All Forum Posts by: Carlos Guzman

@Brandon Hall I see you mentioned a lot in these posts, with sterling recommendations. As a client, I totally agree that you are actually selling piece of mind. I stay awake at night thinking if everything is alright with my tax situation, as well if I have not left any "money on the table.

I think you are on to something by offering this kind of service. Millennials might not have the same amount of money in the bank as the previous generations, but they are eager to be educated and make the right decisions. A fixed fee schedule makes your services more approachable and could lead to even more clients.

@Natalie Kolodij You hit a good point about Millennials. I realize there are certain characteristics to working with millennials that should be considered by professionals. Specially after the crash and subsequent recession, I am wary of unnecessary spending and want to be as informed as possible about what is going on. Not sure if this is common, but CPA's would do well to cater to the new generations tastes. 

@Suzanne Griffiths I will definitely check it out, thank you. 

@Chris Walters, I can only speak to my limited experience and hope the pro's can chime in. I was referred to my current CPA by my management company. The CPA did not specialize in RE, but was supposed to be the "best". It did not turn out that way in my experience. Moving forward I will seek out a local CPA with knowledge of the field and enough experience to be comfortable advising on these matters. 

Thank you for all the advice. I had been debating switching CPA's for some time as something did not feel right. 

Coming from a fighting background, I always pictured my CPA as part of my "corner". I expected more out of the relationship and perhaps I need to switch to a smaller firm.

I am always respectful of any professionals time and strive to be as prepared as possible to ensure that they can execute their job without any hiccups. 

I am blown away by your great feedback and advice I cannot thank you all enough. 

Wow, I thought was exaggerating. 

I just got a bill for a "template" that was prepared for me without my authorization. The "template" consists of the merging of two spreadsheets (Income and Expenses) I had previously sent to them with a sum feature added (which I had already done on my end to a subsequent revision).  The cost for this work is $150.

This is the final nail in the coffin for me and demonstrates the kind of firm they are running.

Hello Everyone,

Piggybacking on another post about CPA recs, I wanted to share my experience with my current CPA and get feedback 

My CPA does not disclose up front what costs would be associated with meetings, advice and document preparation. I have asked them to please disclose approximate costs upfront, but they have been elusive on the subject, stating: "All costs are associated with the project". Coming from construction I am used to vendors being upfront with costs every step of the way.

I expected this high price outfit to advise me on strategy and how to properly manage my rental income to maximize tax efficiency. So far I have not heard of any actionable advice (Other than you can expense your mileage or save receipts from lunch meetings).

Am I asking too much of my CPA ?

Is it standard procedure to receive a bill at the end of the month for "templates" and "phone meetings" I did not know where to be billed ?

Please, feel free to share your stories or any recommendations you may have.

Thank You.

@ZacharyPaul,

Could you give more detail into the course you took ? Pro's and Con's ?

I looked at the school you posted, and as much as in class schooling is tempting and superior to online (In my opinion), my transportation options are limited and I am going to try to get into the game as soon as I can. 

Igor,

I am in the same boat, I don't think any employer or client will care where I studied for my test. However, I believe it will come down to support and help with scheduling the actual exam. I will wait to hear from the community to see if anyone has any experience with either of these courses. I'll keep you posted.

- C

Hello All !

I just moved to Philadelphia from California and want to get started in my RE career.

After some research I have whittled down my options for the online courses to two:

https://www.realestateexpress.com/prelicense/pa/pr...

and

https://portal.recampus.com/re/templere/store/port...

They both have their pros and cons for me: One (real estate express) is cheaper and offers a test prep book, the other (Temple) is a recognized institution in the area and has a physical location for testing. Both are online only.

I am reaching out to the Pennsylvania community to see if anyone has any experience with either.

Any information is greatly appreciated.

Thank You all in advance.

- C