April 2001

Hooray for the Local CPA

So you work for the state CPA society,” said the local CPA, eyebrows raised. “And you let a national, non-CPA chain file your taxes last year?”

I smiled. Granted, I could see the irony in that decision. But as copyeditor for the New York State Society of CPAs I had read virtually every argument on either side of the national vs. local firm debate. I had based my past decision to stick with a nationally recognized tax preparer on the informed assumption that the difference in service would be negligible.

Yet here I was, sitting in the local CPA’s office—solely because he sent me a welcome-to-the-neighborhood letter not long after my husband and I became homeowners. Introductions completed, the CPA began to talk me through our tax documents. Right away I began to understand his opening remark. I could tell—by the confidence in his voice and by the questions he asked—that the depth of the CPA’s knowledge about the tax code far surpassed that of the national firm’s employees.

The CPA explained in a matter of seconds why the cost-basis of the stock we sold to purchase our home was important—the folks at the nationally recognized tax preparer hadn’t even asked for the cost-basis when we sold stock a couple of years ago. The CPA explained that we could save several hundred dollars a year by informing our employer’s payroll office that we no longer live in New York City—reflecting his knowledge of current court decisions and their application. The CPA exhibited a clear understanding of the self-employment taxes owed on our freelance income—the folks at the nationally recognized tax preparer were hesitant at best when they asked whether we were managing our freelance jobs wisely.

Clearly, the CPA knew his business. He won me over as a client, however, when his integrity became apparent. I asked whether he would provide personal financial planning advice after tax season. He was quick to explain that he would advise but did not sell; we would have to go elsewhere to purchase investment products. I am no expert on the issue of growing a practice through providing investment products; I only know what I have read in recent years. I can say, however, that instinctively I gave the local CPA my trust—and respect—for electing not to do so.

It was the entire experience—being welcomed to the neighborhood and invited to the office, scheduling a weekend appointment and being greeted warmly by the receptionist rather than taking a number and waiting in an overheated storefront, feeling relaxed rather than rushed, and leaving with the confidence that my taxes would be filed accurately—that left me convinced that there is a difference between the national and local firm. All arguments aside, that difference is personal.

And that difference transforms uneasy, last-minute filers into confident, loyal clients.