Bracing self for billing rate

[shootingstar]

Hmm..rather interesting trying to find a properly qualified person to do some future tax planning for retirement.

All kinds of different fees and service pkg. And trying to read between the lines:...."we have access to our tax acountants, etc."  My thought here:  I might as well go straight to a tax accountant.So rejected the firms who handle heavily corporate tax planning for small and large biz. I decided (for now) to avoid the firms that don't have a qualified accountant on staff. I'm sure they do fantastic financial plans for clients, particularily for clients who have dug themselves into major debt. 

So have free consult with tax accountant (CPA, CA) with a mid-sized firm next wk. Would have preferred a much smaller firm and hope fees would be abit lower. This firm leases sizable office space in already.

I told the receptionist, I preferred someone with a lower billing rate. I said I don't own /operate a business, no foreign property and don't have children. 

So the guy.....yes, he is "younger" but probably still fine with over 10 yrs. of experience and good for my needs.  Tt's just the fee which I have no clue at this time until he hears what I need. 

I have a problem of maybe knowing some industry billing practices:  I worked for a global major accounting and tax firm at the national CAnadian office in Toronto. I was in tax law research services. Tax planning partners billed shockingly high fees almost 25 yrs ago...which I knew some of it was to cover operational costs, other staff salaries and their own profit. Their work was primarily corporate tax with a couple high net-worth clients for personal tax.  These would be multi-millionaires.

[ChrisL]

My SIL is a CPA tax accountant and he just got recruited to do side jobs through another firm for personal finance consultations.  

He’s 28 YO, think you would have hired him??? 

[shootingstar]

47 minutes ago, ChrisL said:

My SIL is a CPA tax accountant and he just got recruited to do side jobs through another firm for personal finance consultations.  

He’s 28 YO, think you would have hired him??? 

Let's see ....I think this young guy assigned to me, is approx. around my oldest nephew's age or abit younger. Early 30's.

According to his client work profile on website..his area of concentration is personal tax planning. In the tax accounting world, it's considered not as high profile/sexy as dealing with big national corporate firms for their (more complex) tax planning needs.

 I think he's definitely career oriented, because he became partner fast which means higher billing / considered 1 of the rainmakers...and he looks ALOT younger than the older horses...in my /your age group.   There are photos of all the firm's partners and managers. Yea, I'm horribly judgemental as a paying client, when seeing skin texture, greying hair...

We'll see...I'm quite open to smart younger generation with several yrs. of experience under their belt.  Yea, maybe he might slough off my portfolio to a more junior person...but as long as he supervises them. I am aware generally speaking that's how junior professionals are mentored in those firms.

 

[shootingstar]

I just want to comment --re age and professional expertise: 

In my work group in present job, there a few very smart same-trained/degreed professionals who I do trust and respect their work. These are folks graduated from university or college 7 yrs. ago or so.  I see their knowledge and skill, not a whole lot different than mine.  I don't engage/try not to engage in one-upmanship and other idiotic games on younger generation of professionals.  It does not reflect well on self in terms of being respected by others on the job.  

Maybe the difference is only because I've worked in several different industries and different governments...whereas they haven't...yet.  So I might abit more initially jaded/skeptical because of experiencing broad trends in workplace politics, restructuring services, etc.  

[ChrisL]

I have always been wary of people who have said I have done this job for 20/30/40 years.   Have you done it well for all those years? Have you grown your skill sets & taken on new projects?  Or have you done the same crappy job & plodded along all those years?

I passed on several “retreads” with years of experience & promoted an internal candidate who I know his work ethic but had no security experience. I then sent him to training on our systems and the kid is money. He’s been promoted & recognized within his firm, got a huge raise & learned new skills.  I’m sure I’ll lose him at some point but I think we got him for 5-10 years unlike many of the retreads who bounce from one opportunity to another. 

[shootingstar]

23 minutes ago, ChrisL said:

I have always been wary of people who have said I have done this job for 20/30/40 years.   Have you done it well for all those years? Have you grown your skill sets & taken on new projects?  Or have you done the same crappy job & plodded along all those years?

I quite agree. This is why I'm so glad to have worked in several industry areas, etc.  It's too easy to be in same role/same organization/its culture too long and do stuff that ultimately is at the same pace/generally same spirit of delivering services because one doesn't want to or lacks the authority to make significant business changes.

I see this already with 1 employee in our group who has dragged out 2 critical projects far too long. She's smart, creative in thinking but she's never had a job where she's been directly held accountable for a major operating budget, she's never done operational work which can be a serious blinders in implementing changes.  She has over 25 years of experience in ....same job in same dept.  --meaning in our group.  Just 3 days ago, our newish boss in a diplomatically way, told us all no one won't be supervising/ she will be demoted.  She was there also to hear of her demotion to us.

Our newish boss (who is in approx. mid-30's) is probably fed up how much valuable time and staff cost this employee has wasted.  Previous boss (who retired) gave her freer rein to run some critical projects. 

[Ralphie ★]

17 minutes ago, ChrisL said:

I have always been wary of people who have said I have done this job for 20/30/40 years.   Have you done it well for all those years? Have you grown your skill sets & taken on new projects?  Or have you done the same crappy job & plodded along all those years?

I passed on several “retreads” with years of experience & promoted an internal candidate who I know his work ethic but had no security experience. I then sent him to training on our systems and the kid is money. He’s been promoted & recognized within his firm, got a huge raise & learned new skills.  I’m sure I’ll lose him at some point but I think we got him for 5-10 years unlike many of the retreads who bounce from one opportunity to another. 

The young people in my group are all very very good.  Of course so are the older ones.  I am quite happy with my current boss who does very well at getting the best oot of people.  It is nice to finish up my working life with the best boss I have ever had.  I was quite miserable when working for a clueless boss before.

[shootingstar]

2 hours ago, Philander Seabury said:

Of course so are the older ones.  I am quite happy with my current boss who does very well at getting the best oot of people.  

For sure, the grey-haired experienced tax accountants in this firm, are probably very good ..they're just probably more expensive per hr. for me! I suspect my general request was relegated to this younger sharp guy.

[BR46]

Wo46 and I just spent a little over $200 for a hour and a half with a CPA doing our taxes and figuring out other money things. 

[shootingstar]

27 minutes ago, BR46 said:

Wo46 and I just spent a little over $200 for a hour and a half with a CPA doing our taxes and figuring out other money things. 

I need the tax accountant to do some financial modelling for different scenarios.  It's not for personal tax filing (though if his fee includes that..for next yr. Not this yr....) I have this feeling my guy's fees will be higher. Anyway,....if it's just this one time for the next decade..

I've done everything I possibly could...simple scenarios using TurboTax, withdrawal modelling by using free online calculators offered by Canadian federal tax authority and also a different calculator for simple modelling at another Canadian govn't regulatory site for securities law. 

I should tell this guy in advance, what I've tried so far, so that he will leverage more custom (mathematical) expertise on his side.

It's a real headache right now in the midst of global pandemic, safe fixed instruments where interest rates are zero or even negative sometimes and a stock market that has gone bubble insane and more emotional way faster because of youngsters and airheads treating the stocks and online retail trading, like bubblegum. Blow 'n pop, at whim.

[JerrySTL ★]

My son is a CPA and avoids doing other people's taxes like the plague. So I use TurboTax.

[shootingstar]

13 minutes ago, JerrySTL said:

My son is a CPA and avoids doing other people's taxes like the plague. So I use TurboTax.

He avoids because ....?

[JerrySTL ★]

2 minutes ago, shootingstar said:

He avoids because ....?

He hates doing taxes for other people. People seem to forget important paperwork, like 1099 payments, and he gets the blame. He's head of the finance department for what is the second best school district in Missouri so he doesn't have to do taxes.

[BR46]

Wo46 and I were also looking at what to do with our money for the best tax options. With IRAs and Roth IRAs and other stocks that we have what's going to be the best move for the future. 

[shootingstar]

43 minutes ago, BR46 said:

Wo46 and I were also looking at what to do with our money for the best tax options. With IRAs and Roth IRAs and other stocks that we have what's going to be the best move for the future. 

Even if there are smart ways of deaccumulating savings without being overtaxed unknowingly, there is still the problem of how to invest wisely long-term with some strange things going on right now in the markets. Govn't bonds are just too low for interest rates at this time.  However I'm not interested in company specific recommendations for investments from this guy. 

It's not surprising at least in Canada, because according to our major national banks, many Canadians are saving way more money because covid has frozen their travel plans, less car driving, less fashion get togethers for weddings, etc. But a more frickin' real reason why people are sitting on top of cash, is because what else can they do if they want a "safe" haven?