Q. What services does HMS offer?
We are a full-service boutique accounting firm serving clients throughout the U.S. and internationally. In addition to traditional tax and accounting services for individuals and businesses, we specialize in international tax; sports & entertainment concierge services, fiduciary accounting for trusts & estates, and non-profit accounting.
Q. What are your fees?
Like all CPA firms, our “product” is our time and our knowledge. Our fees vary based upon the complexity of the service to be performed and the individual performing the work. Of course, the more work we perform or the more complex the issue, the greater the price. Please ask us for more pricing information when scheduling your initial consultation.
Q. Is the initial consultation free?
No, we charge for the time, information, and advice we provide dur- ing all of our consultations. As stated above, our “product” is our time and our knowledge.
Q. Will I always work with a CPA?
Not necessarily. It’s not in your best interest for a CPA to do work that can competently be done by a junior staff member. By working as a team – matching the right talent with the individual needs of our clients – we keep our clients’ costs down and allow our CPA’s to focus on the higher level issues. Be assured, however, that your CPA will oversee all of the work done on your behalf. This is a people business, and we’re in it for the long haul. We take great pride in our reputation for building long-term relationships based on mutual trust and respect.
Q. Will I be charged for phone calls, emails and responses to IRS or state notices?
Yes. Since our ”product” is time and knowledge, we bill for all activity undertaken on your behalf or at your request. The fact that we are not communicating with you face-to-face, doesn’t diminish the value of the service we are providing.
Q. Do you accept credit cards?
Yes. In addition to personal and business checks, we accept Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express.
Q. What information do you need in order to prepare my return?
We provide our new clients with a tax organizer, which we ask them to complete and return to us along with a copy of last year’s return and any source documents we may need. After an initial review of this material, we may request additional information. Please be pa- tient – sometimes a round of questions seems to have a domino ef- fect. We may have to ask for additional information more than once, depending on the information we receive from you at any given time along the way.
Q. How long does it take to receive my prepared return?
We work on a first come – first serve basis. The sooner you provide us with the information we need to prepare your return, the faster we are able to deliver your completed return to you. It is very important that you respond in a timely manner to any requests for additional information – especially during the last month before the filing dead- line when our workload increases dramatically.
Q. Do you charge for copies of my returns?
We always provide our clients with copies of all returns we prepare for them. Since banks or other financial institutions often request a copy of a return for certain business transactions, we encourage our clients to keep these copies readily accessible. Should you need an additional copy of a return from us, we do charge a nominal adminis- trative fee and per copy charge.
