Client Services

Consulting Services

Consulting Services

We gauge our worth by the personal and business successes of our clients. We can help your business identify areas negatively affecting profitability and growth and develop solutions that are practical and technically sound. In addition to acting as a sounding board for management, we provide comprehensive, flexible strategies that address the issues affecting your business. The following is just a few of the areas in which we provide consulting services:

• Accounting software selection and implementation
• Type of entity selection
• Business valuations
• Buying/selling a business
• Computer systems
• Financial & retirement decisions
• Estate, trust & gift planning

Tax Services

Tax Return Preparation

Our significant investment in computerized tax preparation and research software enables us to accurately and efficiently prepare returns for various types of entities including individuals, corporations, partnerships & LLCs, trusts, estates, and not-for-profit organizations.

All returns are filed electronically with the IRS and state authorities, and you may receive either a paper copy for your files or a PDF via secure portal... or both!

We have experience in all types of industries and tax situations, including:

• Real estate businesses and professionals
• Medical businesses and professionals
• Legal businesses and professionals
• Technology professionals & businesses
• Restricted stock awards and ESPPs
• Rental real estate (commercial and residential)
• Retail businesses
• Fitness businesses and professionals
• Capital gains and losses and optimization of tax liability through investment income elections

We also have extensive experience in foreign tax issues and expatriate taxation, including the following tax attributes:

• Foreign earned income exclusion
• Foreign tax credit
• Canadian / US dual citizen tax issues
• Forms 5471 and 5472 filings
• Branch profits taxation
• Foreign corporation filing requirements

Whatever your tax situation is, we can help!

Tax return preparation starts in most cases at $1,000 -- cost depends on the complexity of the return, the organization and completeness of the data provided, and the presence or absence of state income tax returns, ancillary filings such as Foreign Bank Account Reports, and other factors. We're happy to discuss your fee expectations with you up front.

Tax Planning

Tax planning is an essential element of the tax preparation process. By making tax planning part of your overall business strategy, you can use our experience and access to the most current new developments in the tax laws to minimize both your current and future tax liabilities.

We cannot stress the importance of this enough. The last thing we like to see during tax season is a huge and unexpected balance due on a client's return; this usually means that the client experienced a significant non-repeating event such as the following:

• Sold high-gain stock and didn't make an estimated tax payment or plan for the taxes owed,
• Received restricted stock and the withholding by the employer (usually at 25%) wasn't enough to cover the additional tax due (usually because the client is in a 32%, 35%, or 37% bracket),
• Received consulting or other business income on the side in addition to salary income and didn't make estimated tax payments or plan for both regular tax and self-employment tax on the business income.

Don't let this happen to you. Even if you can't or don't need to make the payment for the additional taxes until April 15th, at least KNOW what you'll OWE!

We use the best tax planning software on the market (same as that used by national and local firms) and it's able to plan out many years beyond. it's updated constantly as tax laws and rates change, so you're assured of the very latest in laws and numbers.

Give us a call today to have us help you figure your current tax liability!

Payroll Services

As a business grows, it must hire more employees, which can result in increased payroll administration. We can assist you in implementing the controls necessary to ensure a reliable, efficient, and effective payroll system. Our firm can also help you select a payroll system and prepare all necessary payroll tax returns in a timely manner.

Many clients use one of the QuickBooks payroll solutions. These offerings are reasonable, more or less cost-effective, and they're easy to use... plus they post the payroll entries into your QuickBooks file nicely.

That said, there are other payroll solutions out there; if you're not sure whether you should upgrade to another solution, give Caitlin a call and we'll talk it through.

We also prepare payroll tax returns for a number of clients. We're annoying diligent about reminding you to send us your payroll information so that we can prepare timely returns! We'll also explain to you the payroll tax deposit requirements. A lot of business owners are confused by these, and of course, they're not all that clear. Give us a call if you'd like help interpreting payroll tax filing and reporting requirements.

IRS Representation

During our years of experience dealing with many taxing authorities, we have achieved a level of competence that can ensure our clients they are being properly represented before the various federal and state tax agencies.

IRS examinations are decreasing in frequency, but that hardly matters when YOUR return is selected for examination. Examinations can be triggered by amended returns, excessively large deductions of certain types, large or repeated losses taken, and a multitude of other reasons. While the 2016 audit rate of .7% for individuals was the lowest since 2005 (that's 1 out of every 104 filed returns), risk areas do exist.

Another area we see frequently is this: folks ignore IRS notices until they become levies or notices of deficiency. Please don't let this happen to you! If you receive a notice you don't understand, JUST ASK. We'll tell you what it's about and give you advice as to how to proceed.

Note that the IRS won't speak to CPAs about your returns unless you have signed Form 2848, Power of Attorney, giving the IRS permission to speak with the CPA about your tax account. Each spouse must complete and sign this form if the return that was filed was a joint return.

Estate & Trust Tax Preparation

Effective estate and gift planning facilitates the orderly transfer of assets to your beneficiaries, provides security for your surviving spouse, and can reduce or eliminate the tax due on the transfer of your business and other assets. For business owners, providing for business continuity and succession of ownership is essential. We can guide you through the complex process of getting your financial affairs in order.

Estate tax return preparation for a decedent may be required or, if not required, may be advisable in order to elect the Deceased Spouse's Unused Exemption now available under federal tax law. If you're not sure whether a federal or Washington state estate tax return is required, contact one of our professionals to help you figure it out.

We also prepare quite a number of trust returns. Whether the trust arose from a former living trust or was established for the special needs of a beneficiary, we're able to help you with both accounting for the trust and income tax return preparation.

We also prepare grantor letters for intentionally defective grantor trusts, which are special transfers in trust often used in estate planning for individuals who have experienced a business liquidation event. These IDGT trusts file "trust returns" but issue "grantor letters" to identify the amounts of pass-through income and deductions attributed to the grantor (the person who set up the trust). If you or a family member had an attorney establish IDGTs and you need annual tax reporting, give us a call; we can help.

International Taxation

Our experience with the taxation of U.S residents working abroad and foreign citizens working in the U.S. has provided us with an extensive base of knowledge in the area of international taxation.

We have a number of expatriates and clients with foreign investments. We can guide you regarding filing of the FBAR-Foreign Bank Account Report (due April 15th with available extension to October 15th). You may also need to file Form 8938 to report foreign assets on your tax return.

WA DOR and Sales Tax Services

Many of our clients are responsible for collecting and submitting sales taxes in many different vicinities. We can assist your company in the compilation of information and preparation of sales tax returns in an efficient and timely manner.

In addition, we prepare and submit Washington State Department of Revenue (and various city) Combined Excise Tax Returns for many clients. Your business may be required to file monthly, quarterly, or annually. We can help you figure out what's required for your business and show you how to file these fairly easy returns if you want to do it yourself.

Accounting Services

Cash Flow & Budgeting Analysis

A business can be profitable and still run into trouble due to cash flow issues. We can forecast and evaluate your company's financial condition, estimate financing requirements, and track cash-flow sources and uses.

Other Services

QuickBooks or Bookkeeping Advisor

Caitlin is a proficient in QuickBooks and can assist you with setup, training, and reporting. She can also help you clean up your QuickBooks or bookkeeping files.

Many people contact us requesting help with QuickBooks file clean-up. Over time, business QuickBooks files can become bloated, unreconciled to outside bank and credit card statements, and full of garbage accounts and postings.

We specialize in QuickBooks clean-up. We've done so many QuickBooks cleanings that there isn't much we haven't seen! If you've had it with the state of your QuickBooks file and need someone to "just fix it," contact Caitlin. We're fast, reliable, and we "get it done." We just need an accountant's copy of your file and your latest tax return (with depreciation schedules if applicable).  If bank and credit card accounts require reconciliation, we'll need those documents or downloads as well.

If you already have a CPA firm preparing your business returns but just need help with getting the file into a "clean state" before turning it over to your CPA, we'd be happy to help. Our rates are very reasonable, and our turn-around time is fast once you provide us with the info we need.