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Re-activateIn a past blog I explained why I'm using a tax preparer this year instead of doing it myself. I did it for all the right reasons. I wanted accuracy. I wanted experience and expertise. I wanted someone else to do the financial heavy lifting. The main negative, I thought, was the extra money I might spend by not doing it myself.
But I discovered another negative: I have to wait.
I gave my stuff to Mr. S., my accountant, nine days ago, and I have to restrain myself from calling him every day to get the results. I know I owe, so I'm in no hurry to pay. But I still want to know the damages. I want to compare his calculations with my own. I want to wrap up this tedious annual chore.
Some clever marketers have figured out that the desire for instant gratification extends to tax preparation. That's undoubtedly why both TurboTax and TaxCut, the two leading do-it-yourself tax-software packages, have refund counters on every screen. This year TurboTax added a counter that adds up your deductions, too. Within a few keystrokes of starting your tax return, those suckers start reporting what you'll get back from the IRS, or what you'll owe. Watching that refund number mount is quite satisfying. It's entertainment, tax-prep-style.
If you're reading this, Mr. S., please call me. Of course I'm paying you to do a thorough job, but hurry it up already, will you?
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