As we head into tax season, many Bay Area residents turn to the “cheap” and “big box” tax service providers. However, believe it or not, some other people actually try to do their own tax returns. Seriously! How crazy can you get?
At Safe Harbor we are tax professionals in San Francisco, and yet even we can run into tricky things sometimes. We get them sorted out, of course, because that is what we do, but the tax laws are constantly changing and if it can be difficult for us to keep up with them, what chance has the average taxpayer got? Answers on a postcard!
Let’s face it: you’ve got federal taxes, state taxes, local taxes such as property taxes, and then many San Francisco residents have international taxes as well. This is why people who have any sense turn to tax professionals in San Francisco like ourselves. We have to be constantly on our toes in order to make certain that we are bang up to date with every little change so that our clients don’t ever pay a cent more than they should do.
A Hand Drawn Copy of a Picasso
Yet a lot of people actually do pay more than the law states. Doing your own taxes is like us – who are tax experts – trying to manufacture our own mobile phones or produce a hand drawn copy of a Picasso. We wouldn’t have the proverbial cat’s chance in hell of getting it right. And yet some people still blithely go about doing their own tax returns! Is it any wonder that they pay too much?
Apart from any other consideration, as tax professionals in San Francisco, we make certain that you pay the correct amount of tax. That also means that you don’t pay too little. Yes, we know, we’d all like to pay too little – and preferably nothing at all. But that’s not how the system works. If you do your own tax return and pay too little, eventually the IRS is going to spot it, and when they do, they will come gunning for you. Big time. Charging you fines on top of the tax that you should have paid but didn’t.
We look at it this way: when you use us for your tax returns you will have peace of mind that they are correct. You will also not pay a cent too much. Think about it like this: if we do your taxes and charge you, say, $1,000, but save you $1,700, you have just made a $700 profit for doing absolutely nothing!
You know it makes sense!
