You're putting words in my mouth, and making some assumptions that aren't valid. I didn't say any of that. Agreed that an attorney or a well-reputed tax accountant is a good idea, if it looks like they will be on the hook for this massive sum. But, a no-cost option for initial comparison is a wise minimum before proceeding, and there definitely are red flags about the current preparer, at least from what OP has shared.

Have a nice night.

I make a couple times their combined income and have several non-work income sources, and various things which require me to itemize deductions. My taxes are "complex" compared to most people's. I have NEVER needed to pay someone to do my taxes. And I've had a similar insurance situation to what OP describes.

Taxes aren't rocket science, any anyone required to report anything is also required to send you a w2 or 1099, so you legally WILL receive everything you need to do it. Even if you do it on paper, by hand, it's comically easy, with step-by-step, very explicit instructions for every single item. You don't even have to do any math beyond simple addition and subtraction. Everything else is pre-calculated to way beyond their income in tables the IRS publishes for free, and the instructions tell you exactly what forms/tables to look at.

Don't be scared of tax preparation.

And you seem to be assuming this service is somehow sub-par. It's not. It's been around at least 20 years and is vetted by the IRS. And it doesn't play tricks with you like H&R Block does, to try to get you to pay for things. Simple, no-nonsense, and thorough tax preparation.

Why would you not just do it to at least compare? Come on...

They don't. Combined they make 75k. That's not much, especially combined. People (myself included) who make multiple times that don't pay accountants to do our taxes, because it's just not necessary. And that's with various investments, itemized deductions, and non-job sources of income that generate 1099s.

H&R Block and its ilk have done a fantastic job of convincing everyone that taxes are hard or complex or that you're going to get in trouble if you make one little mistake. Even if you get audited and are found to owe something you didn't pay, you're just given the chance to pay up (potentially with interest) and everything is fine. Then you file an amended return, pay the difference, and go on with your life.

The suggestion is because they're quite possibly getting bad advice and, at minimum, need a second opinion. The situation sounds shady for at least the reason of this person preparing but not filing for them, which suggests either they're unqualified to do so or potentially trying to scam them, even if just for billable hours.

And it's free. So literally no skin off their noses. If the result jives with what the accountant said, they have confirmation. If the result doesn't match up at least in the same ballpark, they can either accept it or get a new accountant or tax law attorney.

Stop using them. You don't earn enough to be paying someone to do your taxes, and there are some yellow/red flags from what you've shared.

Go to www.freetaxusa.com (yes it is legit and IRS-endorsed), spend about 20 minutes putting in the info it asks for (W2s and any 1099s youve gotten, basically), and have your lowest cost or best refund calculated and your federal return filed for free and your state return ready to file for like $8.

And why can't any of those other things be any value other than 0? Why does the number specifically have to be 10000? This is really weird and arbitrary.

So someone can photoshop you and make your life better?

This is clearly a weird photoshop job, unless that new tree is magically super firm and has teeny tiny little leaves.

Shadows are all over the place, too.

Ohhhhh I get it now.

LEO never stood for law enforcement officer.

It's law eschewing oaf.

I literally had a cop yell at me "don't tell me the law, I AM the law" during a traffic stop when he was dead wrong about something he wanted to ticket me for. He of course did anyway and the court dropped that citation like a hot potato, because I was, in fact, correct about a traffic law. Something a state HP guy should be at least passingly familiar with, you'd think.

I'm on team "the view is." 😬

FIGHT!

Clearly you never saw Final Destination.

Yeah. Just drop the s and the view is much better.

That depends on what the meaning of the words is is. If ‘is’ means is and never has been, that is not—that is one thing.

No, I did not have a stroke

But better record this concert! Totally gonna watch this fuzzy, shaky, overdriven-audio video again later!

"Data"

In folders named "Totally just TPS reports. Don't open."

Was this sarcasm? Because, if not, a puddle has things done to it. It can't do anything by itself except exist.