Why The Importance of a Tax Professional is Underrated

For years, more and more people have been led to believe that they are qualified to do their own taxes and that hiring a specialized tax professional is needless expense. This shift in mindset has created the illusion that tax professionals no longer offer a valuable service. However, the opposite is true – today’s tax professionals are extremely underrated and the services they provide are needed more now than ever by both individuals and businesses.

The single biggest reason that tax professionals are underrated comes down to money. When a person does their own taxes, they often miss out on many available deductions that could make a substantial difference in the bottom line amount of money they receive. A tax professional will have in-depth understanding of the complex tax codes on a local, state, and federal level. Using this knowledge, they will be able to pinpoint areas where extra deductions can be claimed, delivering more money to a person’s pocket. In this manner, the difference created in a standard return could far outweigh the cost of the services.

Time is also a consideration when deciding to use a tax professional and is another reason why they are underrated. In today’s modern world, time is at a premium and many people simply don’t have the long hours to dedicate to doing their own personal and business taxes. Therefore, using a professional frees up large amounts of time that can be used in the way that the person chooses. For a business owner, the cost of being unavailable due to working on taxes could far exceed the minimal cost of using a professional for this task.

One of the lesser mentioned arguments when talking about tax professionals is their ability to deal directly with the IRS on behalf of their clients. This service alone is worth its weight in gold, allowing a person to get on with their life instead of worrying about an audit or receiving difficult phone calls from the IRS. For a person that has a complex return or has red flags that could trigger an audit, using a tax professional should be a given. A professional with years of experience will know how to work with the IRS to come to an agreement that is satisfactory for both parties and can defend the legitimacy of a return much better than an individual that has little experience in this area.

Ultimately, using a tax professional is a very worthwhile investment, both from a financial and convenience perspective. Their services take all of the hard work out of dealing with taxes and can serve as an intermediary between a person and the IRS. All of this is often done at incredibly low prices compared to the time it would take for an individual or business that chooses to deal with all their tax concerns without external help. The added benefit of having representation in the case of an audit means that a person can be sure that their tax needs will be handled in a correct and timely manner.

Have a tax question? Ask one of our tax professionals.