Money Matters
MommyLiberty5013
member
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Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
CPA vs. DIY Programs
If you had a CPA and switched to a DIY program like Turbo Tax, what was your reason for swapping?
Or, if you used a DIY tax program and opted to hire a CPA, what was your reasoning for that?
How do you know that a DIY program is covering all the necessary changes to tax code/law and that you're truly getting the best result possible?
Aside from representing you before the IRS if the time arose, what are some other benefits of using CPAs to do your taxes?
Thanks.
Re: CPA vs. DIY Programs
I used to use a CPA, I switched when I found the free programs available through irs (if you are under a certain age & certain income you can efile for free). My taxes aren't complicated, straight forward w-2, interest, IRA & mortgage. I use the H&R option figuring they will know current laws & their site is pretty easy to use. If you are unsure, try it for free on a DIY site & then go to your CPA & see if you come up with a different number. If it comes up the same, the DIY next year.
Now if I had more complicated things like property income, business income, or inheritance stuff to deal with, I would go to CPA because that would be too complicated for me to do myself.
TTC since June 2012
Thanks. For the past 5 years, DH and I have done a CPA due to DH's flying job, and a small at-home business I have.
But. we're always looking to save money. Pretty much all the pilots DH flies with do their own using things like Turbo Tax and seem very pleased. And, my biz is dwindling down and is hardly worth spending the several hudred each year to have our CPA do it.
I think we will do 2012 with the CPA (we sold and bought a home and in 2012) since we've begun the process and reevaluate for 2013.
The one thing that keeps me truly wondering if maybe we should stick with him are on all the tax prep worksheets we have to fill out and answer for him, he asks very interesting, often detailed questions, which makes me think he might be going deeper (getting better refunds for us and knowing about more deductions) than a generic tax software program can.
He also advises on ways to lower our tax bracket.
Anyway, if anybody has more opinions or perspective, please post! Thanks.
My mom's a CPA and has been doing them for me (and DH) ever since I've been working at age 16.
Every time I think my taxes have gotten too complicated to do by myself I read a little more and realize they aren't. I started a company this year! OMG. Hard taxes...not really. I have investments, retirement, interest income, blah blah. Not hard. Just read the forms.
I like HR Block's online tool combined with actually reading the tax directions booklet (in pdf form). I know my bases are covered because I can read. I must have done OK since I already got my refund.
We use a CPA and always will. he is awesome and always gets us the most deductions we can think of