Accountants for real estate and tax strategy

[Nicholas A.]

I’ve been investing in real estate for about five years now and currently own multiple properties, mostly single-family homes. At this point, I’m trying to tighten up my finances and make sure I’m handling the tax side of things as strategically as possible.

For those of you who invest in real estate, do you typically use a general accountant, or do you work with someone who specifically specializes in real estate taxation?

Right now, I use a local accountant who charges a fair price and has a couple of offices in the area, but he doesn’t specialize in real estate. I want to make sure I’m capturing the right deductions, maximizing write-offs, and structuring things properly as my portfolio grows.

Is there a certain type of CPA or tax professional I should be looking for, or anything specific I should consider before switching?

[Ryan Flanagan]

I would definitely seek out a real estate specific CPA... and BP has plenty of them. A good real estate specific tax accountant should be talking to you about REPS, cost segregation, accelerated depreciation, active/passive losses... I could go on and on. There is a very specialized body of knowledge in this field that can make a huge difference in your tax liability.