Industry Niches:

Rental Real Estate Investors/Landlords, Small Business Owners, Military Taxpayers, Amended Returns, Multi-State Returns

Tax Form/Tax Election Niches:

Home Office Deduction:

95% of the time always do the full breakdown or the “regular method” option. If your tax preparer has done the “simplified method” that isn’t a tax preparer or he/she is in a race to get to the next person. Tell them to step away from the tax return and bring your work here. Walking taxpayers through correctly allocating expenses and setting up depreciation along with recent court cases that support/go against certain strategy is something I’ve done countless times and is one of my favorite parts of running through tax returns. It doesn’t take that much time at all and really helps my clients bottom line. There is this strange idea I’ve heard from clients that heard it from other tax attorneys/CPAs/EAs that these are heavily audited or are audit triggers. Talk to me and I’ll happily walk you through why that train of thought “advice” is part of the reason why people want to replace humans with AI and is leaving a lot of money on the table from a higher tax bill. I’m saying that last part really, really, nicely. In-person I’ll be even further passionate with less professional vocabulary.

Injured/Innocent Spousal Election:

Often times folks will file separately for a variety of valid reasons. No one is choosing to do this because they want to “shake things up”. Unfortunately, often as much do taxpayers get hit with having to pay more tax due to filing separately. Many are not aware of being able to file special elections within a joint tax return that separate the tax liability/tax refunds to each spouse while taking the advantages of filing a joint return.

Form 3115 §481(a) Adjustments:

Just because you can’t amend the return doesn’t mean its too late or nothing that can be done. This form helps catch-up and report missed income, expenses, depreciation, among other line items outside of the-two to-three year amended window for businesses. Its a labor of love and the rules, codes, and other parts change single every year. However, when possible and if a client is eligible for it, this can radically change a clients tax outcomes by asserting previous years line items and bringing up previously missed items into a current tax year filing. This form, when filed correctly and accurate, has changed the lives of my clients.

Legislative Niches:

2024 SECURE 2.0 Act Retirement Account Legislation:

Legislation regarding the greatly expanded definitions, rules, and choices for contributions, distributions, retroactive start dates of these accounts that are much more generous than people think and the application of it in the tax code.

Bonus Depreciation/Section 179 Depreciation:

Recent changes have made it so that you can claim very aggressive treatment of bonus depreciation and/or section 179 for your business and claim that as a deduction. I see taxpayers claim it all the time. However, certain states may not conform at all with this, or in Minnesota’s case require you to add back what you took on the federal return causing you to owe more which may end up working against you.

About Myself:

Graduating with my B.S. in Accounting, I had worked in downtown Minneapolis for a couple of years. I had a passion for tax-I’m just kidding I did it for the job security. I almost gave up on it too, I didn’t receive much of any mentorship, guidance, training, or ever felt at home in my career. It wasn’t until I resigned from my last position, sobered up from alcohol, and started doing tax preparation for the people in my circles like the local synagogue, my national guard units, and other groups close to me that I really started to fall in love with this job. After obtaining my Enrolled Agent IRS license, I decided to create this firm. Since then, I’ve been motivated to continue to help individuals and businesses solve their problems so they can get back to their own passions.

Real Estate Landlord/Investor Specific:

Are you a landlord/investor with rental/business property? As someone who has owned rental property for almost five years, I take it especially seriously when it comes to learning everything there is to know on a “Schedule E” because it applies directly to my life every tax year. I also appreciate working with most small business taxpayer landlords or investors. Almost all of the ones I work with are happy to provide me documentation and do the homework needed to take aggressive positions to help them lower their tax burden. Trying to run a business while dealing the banality of local government and large regulations that change every year, contractors relapsing while on site after showing up 10 hours late, and dealing with horror-story tenants looking through each others trash to make sure the other recycled while having fingers wagged at you by politicians telling their voter base that you are the reason for everyone’s life suffering makes for quite the chess game. Then at the conclusion of all of that, coming to my office and having to deal with me and squaring away accounting isn’t very “passive income”. Wearing the tax accountant hat and the landlord/investor hat actually worked out really well for me. I like to think clients seeing that I understand the head-space their in, the vocab/terminology, the background surrounding real estate, and my genuine interest in both fields helps alleviate their stress.

For some strange reason, as of late I am getting a swath of clients who come to me from tax attorneys, CPAs, and other tax accountants with unbelievably bad rental real estate or other business entity tax work that is no fault of the taxpayer. Previous tax preparers never stopping to take a look at the purchase agreement, appraisal, or county records for anything. Flat land values that are $100,000+ off or just not recorded, depreciation taken that should be an expense under legislation that is a literal decade old, among others. No advice was provided, or any actionable information given. Whatever you give them is what they will use and if you forgot something they weren’t going to ask anyway. I find a lot of meaning and purpose in the opposite. Telling folks who call in or consult with me that “everything’s going to be okay”, giving real tax advice, providing multiple options for a person to choose with my opinion on what I would do, and what the next steps are and a path to success. Educating my clients turns them into more informed and attentive clients, which lets me explore more advanced strategy with them. In fact, many times I learn and gain perspectives from my clients as much as I hope they do from me. The tax code is big enough, we should share what we know with our community.

That’s just part of the reason why I love my job.