Posted Sunday, October 10, 2021
Sales pitch alert! WCG CPAs & Advisors specializes in small businesses which have a small number of owners, and often just a one-person show. Did you know that 95% of all S Corps have only one shareholder, and 99% of all S Corps have three or fewer shareholders?
Common S Corp candidates and current clients for WCG are consultants, attorneys, financial advisors, insurance agents, physicians, chiropractors, doctors, surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurse anesthetists (CRNAs), real estate agents, contractors, photographers (the profitable ones), online retailers, FBA retailers and good ol’ fashion widget makers, among several others. We also have several medical groups and financial advisor teams operating multi-tiered entity structures.
The tax savings of an S corporation is not in dispute. But what does it cost to have tax preparation, payroll, tax planning and consultation done? Because small businesses are a core competency for us, we have created Business Advisory Services packages that includes the following-
| A la Carte* | Vail | Telluride | Aspen | |
2023 Tax Planning and Preparation |
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| Streamlined Tax Planning, Tax Projection Worksheets | $350 to $500 | |||
| Annual Tax Reduction, Shifting and Deferral Analysis | $350 to $500 | |||
| Small Business Tax Deductions Optimization | Included | |||
| Section 199A QBI Deduction Tax and Salary Optimization | $300 | |||
| Estimated Income Taxes (via increased payroll withholdings) | Included | |||
| Business Entity Tax Return (Form 1065, 1120, 1120S) | $1,500 starting | |||
| Individual Tax Return (Form 1040, joint filing), One Owner | $800 starting | |||
| Expat / Foreign Income Calcs (Form 2555, FBAR, Form 8938) | $300 to $500 | Add-On | Add-On | Add-On |
| Tax Resolution, Audit Defense | Varies | As Req'd | As Req'd | As Req'd |
| Financial Planning, Calculations, Discussions | $900 to $2,500 | Add-On | Add-On | |
| Situational Tax Law Research (up to 3 hours annually) | $750 to $1,000 | |||
Payroll and Accounting Services
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| Reasonable Shareholder Salary Calculation (RCReports) | $500 | |||
| Monthly Shareholder Payroll Processing (includes spouse, kids extra) | $1,200 | |||
| Employee Payroll Processing (bi-weekly, direct deposit) | Varies | Add-On | Add-On | Add-On |
| Annual Payroll Processing (W-2s, other filings, up to ten 1099s) | Included | |||
| Accounting Services (bookkeeping + analysis... see below) | Varies | Add-On | Add-On | Add-On |
| Quarterly QuickBooks Consulting (QuickStart Launch) | $250, $750 | Add-On | ||
Business Advisory Services |
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| Consulting | ||||
| Business Consultation, Periodic Business Reviews (PBR) | $250 to $1,000 | Annually | Routine | Routine |
| Complimentary Quick Chats (CQC) | $250 to $500 | Routine | Routine | Routine |
| CPA Concierge Services | Varies | Add-On | Add-On | |
| Interfacing with Lenders, Attorneys, Financial Planners | $750 | Routine | Routine | |
| Financial Analysis | ||||
| Fractional Controller (monitoring 3rd party bookkeeping) | Varies | Add-On | Add-On | Routine |
| Quarterly Financial Statements Analysis, Comparisons | $1,200 | |||
| Annual Cash Flow Management and Analysis | $1,500 to $2,500 | |||
| Annual Budgeting, Forecasting, Goal Setting | $750 to $1,000 | |||
| Annual First Research Reports, Industry-Focused Consulting | $350 to $600 | |||
| Annual National and Metro Economic Reports | $150 | |||
| KPI Analysis, Benchmarking, Hot Sheets, Trend Analysis | $500 to $1,500 | |||
| Strategy and Maintenance | ||||
| C-Level Financial Advice, Strategic Planning (Fractional CFO) | Varies | |||
| Succession Planning, Ownership Changes Consultation | $750 to $1,000 | Routine | ||
| Annual Business Valuation | $2,500 to $3,000 | |||
| Annual Corporate Governance, Resolutions, Meetings | $150 + filing fee | |||
| Annual Fee | $4,320 | $7,560 | Custom | |
| Monthly Fee | $360 | $630 | Custom | |
| (prorated based on onboarding date) | ||||
Custom! Unlike the modern day new car packages where you have to spend $8,000 for the moonroof, our Business Advisory Service plans can be customized specifically for you. The array above is simply a starting point. If you need more or less from us, let’s chat about it!
Tax Patrol Services
We also have Tax Patrol! This is a wonderful tax service for those who don’t need all the business advisory bells and whistles above, but from time to time want some love from an experienced tax consultant and business advisor. Have a quick tax question? Need to know the depreciation rules as you buy that new car? Wondering what your April tax bill is going to be in August? Tax Patrol is like ski patrol… you might not use it, but you sleep better knowing you have it.
| A la Carte* | Keystone | Copper | Breck | |
| Individual Tax Return Prep (Form 1040, joint filing) | $800 starting | |||
| Business Entity Tax Return Prep (Form 1065, 1120, 1120S) | $1,500 starting | |||
| Streamlined Tax Planning, Tax Projection Worksheets | $350 to $500 | |||
| Estimated Tax Payments Calcs | Included | |||
| Tax Resolution, Audit Defense | NA | Add-On | Add-On | Add-On |
| Complimentary Quick Chats (CQC) | $250 to $500 | Routine | Routine | Routine |
| Annual Fee | $1,500 | $2,100 | $3,180 | |
| Monthly Fee | $125 | $175 | $265 | |
| (prorated based on onboarding date) | ||||
The following are additional business services to get your venture launched and on the way. Some of these are teased out separately as one and done fees like formation and onboarding stuff.
Accounting, Payroll* |
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| Monthly Accounting (bookkeeping + analysis) | starting at $500 / month |
| Bi-Monthly Accounting (bookkeeping + analysis every 2 months) | starting at $250 / month |
| Quad-Monthly Accounting (bookkeeping + analysis every 4 months) | starting at $175 / month |
| Custom, Off-Menu Cadence | inquire within |
| Sales Tax, Personal Property Tax | typically $75 / month, $150 / quarter |
| Employee Payroll (direct deposit, bi-weekly) | 1 employee, $100 / month 2-5 employees, $175 / month |
| Fine Print: Accounting fees are based on 2 bank account with less than 250 monthly transactions but does not include the QBO fee from Intuit. Custom quote is available if you have a lot going on such as third-party integrations (POS, time billing system), accrual accounting method, extensive benefits packages and / or industry specific issues (e.g, job costing in construction). Even Finer Print: Employee payroll can be added only if already using our Business Advisory Service plans above (e.g, Vail). Custom quote for more than 5 employees and a referral to therapy. |
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Formation |
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| Articles of Organization or Incorporation, or Dissolution | $625 + state filing fee |
| Initial Report (if required) | $125 + state filing fee |
| Annual Report | $350 + state filing fee |
| Employer Identification Number (EIN) | Included |
| Single Member Operating Agreement (SMLLC) | Included |
| MS Word Templated Bylaws Agreement (Corporations) | Included |
| S Corp Election, Timely Election (made with formation) | Included |
| Accountable Plan | Included |
Onboarding |
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| Payroll Accounts Setup, Transfer, Closing | $550 to $650 depending on state |
| Employee Data Transfer | $25 per EE, >5 |
| Accounting Setup or Transfer (Fractional Controller) | Varies |
| QuickStart QuickBooks Setup and Support (90 days) | $750 |
| S Corp Election, Timely Election (within 75 days) | $450 |
| Late S Corp Election Back to January 2023 | $600, $1,200 after Jan 1 2024 |
| Examine Prior Tax Returns | Included |
Maintenance |
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| Entity Relocation Package (payroll closure and opening, entity move) | $800 (some are $1,050) + state filing fees |
| Address Changes w/o Payroll (IRS, State Dept of Revenue, Secretary of State) | $250 + state filing fees |
| Address Changes with Payroll (above + state and local payroll agencies) | $350 to $450 + state filing fees |
| Our entity relocation package includes closing your current payroll accounts, opening shiny new ones, moving your entity with the Secretary of State (if applicable) and updating addresses as necessary. Speaking of address changes... these are tough. Basic address changes require IRS, State Department of Revenue and Secretary of State notifications. Address changes that include payroll add another level of complexity since departments of revenue are not the same as departments of labor, and there might be local or municipal agencies as well. |
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Advisory Services Fine Print
A la Carte
A la Carte fee ranges are approximates. 85% of our clients fit into these fee ranges, but there are outliers. We have a handful of clients with over 30 rentals; their individual tax return is north of $4,000. We also are assuming one state; if your business spans the galaxy then additional fees will be discussed with you prior to payroll setup or tax preparation. Typically each state or tax jurisdiction is around $250 to $350 for tax preparation since it affects both your business and individual tax returns (frankly, state apportionment is a pain in the butt, but it is our pain… and states, especially California and New York, are crazy about it).Prorated Fees
Some more things to consider- when a partial year remains, our usual annual fee is pro-rated to not charge you for services you didn’t use (like payroll and consultation). However, a large chunk of our annual fee is tax preparation which is typically a built-in fixed amount of $2,300 (both business entity and individual tax returns) plus annual tax planning. Whether we onboard you in January, July or December, we have to prepare a full year tax return. This increases the monthly fee for the remaining months of 2023 but the monthly fee will later decrease in January of 2024 to reflect the amounts above. Yeah, we make it sound like 2024 is just around the corner.
Payroll Processing
We make very little profits on payroll processing… we offer it as a convenience to our clients. One throat to choke with a single call can be reassuring but if you want to run your payroll, go for it! Everyone thinks payroll is a piece of cake; write a check and done. Nope… we see a lot of mistakes being made by clients especially the handling of health insurance and HSA contributions since there are special rules for greater than 2% S Corp shareholders. Then again, we don’t mind fixing what was broken.
Tax Returns
You can prepare your own individual tax return as well… but the benefit WCG preparing both individual and business tax returns is that we slide things around depending on income limitations, phaseouts, alternative minimum tax (AMT), Section 199A deduction optimization, pass-through entity tax deductions (PTET), etc. Having our arms around both can yield some good tax savings!
Note: An individual tax return is what the IRS calls Form 1040 and refers to the entity filing the tax return (you, the individual, are the entity). However, a married couple are deemed to be one entity for the sake of an individual tax return. So, when we say we will prepare your individual tax return, it is meant to include your spouse in a jointly filed tax return.
Break-Even Analysis (does an S Corp make sense?)
Break-even analysis is based on our annual fee of $4,320. If an S corporation saves you 8% to 10% (on average) in taxes over the garden-variety LLC, then $4,320 divided by 9% equals $48,000 of net ordinary business income (profit) after expenses and deductions.
More sales pitch! Keep in mind that our fee of $4,320 includes your individual tax return which you might already be paying another tax professional to prepare. WCG has a handful of clients who are right at the break-even point of $48,000 but leverage an S Corp and our services to get tax preparation, tax planning and consultation.
You can always find someone to do it for less- we know that. At the same time, we have a vested interest in your success and provide sound tax and business consultation as a part of our service. Here is a link to our Periodic Business Review agenda that we cover throughout the year so our consultation to you is comprehensive-
We also have written a webpage on end of year tax planning-
And, to see our entire fee structure (transparency)-
Wanna Talk About Your Small Business?
Please use the form below to tell us a little about yourself, and what you have going on with your small business or 1099 contractor gig. WCG CPAs & Advisors are small business CPAs, tax professionals and consultants, and we look forward to talking to you!