‘Tis the season!
It’s that time of year again—tax season is in full swing! The calendar is packed with back-to-back meetings with clients, taxpayers, and professionals, all navigating their way to the upcoming tax deadline.
From gathering forms to discussing deductions to figuring out what the heck 1099 actually meant and what ultimately goes on the tax return…there’s a lot to manage. Thankfully, we do this all the time, and I have an incredible team behind me. Your clients do this once a year, and that laundry list can feel overwhelming to them without you, so be proactive and intentional with your offers to do just that.
You don’t have to be the tax professional yourself, just make sure you’re making life easier where you can and making yourself available when needed. As tacky as it sounds, we like the thrill of “game time” and getting to see the impact on so many people all at once. It’s when we’re operating at our best, and it makes us even more grateful for the advisors who are proactive (trust me, it’s IMMEDIATELY obvious when I talk to a taxpayer who doesn’t have a tax-savvy advisor).
The RTS team will be going strong through the April 15th deadline and then will take some well-deserved rest and recovery days…but let’s not forget that the tax deadline doesn’t mean we (or you) get to ignore taxes for a year. In fact, soon after the deadline is prime time for motivated financial advisors to use tax planning as a value add.
Clients will have just filed their tax returns, which means they have them readily accessible, and you should be asking for a copy from every single client you have! Of course, that means you need a framework for what you’re going to do with that tax return, and that’s a spot we’re happy to help. You can join us on May 7th for a CE-eligible webinar all about Post-Deadline Action Items for Financial Advisors. As always, this will be action-focused; we measure success by what you can walk away from the session and put into practice.
Happy Tax Planning!
Steven Jarvis, CPA
P.S. Not a shameless plug because I don’t share my address, but for anyone building COI/CPA relationships now is the time of year to send consumable gift baskets and comically large bottles of aspirin. Something to brighten their day and make you memorable.
P.P.S If you don’t want to wait until May 7th, you can check out our most recent CE-eligible webinar on-demand to learn how your financial planning hits your client’s tax returns OR download our 37-point checklist so you have a process for reviewing tax returns as they come in.
