Quoted in NAPFA Advisor February 2009I was quoted in the February 2009 issue of the NAPFA Advisor in an article titled "Tax Review Tips and Tricks" by Annie McQuilken.
The specific quotes:
"Do you prepare tax returns in addition to financial planning? Why or why not?"
George Papadopoulos of Novi, MI, would not have it any other way. "In my humble opinion, in order to practice comprehensive financial planning well, we need to be in charge of the tax planning and preparation process and not farm it out to other CPAs. Of course, [the advisor needs to have] the skills, .....and operational efficiencies of the firm must be such that both can be done well. Reviewing tax returns and gathering all the necessary information to prepare tax returns help immensely in knowing your clients."
"Do you have any advice for others on working with a client's CPA?"
George Papadopoulos gives the following advice on working with CPAs: "CPAs are different animals. It takes a very long time to win their trust. Try to be helpful and make their job easier. Send year-to-date updates on clients' incomes; CPAs would love to see updates on the stock-related transactions and capital gain/loss balances. If you can list in a nice spreadsheet all the entries on Schedule D so they can just enter it, it would really help them a lot. [Also, it's] fine to emphasize your Fee-Only and fiduciary approach. There may be a problem if this CPA is doing "financial planning"...since they may have their own ideas on how to "maximize" their relationship with your mutual client."
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