Pacun Posted April 18, 2012 Report Share Posted April 18, 2012 Tax season just finished and I already miss the extra cash flow. How about you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILLMAS Posted April 18, 2012 Report Share Posted April 18, 2012 My extra cash went out the door with my 2011 extension and 1st quarter estimated tax payments but I do have a few clients that still owe me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lion EA Posted April 18, 2012 Report Share Posted April 18, 2012 I have enough clients on extension to bring in cash through 15 October. And, I have a couple of business clients that need me weekly or nearly that, so monthly invoices to them and payments from them. I'm trying to spread out my workload and my income throughout the year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crank Posted April 18, 2012 Report Share Posted April 18, 2012 Yes, I do miss it. But I dont miss the head aches. Had a client email me today asking if we deducted several items. The thing is I just went over the return with him last night and addressed the very same items. Either he wasn't paying attention or couldn't comprehend was was being discussed. And someone somewhere employes this individual .... amazing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack from Ohio Posted April 18, 2012 Report Share Posted April 18, 2012 I work at a tax firm as well as have my personal practice. The firm job gives me year round income, even when it goes to 25 hours in June. Once I get my personal client list to 400, I lose the day job. I make a whole lot more per hour at my personal practice! Hence the push to get to 400!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NECPA in NEBRASKA Posted April 18, 2012 Report Share Posted April 18, 2012 I don't know how you could deal with 400 by yourself, Jack. You must be much more dedicated than I am. Since I moved my business home, my husband said that he knows now why my clients stay with me. He asked my how I don't go crazy being their CPA, psychiatrist , marriage counselor and friend. It's very difficult to keep my fact time down with them, which means work until 2 or 3 at night to get caught up. I am so tired today. I wanted to take the day off, but I see that is harder to do with my office here. I have a ton of extensions to prepare and business clients so that keeps some cash flow going. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tax Prep by Deb Posted April 18, 2012 Report Share Posted April 18, 2012 I love the fact that by April 15th I have my entire year's budget set. Anything that comes in now is gravy, and I usually have several who can't find anyone else around after tax season that have multiple years to file. Now I have time to breath, think, eat, sleep, ect..... Today I'm enjoying the quite! Deb! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack from Ohio Posted April 18, 2012 Report Share Posted April 18, 2012 I don't know how you could deal with 400 by yourself, Jack. You must be much more dedicated than I am. Since I moved my business home, my husband said that he knows now why my clients stay with me. He asked my how I don't go crazy being their CPA, psychiatrist , marriage counselor and friend. It's very difficult to keep my fact time down with them, which means work until 2 or 3 at night to get caught up. I am so tired today. I wanted to take the day off, but I see that is harder to do with my office here. I have a ton of extensions to prepare and business clients so that keeps some cash flow going. Expanding my office space to 2 rooms. My executive assistant will be in the second room with her own desk, computer, printer, fax etc. as well as all the file cabinets. This year I did 175 as well as an average of 45 hrs a week at the firm. Majority of my clients have become drop off clients. I am ready for the drive to work to be 60 feet instead of 26 miles one way. By the way... (This is a very closely kept secret....) I have been sleeping with my executive assistant since I started my tax business. I am also doubling her salary too :wub: 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkM Posted April 18, 2012 Report Share Posted April 18, 2012 Jack, that's amazing that you can handle 400 clients yourself. I am a one-man shop completely. Between 3/15 and 4/15 (I didn't do any 1040s before 3/15 because I was doing all corporate returns) I could only knock out 35 returns (and did about 50 extensions), and that was working my ass off. And even though I was able to bill $30K in that month it wasn't worth it. I was exhausted, cranky and barely saw my wife and kids. I am already lining up the pieces for next tax season. I'd much rather lose some of the revenue and hire 1-2 preparers to do the grunt work. Our time is best spent cultivating new business, not inputting data. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pacun Posted April 19, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 19, 2012 I guess you guys do only hard returns. If you prepare 400 returns in about 80 days, your average is about 5 returns in one day. If you are solo, you do need someone to make copies and prepare folders for you. I have a regular job and I only prepare taxes at the end of the day and on weekends. It makes a big difference if your assistant picks up the forms and prepare the folders. The phone and the mail is also handle by your assistant and you have more free time. The problem with assistants is that it is hard to find people you can trust. Now that the IRS is going to test preparers, it will be easier to hire someone without being affraid that that person will take your clients. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack from Ohio Posted April 19, 2012 Report Share Posted April 19, 2012 I have a very trustworthy executive assistant! She handles scheduling, all the banking, making calls for information for me (I'm grooming her to become a preparer or at least a data input person), calls clients when returns are finished and does all the filing. To average 5 returns in a normal 8 hour workday should not be a problem. I have a large number that require an hour or less, and only about 20 or so that take about 2 hours. The problem is the transition from a day job and private practice to only a private practice. Time will be a commodity when my client list gets above 225. This year, about 40% of my clients took their copies digitally on a flash drive. Saves time like you wouldn't believe. I found 2GB Flash Drives for $6 each and told them that if they do not bring it back next year, the cost for the next one will be $10. Each drive can hold about 125 or more returns, so I don't think space will be a problem. My executive assistant is very economical too! I doubled her pay for 2012, and it did not change my bottom line $.01!! (She does get special executive perks!!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NECPA in NEBRASKA Posted April 19, 2012 Report Share Posted April 19, 2012 Jack, Do you have a fairly young clientel? I've had many of my clients for 20-30 years and I don't know that most of them would accept flash drives, but it sounds like a great idea and a time saver for me to try with some of my more techy clients. My executive assistant was helping my brother-in-law and a neighbor redo a bathroom for our son's graduation party for the last three weeks. It was very difficult for me to do everything, but I really wanted the bathroom finished. My biggest problem is getting people to leave and let me work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkM Posted April 19, 2012 Report Share Posted April 19, 2012 I can't imagine doing 5 returns per day every day. I would absolutely lose my mind. I love what I do, but the part I like is meeting with clients, strategizing with them and solving their problems, not preparing returns. In fact, the actual process of preparing returns bores me to pieces. That's why having other people inputting the return data is important. Of course this is my full-time job and if I was doing returns on the side I would look at it differently. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joanmcq Posted April 19, 2012 Report Share Posted April 19, 2012 I did 164 returns and have 77 on extension, plus more coming in (just booked a new client for Monday). Grossed about 27k so far. I know I don't charge enough, but not too much overhead. I've also started sending pdf files through my portal instead of mailing hard copies, although many of my clients prefer the hard copies. And for my RDP clients, I have to mail a paper return, so they get a hard copy. If I could get an assistant for the price of Jack's, I'd do it! Got to call a possible intern... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crank Posted April 20, 2012 Report Share Posted April 20, 2012 I tried getting clients to take digital copies this year (on CD) and only 2 out of almost 100 went for it. My client base is from 18-83 and all but 2 or 3 have computers ... even the 83.yo. but they still want the hard copy in the folder. One problem is that we have a local earned income tax and that cant be efiled .... easily, so I have to prepare at least one of those for each client with a w-2 or sch C. This year I started scanning all client docs and that added a lot to my time per return ... going to be rethinking that for next year. But I like having a copy of all of their doc if I need to refer back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcb39 Posted April 20, 2012 Report Share Posted April 20, 2012 We should all be as lucky as Jack. I just finished doing my Lego box full of bookkeeping for the year. Just what we tell all of our clients not to do. If all goes well, next year I will have an addition to my office and an assistant. Will have an entrance right into the office so no more people coming through the house when hubby is eating dinner or trying to relax. Obviously, hubby will NOT be the new assistant. All told, this was a great year. I don't charge enough either, but am happy with what I have earned. and thankful for what I have learned. Peace and Happiness to all of you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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