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This perception is what keeps a lot of tax preparation companies in business. I know people who could fill out their taxes in 10 minutes, who would instead pay

by qzw 5y ago

This perception is what keeps a lot of tax preparation companies in business. I know people who could fill out their taxes in 10 minutes, who would instead pay hundreds of dollars every year to have it done by one of those “tax stores.” If US high schools would spend one day to walk kids through filling out a tax return, they’d probably put H&R Block out of business. Which is also why it’s won’t ever happen.

Moto7451 5y ago
Both you and the parent are right. I actually did get basic filing instructions in high school and managed to handle my own taxes easily for the first fourteen of my working years. Eventually my taxes fell into the realm of forms that even CPAs can make mistakes on or are unfamiliar with. I am really conservative with this stuff and really make sure to pay what I owe. I, or my CPA, still make mistakes that result in the State or Federal government sending me small “you paid us too much” checks every so often. That’s been true when I’ve done it myself, used TurboTax, or used CPAs. I have a friend with similarly complicated taxes and she just got her first “you owe us $XX” letter for this TY2020 and another $XX check in her favor for TY2018 and TY2019 making the whole thing a wash. If they can tell you that you paid the wrong amount a couple months after filing it feels like for those on a W2 and without unreported 1099 income they could just send a statement with an invoice if you owe and a check if you’re owed. The status quo for those individuals really is as you say. There’s enough complexity baked in that people throw their hands up in the air and just pay the $100 for basic tax prep that should be unnecessary in the first place and is not much more difficult than balancing a checking book.
- qzw 5y ago
  Yes, I have also gotten those. Pretty nice to get a check that you weren’t expecting, from the IRS no less. In my experience a lot of CPAs are very dependent on tax prep software anyway. It might be more advanced “professional”tax software, but still has limitations. A good CPA will be more aware of those limitations ahead of time, but mistakes are almost inevitable over the course of a few years.
triceratops 5y ago
> If US high schools would spend one day to walk kids through filling out a tax return, they’d probably put H&R Block out of business. Lmao no. Look at the number of people who eat out every day instead of cooking. People go to H&R Block because filing taxes is tedious, boring and can land you in jail (or at least, serious legal hot water) if done wrong.

by qzw 5y ago

Moto7451 5y ago

Both you and the parent are right. I actually did get basic filing instructions in high school and managed to handle my own taxes easily for the first fourteen of my working years. Eventually my taxes fell into the realm of forms that even CPAs can make mistakes on or are unfamiliar with. I am really conservative with this stuff and really make sure to pay what I owe. I, or my CPA, still make mistakes that result in the State or Federal government sending me small “you paid us too much” checks every so often. That’s been true when I’ve done it myself, used TurboTax, or used CPAs. I have a friend with similarly complicated taxes and she just got her first “you owe us $XX” letter for this TY2020 and another $XX check in her favor for TY2018 and TY2019 making the whole thing a wash. If they can tell you that you paid the wrong amount a couple months after filing it feels like for those on a W2 and without unreported 1099 income they could just send a statement with an invoice if you owe and a check if you’re owed. The status quo for those individuals really is as you say. There’s enough complexity baked in that people throw their hands up in the air and just pay the $100 for basic tax prep that should be unnecessary in the first place and is not much more difficult than balancing a checking book.

qzw 5y ago
Yes, I have also gotten those. Pretty nice to get a check that you weren’t expecting, from the IRS no less. In my experience a lot of CPAs are very dependent on tax prep software anyway. It might be more advanced “professional”tax software, but still has limitations. A good CPA will be more aware of those limitations ahead of time, but mistakes are almost inevitable over the course of a few years.

triceratops 5y ago

> If US high schools would spend one day to walk kids through filling out a tax return, they’d probably put H&R Block out of business. Lmao no. Look at the number of people who eat out every day instead of cooking. People go to H&R Block because filing taxes is tedious, boring and can land you in jail (or at least, serious legal hot water) if done wrong.