Where to Find Tax Help
Where to Find Tax Help
Once upon a time, doing your taxes was a job for professionals only, like brain surgery or nuclear science. Nowadays software is available that allows you to file your taxes yourself, giving all sorts of tax help and tips. In this article, we will weigh the pros and cons of getting tax help from software or from a tax professional.
Getting Tax Help on Your PC
The first commercially available tax software on the market was TurboTax from Chipsoft (later bought out by Intuit, makers of the best selling accounting software QuickBooks). TurboTax remains one of the big three tax preparation software packages, along with H & R Block’s Tax Cut package and 2nd Story Software’s Tax Act application. All three of these software packages have their pros and cons. Tax Act is by far the cheapest of the three, with even their Ultimate package allowing you to file state and federal income taxes for just $16.95. Turbo Tax is more expensive, but also easier to use, with the same intuitiveness that makes QuickBooks so perennially popular. Tax Cut’s unique selling point is the H & R Block brand. Its price includes a single session with an H & R Block tax professional, for face to face advice.
Getting Tax Help From a Tax Professional
If you don’t want to do your taxes yourself, there is always the option of going to a tax accountant. Major tax preparation franchises include the aforementioned H & R Block, Jackson Hewitt and Liberty Tax Service, the latter being famous for its practice of hiring people to stand in front of their stores dressed as the Statue of Liberty, waving at passing traffic. There are also a host of independent businesses specializing in tax preparation and tax help. These tax professionals will help you sort through your receipts and prepare your tax return, and can be experts in spotting hidden deductions that you might miss if you do your taxes yourself.
So Which Is Better?
It’s really a matter of personal preference. If, like your humble reviewer, you are of the mindset that if you want a job done properly, you have to do it yourself, then buy the software. Going to a tax professional involves gathering up a stack of documents and hoping your accountant can make sense of them. Accountants also charge a hefty fee for their services, so you could find any refund you get from them IRS disappearing into their bank account, not yours.
On the other hand, not everybody has the financial acumen necessary to prepare their own taxes. If the prospect of wading through screen after screen of information sounds intimidating, then by all means hire someone else to do it for you.
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