CLIENT SERVICE OPPORTUNITIES

When Board Service Gets Tricky

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Businesspeople having a meeting over coffee sitting together at a table discussing a document, young man and two middle-aged women present

Keep the totality of the relationships in mind.

By Ed Mendlowitz
202 Questions and Answers: Managing an Accounting Practice

Question: I am on the board of directors and am treasurer of a not-for-profit organization. One of the board members is an officer of a commercial bank where we have our accounts.

MORE: Yes, You Have to Share Work Papers | Hiring Experience Vs. Training Inexperience | A Friendly Chat or a Billable Discussion? | When Selling a Firm to Staffers Is Tricky | Courting a Client? Don’t Give Too Much Away for Free | Nine Tips for a Healthier Tax Season | Fifteen Strategies for First-Time Supervisors | Measure Knowledge Gaps (Then Close Them) | Should You Offer Financial Services? | Ready to Retire? Selling Your Practice Is No Strategy | 20 Things You Need for a Business Valuation
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The organization wants to get a one-year CD with some excess funds they have. It turns out that the interest rate is less than half of what we could get from a local savings bank. I suggested that we open the CD in the savings bank and the bank officer got very agitated and threatened to cut off the bank’s support of the organization if we did not keep the funds in his bank.
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Four Ways to Handle Federal Tax Liens

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There’s more than one route to satisfying the IRS Collection Division.

By Eric L. Green

IRS tax liens can have a profound impact on an individual’s situation, affecting their ability to get loans, sell property or engage in business activities. As such, it is crucial for individuals to understand how IRS tax liens work and the options available for getting rid of them.

MORE: The IRS Is Coming! Get Your Clients into Compliance | Tax Chat: Eric Green Reveals The Tax Rep Guide to Tax Season
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In this article we discuss approaches and factors to consider when dealing with IRS tax liens, offering insights and advice to help taxpayers navigate this process.

Understanding IRS Tax Liens

Before discussing ways to remove tax liens, it is important to get a basic understanding of what they entail. A tax lien represents a right against a taxpayer’s assets, and is used by the IRS to secure its interest in the taxpayer’s assets – both those owned at the time and those later acquired.
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Ten Tax Prep Questions That People Forget to Ask

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Drawing of unhappy face and arrow pointing from it to happy face

Your clients will appreciate the attention to detail.

By Ed Mendlowitz
Tax Season Opportunity Guide

Many professionals fail to systematically ask clients some basic and important questions. Here’s my top 10 list of key questions to ask this year. What would you add?

MORE ON TAX SEASON: Try This Clean Slate Exercise | Offer Your Tax Clients Other Services | Can Your Tax Reviewers Answer These 10 Questions? | The Top 12 Mistakes in Tax Return Preparation | Six Types of Person: Which Are You? | Answer These Two Questions First | Help Your Tax Clients, Help Yourself | What’s Your Value to Your Tax Clients? | Are You Excited About Tax Season?
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1. Foreign bank accounts: Make certain you ask every client if they have a foreign account and if they do, report the income and file the proper forms. The penalties are too great if it is wrong.

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Brandon Hall: Firms Try to Make Too Much on Tax Prep

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Try for a 10-15% margin.

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The Disruptors
With Liz Farr

Brandon Hall says that the reason accountants have such long and grueling busy seasons is that “firms try to make way too much money at tax prep.” Firms don’t have enough capacity to deliver on services, so everyone – including the partners – ends up working a ton of hours.

MORE PODCASTS and VIDEOS: James Graham: Drop the Billable Hour and You’ll Bill More | Karen Reyburn: Fix Your Marketing and Fix Your Business | Giles Pearson: Fix the Staffing Crisis by Swapping Experience for Education | Jina Etienne: Practice Fearless Inclusion | Bill Penczak: Stop Forcing Smart People to Do Stupid Work | Sandra Wiley: Staffing Problem? Check Your Culture | Scott Scarano: First, Grow People. Then Firm Growth Can Follow | Jody Padar: Build a Practice that Works for You, Not Vice-Versa |

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Because partner pay isn’t included in payroll, the margin on tax prep is likely much worse than the 30-35% that shows up on the income statement. Hall’s target for the 2024 filing season is just 10-15% margin on tax prep.

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How to Start Providing Family Office Services

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Couple meeting with investment advisor.

Including a sample engagement letter.

By Ed Mendlowitz
202 Questions and Answers: Managing an Accounting Practice

Question: Some of my clients are getting older and are becoming unable to handle their own financial affairs and I have been asked if I could assist them. What is involved and how do I charge for it?

MORE: Higher Fees to Start: Ten Ways to Make Your Tax Season Better | Nine Tips for a Healthier Tax Season | Fifteen Strategies for First-Time Supervisors | Measure Knowledge Gaps (Then Close Them) | Should You Offer Financial Services? | Ready to Retire? Selling Your Practice Is No Strategy | 20 Things You Need for a Business Valuation
GoProCPA.comExclusively for PRO Members. Log in here or upgrade to PRO today.

Response: Many large firms provide “family office” services. This is a complete one-stop financial service that helps clients manage their money, pay their bills, collect their dividends and interest, and make sure insurance isn’t cancelled, mortgage, car lease or condo fee payments aren’t skipped, and tax payments paid on time.

Following is a sample engagement letter that I use with clients needing such services. Also, this letter provides a detailed description of what the service involves.
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