JohnH

Excellent point, and right on target.

This one's easy: "No need to apologize, and no need to postpone your trip either. As soon as I get your info I'll be preparing your extension. We can deal with this in May or June - no problem."

Maybe your client is a big fan of old music. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zW81_RZXZJI&feature=related

When in doubt, file a return. If for no other reason than to start the SOL clock running. And whether or not you find a cite which requires you to file or excuses filing, you can be sure the clients will receive a CP2000 in a couple of years if the gross sales amount exceeds the filing threshhold. Why wait until then, especially because you'll be answering the question "But why did you tell me I didntt have to file?" until you're blue in the face. Clients with that attitude are also more reluctant to pay, by the way. Some of them want to cling to the notion that you are somehow responsible for the notice even though you didn't charge them for the initial advice not to file.

I noticed that the program required a restart after this morning's update. Looks like the version is now 2011.3.6

I dont like the Idea of a May 15 filing date, especially since a simple step can already make the due date Oct 15.

It can be done, but it requires the aid of a short piece of string and a fish hook. (plus a visit to the Emergency Room)

Extensions begin in 9 days in my office. Everyone has been forewarned - no exceptions. A couple of folks whose brokers said they wouldnt getbtheir statement until March 15 are whining, but I just tell them there's nothing I can do about it. (that's a nice way of saying I'm not responsible for your brokers' laziness) Although I did tell one client that the gain/loss statement the broker sent them with a sticky note saying this would " help the tax guy get started " just doesn't cut it. He's just being creative in trying to pass the buck...

You could always print off what I wrote and show it to her - blame it on me. :)

I can understand the anxiety over possibly losing a friend, but let me make a suggestion. I've had to take this route a couple of times in the past few years. Tell her this is your understanding of the tax law, but you don't know everything and if she wants to take it to someone else it won't hurt your feelings. Her friendship is more important to you that having an unhappy client who has doubts about your advice. She may take it to someone who will give her the answer she wants to hear. If that happens and she comes back to see if you will reconsider, stand your ground. If she decides to have the other person prepare the return, then anything that happens is strictly between her and the other preparer. You;re off the hook professionally. She may consider what you've said and decide she trusts your judgement to do what's best for her even when the news isn't good. Regardless of the outcome, you've separated the business relationship from the friendship. Many of our clients are also personal friends, but there is a dividing line between business and personal. You've encountered a situation where this has to be acknowledged. What if she refuses to appreciate the integirty of your offer? Then I suggest that she's just using a facade of friendship to try and bully you into doing what she wants (regardless of the potential risk to you). That isn't a friend - that's a user.

I already have a couple of reservations about the client, based entirely on what has been posted about his disposition.

Doug - you could exclude it from her commissions retroactively. Just tell her it took a while to sort things out because Congress made last-minute changes at year end and you're allowed until Mar 15 to get everyhting right. Hey, that explanation has worked for every stock broker in the country. I think I'm going to implement a "toilet paper" fee for anyone who asks to use the restroom while getting their tax return done. And maybe a "soap fee" and a "hot air" fee for washing & drying their hands. Oh wait, I can't get away with the "hot air" fee - I'm already charging them for tax advice so that would be unethical double-billing.

Wish I hadn't made that last post - now I can't get the darn song out of my mind.

It looks like it may be an add-on that passes directly through tot the company without the preparer getting paid commission on it. Probably its intent is to function as an offset for compliance costs and/or potential fines/penalties. Or it could be the tax preparation equivalent of the song by Thenardier (the innkeeper) in Les MIserables: "Charge 'em for the lice, Extra for the mice, Two percent for looking in the mirror twice. Here a little slice, There a little cut, Three percent for sleeping with the window shut. When it comes to fixing prices There are many tricks he knows Does just what he pleases, All in bits and pieces... "

I think the $1,500 for the S-corp and both shareholders returns was too low. One of my biggest mistakes many years ago was charging too little for S-corp returns. I've long since corrected that error and my minimum is now $1.200 plus $100 per shareholder. That's just for preparation of the return and associated schedules - if there's write-up work involved, 941's, etc, then that's all extra. Preparation of personal returns is also extra - you can have two shareholders who have vastly different personal tax situations and it's best no to confuse that with the corporation. It's a separate entity - the only commonality is the pass-through of corporate income and other items. (I suppose a case could even be made for unequal distributions if the shareholders returns are vastly different but their fees are included in the S-corp fee, but that's probably a stretch. However, I'd hate to see an auditor holding up my invoice as evidence that the election had been terminated). There are a few situations where I may discount it a bit if the work is really, really simple, but even the heaviest discount won't drop below $900 base price for the 1120S, and that's a rarity. S-corp returns are deceptive in their simplicity. Sometimes it really is just a matter of dropping a few numbers onto the appropriate lines intially, but as Randall just pointed out, there are many other things to consider prior to, during, and after the preparation of the return. Not only do you have to consider these things, but you have to explain them to the client (over and over in most cases), and you have to track several of them as long as the corp exists. So I'm saying you should stay on the high side. If you want to discount down from the base fee for special reasons, then do that on the backside - after all the work is done. But keep that base fee in their faces so they won't be shocked if next year or the year after you have to say "no discount this year, and here is why...." This is your first year with them after initially refusing - what you do at this point will be the base line for everything you charge from here on out. Be sure it's in your favor.

Guess you could say all their savings went up in smoke... Or they got burned by the tax man... Or their plans are in ashes... Anybody got a match?

He probably has nothing to worry about. I'm sure that when he shows his tax bill to all his buddies who bought the cigarettes form him, they will gladly chip in the tax money to help him round up the $10K.

I'd rethink the 1099-C idea if I were in your situaton. You are not a financial institution.

I like the Sandler version: "Some Will, Some Won't., So What? NEXT Please

I agree with Joan. You already have one ADL covered - it's just a matter of addressing at least one more in the care plan and getting a health care professional to sign onto it. I'd start with the doctor who sees patients at the facility, if there is one. If you present the doctor with a simple written statement that addresses the question directly, chances are he/she will sign it. I this isn't an option, then ask the Director of Nursing to sign it. The healthcare professionals in the institution have a vested interest in helping you out here, provided the need is legitimate and they are not being asked to sign something that is untrue. The opinions of the healthcare professionals carry much weight in determining the deductibility of the expenses. Also, most people who need assistance with one ADL are in need of assistance with other ADL's. For example, how many people are incapable of bathing themselves but are perfectly capable of clothing themselves? I'm not going to defend the daughter for kicking him out, but this may be in his best interests in the long run. She may simply be an ungrateful jerk who needs her attitude adjusted. But on the other hand, she is so burdened by his presence that there's a temptation to mistreat (or neglect) him for example, then he needs to be in a facility where he will receive proper care and she needs the mental/emotional relief.. It might result in a slighly better relationship between him and the daughter as well. If you want to read an interesting story about this whole elder care dilemma, check out this month's issue of The Atlantic. The title of the article is "Daddy Issues" by Sandra Loh. http://www.theatlant...dy-issues/8890/ Be prepared to laugh at times and cry at others, sometimes in the same sentence.

I'm not sure why your returns are out of alphabetical order in the Rollover Manager, but you can re-sort them by simply clicking on the "Return Name" title at the top of the column. This is useful for sorting them in alpha order or clicking it twice to sort them in reverse alpha order (such as when you are looking for someone whose name begins with S,T,U,V,W,X,Y,Z for example). I toggle back and forth with this field regularly. You can also use this feature to sort by other column headings, such as unique cities or to group returns by state, preparer, etc.

Maybe it means "Probably". As in, "This is probably your number, unless we make an arbitraty decision to change it."

That's what I do as well. I shut the program down at night and reopen every morning, then do manual updates once or twice during the day throughout tax season, especially before complex returns. So far, it brings over the county name just fine, but it omits the county code. I assume it's simply a matter of linking two tables together and they just haven't gotten back around to it yet.

Well, "grace" and "license" don't belong in the same sentence either, but that's a whole other paragraph (maybe even a book or two). :)

So far, every NC Form D-400 I've rolled over has the county code missing. The name of the county rolls over, but not the code. I only roll over as I'm getting ready to prepare the return in order to give ATX time to correct any problems, but I've seen this error every time so far, and I update at least once a day. Are any other NC preparers running into this consistent error?