Another busy tax season is in the books. Excluding taxpayers that filed extensions, the 2022 tax year is complete, with the passage of the filing deadline on April 18. 

At LBMC, it was another successful filing season, with our professionals helping hundreds of businesses and individuals across Tennessee, Kentucky, Indiana, and beyond navigate all kinds of different tax issues. 

But tax strategy doesn’t start and end in the spring. An effective tax strategy demands a year-round approach. If you’re not already starting to plan your tax strategy for 2023, the time to do so is now, and our team is here to help. 

The weeks after the filing deadline pass also offer an opportunity for reflection. After a well-earned break, that’s exactly what we do at LBMC. How could we have served our clients better? What processes worked well this year? What could we tweak to create an even better client experience next time around?

It’s also an opportune time for businesses and individuals to ask themselves similar questions. How was your experience with your CPA this tax season? What could be done to make it better next year? Are you maximizing your savings?

In this overview, we’ll break down some of the common barriers to a smooth tax filing process and explain how our process at LBMC is designed to eliminate these challenges. We’ll explore what a modern, streamlined approach to tax strategy looks like and share how you can start working with LBMC today to build a more efficient tax strategy than ever. 

Typical Challenges with a CPA During Tax Filing Season

Tax filing is important – perhaps one of the most important tasks you entrust to your CPA. If there are errors, mistakes, or an ill-informed strategy, you could be on the hook for thousands of dollars in back taxes, interest, and penalties. Get it right, however, and you could have tens of thousands of dollars in your pocket that you otherwise would have handed over to the government. 

At LBMC, we’re well aware of how important an effective tax strategy is to generating profit and building lasting wealth. Many new clients come to us after experiencing challenges with other tax preparation firms. Some of the most common include:

Lack of Responsiveness

When you ask your CPA a question about your taxes, there’s nothing worse than being left waiting for an answer for days or even weeks on end. Many smaller CPA firms have capacity issues around tax season and struggle to provide the personalized, high-quality service that a more well-established firm is equipped to provide. 

At LBMC, we pride ourselves on always taking a responsive approach to client service, providing elevated client experiences that result in better outcomes. 

Low/No Tech Approach

In today’s digital era, you should be able to file your taxes without ever setting foot in your CPA’s office. The modern accounting firm is paper-free, and you shouldn’t have to submit physical copies of any documents. 

Don’t get us wrong – if you want to come in to see us, we’ll welcome you in with open arms and a friendly smile. But for most clients, a digital-first approach is the preferred option, making for a streamlined document review, signing, and filing process. 

Limited Domain Expertise

Recent years have seen tax laws grow in complexity – both at a federal and state level. The passage of major legislation, from the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act to the more recent Inflation Reduction Act, has dramatically changed the tax landscape. 

Today, there are all kinds of new tax incentives, credits, and deductions in place for businesses and individuals to take advantage of. If your tax preparer isn’t fully up-to-date on these, you could well be leaving money on the table – a position nobody wants to be in. 

Beyond Tax Season: Building a Proactive Tax Strategy

As we noted earlier, it’s important to think about your taxes year-round – not just during filing season. By the time your CPA starts preparing your tax returns, it’s often too late to make any major changes. The actions you take today will shape your tax filing strategy in Spring 2024, which is why it’s important to take a holistic approach that considers all the options available to you. 

At LBMC, we work with clients (both businesses and individuals) on a year-round basis to design and implement tax strategies that minimize overall tax liability. Each strategy is bespoke and is tailored to the taxpayer’s individual circumstances. Our experts consider everything from the entity structure of your business to conducting cost segregation studies on your real estate portfolio – all in service of building the best possible tax strategy. 

Our mission is to support our clients in building and sustaining meaningful wealth. Tax is a key component of that: after all, it’s not what you make that matters – it’s what you keep. That’s why we operate on the cutting edge of tax strategy and invest significant time and resources in keeping up-to-date with the latest developments in tax legislation.

Start Building Your 2023 Tax Strategy Today with LBMC

If you experienced any of the common challenges outlined above, or lack confidence in your long-term tax strategy, the team at LBMC is here to help. 

Our experienced tax advisors have worked with organizations in all kinds of industries, from startups in emerging markets to well-established construction companies. Our tax team also works with hundreds of individual taxpayers and specializes in supporting entrepreneurs and business owners. 

We take a proactive, year-round approach to tax planning to build holistic strategies centered around the financial needs of our clients. Our tax team works closely with LBMC wealth advisors to build long-term financial strategies that leverage tax opportunities to compound wealth more effectively. 

Interested in learning more about working with the LBMC tax team? Contact an advisor today.