I know, I know, it’s tough out there. But on the plus side, tax season is coming! Here are some tax jobs that I’ve seen advertised as of late:
1, Senior Tax Accountant – Palm Beach County
2, Senior Tax Accountant – Philadelphia
3, Tax Accountants – East Norriton, PA
4, Tax Preparer – West Chester, PA
5, International Tax Specialist – Pittsburgh
6, Tax Preparation – Pittsburgh
7, Tax controversies attorney – NYC
8, Tax Attorney for Small Firm – Los Angeles, CA
9, Tax, Trusts & Estates (Paralegal) – NJ
10, Corporate Tax Attorney – Santa Clara, CA
11, Corporate Tax Manager – Boise, ID
12, Employee Benefits Tax Manager – Chicago, IL
13, Senior Tax Analyst – Portland, OR
14, Business Tax Advisory, Diversified Tax Senior – Greensboro, NC
15, Associate Level Tax Attorney, Greenberg Traurig – Denver, CO
16, Tax Analyst, IRS – Cincinnati, OH
(Psst, I can’t vouch for these openings, so please exercise good judgment!)
If you’re looking to hire, send me the details via email and I’ll post the info in my next edition of Tax Jobs.
I am a CPA, but haven’t done taxes in a while. I was thinking of working for H&R Block or Jackson Hewitt to get some experience before doing it on my own. What has everyone heard about either one of them, or has anyone worked for them? What other options would someone like me who wants to do some taxes on the side have?
Thanks!
Ted – not knowing your age or any other circumstances I don’t know if what I am about to suggest is doable or not – I started off just letting folks know that I would like to do their tax return. I did not advertise or anything like that – just word of mouth – and I got a few to do. This many years later I own a fairly good sized company (at least until January 1st when the company will pass to someone else and I will just be an employee). Keep in mind that tax preparation is a recession proof business and as long as our dumb ass leaders keep the current code we will always have work…..each and every single solitary year – and, although I am also a CPA, I don’t get involved in auditing or any of that other nonsense that cost a lot of insurance and can come back to bite you in the butt. We also have other accounting functions such as bookkeeping, payroll, sales taxes and so forth and have recently ventured out into financial consulting as to retirement and the like always using a guaranteed annuity vehicle so that does not come back to haunt us when the markets dissolve as it recently did. We concentrate on the small folks and don’t charge them an arm and a leg – I still have my very first clients (which does not mean I haven’t lost some others over the years)because our fees are reasonable and we treat everyone like they are our only client. I made the mistake several years ago of taking on a major client – which meant I had to give up some small ones to meet the major ones needs – then he left – and I had to go out and get a whole bunch of small ones to make the difference up.
In short, just tell folks what you want to do, do a good job and it will happen from there…..
Skip McQuaid
I’m a prospective new preparer with Block (trying to make a career change, I got a BS in accounting a couple of years ago, following a 20-year career as a technical writer). One of my classmates in business school, who is now at KPMG, did an internship with Block while he was in school. He says they’re a good place to get experience doing a whole bunch of returns, and that people who work with them for a longer period develop enough repeat clients that one can make a living as a seasonal tax preparer and loaf the rest of the year, if one is so inclined.
Right now, I’m about 2/3 of the way through Block’s basic training class (the one entry-level preparers take). I know Block has a so-so reputation (at best) in the accounting profession — but I think that probably has mostly to do with the fact that they’re a big storefront operation, employing thousands of preparers; there are always going to be some horror stories when you’re that big. Staffing is undoubtedly a huge headache. Judging from my classmates in the basic class, well, there are some people I’d probably feel comfortable preparing my return — and there are some I might not feel comfortable with.
The training class is actually pretty good — in business school (I went to Northern Arizona University’s Franke College of Business, which is a good school), they teach you tax theory out the wazoo, but they didn’t spend much time on the nuts and bolts of preparing a return and doing tax planning for individuals, especially low-income people, which is who I’ll be doing. Block’s class is fairly rigorous, and they put you through another 30 hours of training after that. (You wouldn’t need it, being a CPA, but I’ll need as much training as I can get.)
Urb
I worked for H & R Block for 15 years. During that time I did make good money only because I did have a large following of clients from years of service. I no longer work for Block. I am determined to make a go of my own website. The experience I gained from Block was excellent but I only made those dollars because of when I started (15 years ago), when the potential was there to increase and grow. I can not advise that a new preparer will have the same opportunities due to the changes over the past 6 years in the company.
As far as taking clients with you don’t count on it!! Block is very determined about letigation when it comes to there client base and have sued others for leaving and attempting to contact clients. I did 95% of my work for the past 7 years through the website and will not be bother with their non compete clause.
Good luck