions for Tax Season  |  SURVEY: Tax Accountants Alarmed by TCJA & Shutdown  |  Shutdown: What to Tell Tax Clients During “The Lapse”   |  Beware the Leeches and Consultants   |  Charitable Giving under TCJA  |  Why Padding Tax Deductions Is a Risky Proposition  |  Handling the Delay in 199A Regs |  Survey: Clients Rush for TCJA Answers |  Yes, Home Equity Loans May Still Be Deductible |  Portability: Sharing the Estate Tax Exemption |  9 Secrets to Getting IRS Penalties Removed  |  The Cure for Commoditization  |

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Despite it all, tax accountants are going into Busy Season 2019 brimming with confidence – if doing at least as well as the last year can be considered confident, according to pre-season results from the 2019 Busy Season Barometer. READ MORE →

FEATURED

2019: M&A Boom Gone Bust

Putney
Putney

This is no time to sell for local firms. Instead, it’s time to re-tool.

By Rick Telberg
The Rosenberg National MAP Survey

It has been said that when you buy a nice, old, colonial house, you’re buying somebody else’s problem.

MORE FROM THE MAP SURVEY: 2019: More Focused Training | 2019: Expect More Alliances | 2019 Trends: Client Service Changes | 2019: Shifts in Hiring & Office Space | 2019: Firms Grapple with Change | Staff Policies Improve, But Not Mentoring
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The same can be said for buying a CPA firm with no succession plan.

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FEATURED

16 Big Questions for Tax Season

How's busy season so far? Join the survey. Get the results.
How’s your busy season measure up? Join the survey: Get the metrics.

What’s your busy season forecast? Join the survey: Get the results.

By Rick Telberg
CPA Trendlines

The government shutdown could not have come at a worse moment for the Internal Revenue Service.

The tax season will bring its annual avalanche of returns. The IRS was already working with fewer agents than it had a few years ago, and now it’s even more shorthanded.

The new Tax Cuts and Jobs Act tax code is poorly understood by agents who need to be trained and taxpayers and tax preparers who need to be informed. Even after the shutdown ends, the backlog will be overwhelming.

The biggest problem may be the uncertainties. We can think of at least 16: READ MORE →

CHARTS & GRAPHS

SURVEY: Tax Accountants Alarmed by TCJA & Shutdown

Join the survey. Get the results.

Busy Season Barometer launches for the 16th year.

By CPA Trendlines Research

Tax practitioners of all stripes across are expressing fear, uncertainty, and doubt in the run-up to Busy Season 2019, according to preliminary results to the annual CPA Trendlines Busy Season Barometer.

The tracking poll, now in its 16th year, takes a daily measure of the challenges, opportunities and winning strategies of the new tax season.

“With the unknown effect of the Federal government shutdown on the IRS and some of the new provisions of the Tax Cut and Job Act,” says one tax accountant, “we are anticipating more issues this year than in prior years. My guess is we will be extending a lot more business and personal income tax returns.”

 

Join the survey. Get the results.

“Many new clients, including monthly clients, and TCJA is adding revenue. However I remain very concerned about workflow given the new complications,” says another.

“We’re really beefing up on the new tax law, so we’re slightly ahead,” says a third. “But the government shutdown will definitely have a drag in the busy season.”

FEATURED

2019: How Partner Greed Kills Firms

Partners must take a hit to personal incomes to re-invest in their firms. Or face obsolescence and slow death.

By Rick Telberg
The Rosenberg National MAP Study 

So far, profitability is way up. At the large firms (those with at least $20-million in annual billings), income per partner averages $635,000. The highest earners are pocketing about $1.2 million. Even the lowest-paid partners average of $282,000. But how long can that go on?

MORE FROM THE MAP SURVEY: 2019: More Focused Training | 2019: Expect More Alliances | 2019 Trends: Client Service Changes | 2019: Shifts in Hiring & Office Space | 2019: Firms Grapple with Change | Staff Policies Improve, But Not Mentoring
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The always insightful and provocative Allan Koltin, of Koltin Consulting, warns: Partners must invest in something besides themselves – if they want their firms to survive.
READ MORE →