How have you found their "rockstar" CPA ??

Question

I apologize in advance for the grammatical error in the title.  After revamping the title, I could not change it. It should have read "How have you found YOUR "rockstar CPA".....

To the question at hand

I have read several posts looking for a "rockstar" CPA.  Some touted using out of state CPAs, while others recommended local CPAs for a myriad of reasons.

The most common reason I have seen folks looking for this elusive rockstar CPA seems to boil down to a basic theme:  "I need a CPA who knows Real Estate Investing and knows Tax law to maximize my tax savings".

And this is a very valid point - In my area I seem to find listings for Tax lawyers, and listings for CPAs, but not a CPA who is well versed in Real Estate Investing/Real Estate Tax Law.

Can others share their own experiences in their acquisition of their Rockstar CPA ?  Simply Googling/"Checking the Yellowpages", hasn't yielded me much.  Thanks!

Basit Siddiqi · Answer

A CPA is like any other professional.You can find a CPA through a networking event(REIA meeting or BPcon)You can find a CPA through a reference - Ask other real estate investors who they use as their CPAYou can find a CPA with good reviews on Yelp / GoogleProfessionals do lurk on this website looking to provide value in hopes of getting new clients. Without the professionals, this website would be less valuable.Good luck in your search for a CPA.

David C. · Answer

@Seidy Lasker, if you felt that you received flak, it may be because it was justified.  Your post was literally a two line post that didn't answer the question of *how you found your CPA*.  It was just:"InvestorFriendlyCPA.com

Ashish"

What I found most surprising is that you took a swipe at others who you claim post replies with "no value".  Did your post answer the question?  No.

Lastly, being "scheduled" and/or simply talking with a CPA does not equal having had your taxes completed with them.  I would never take a recommendation from someone who didn't actually have a track record with that professional.  Not born yesterday.

Ashish may be very competent (I have noticed that he is a responsive poster and seems helpful), but your two liner plugs and double response above gives me no confidence that you have any significant experience using him as your CPA.

Mindy Jensen · Answer

BiggerPockets is for investors. It is NOT for solicitation, and if you get solicitations through our Private Message System, feel free to click the Report User link in that message.

David C. · Answer

@Mindy Jensen  Mindy - Thanks for the info.  I appreciate it.

After getting ongoing solicitations, I stopped posting.  It was just too much of a nuisance to wade through "solicitation posts", finding little or no actual content.  As such, my interest in BP dropped.  I googled to see if others had similar experiences at BP, and it appears that many people have left BP because of this ongoing issue.  It's a shame, because I feel that BP has a lot to offer and could be so much better if posts were untainted by the shameless plugs.  If you take an honest look at the responses above, they are nearly all solicitations.  @Brandon Turner - Help!

David C. · Answer

@Basit Siddiqi

First of all - I appreciate you giving me suggestions rather than just a solicitation - That's what BP should be all about.

As for your comment about professionals lurking to provide value in hopes of getting new clients.  I get it, but the keyword is that they need to provide *value*.

- Answering a post in a manner such as you did, provided value.

- Replies to my posts such as @Julio Gonzalez provided, offer me no insight to my question and was just a solicitation.  This is what ruins forums such as this.  It becomes "spam central station" - I wish that the administrators of BP would clean this up - However, I fear that due to their business model, they are not inclined to reprimand this behavior, since it appears that these same folks are paying the pro and premium fees, thus cash flow for them.

Ironically - guess who voted for your post, yup - you got it @Julio Gonzalez.

Daniel Hyman · Answer

Google probably has not helped much, because much of the google algorithm for these searches are based on local talent. I'm not sure where you are located, but you might have to go beyond your local market to find a firm that specializes in real estate.

If you're open to working with someone remotely there are several excellent, REI specialized tax pros here on BP.

David C. · Answer

@Julio Gonzalez  While I appreciate the offer, I am not soliciting for a CPA, I am asking others how they *found their CPA*.   I have gotten more solicitations than I can count. BP seems to be great for some topics, but the minute you mention a CPA or other professional service, the floodgates open.  Is BP for investors, or for solicitation?

Julio Gonzalez · Answer

Hi @David Cozzi , I work with a lot of very talented CPAs in the Real Estate space and would be more than happy to provide you with some recommendations. Aside from specializing in real estate, are there any other preferences that you have?

Seidy Lasker · Answer

@David Cozzi

Yes, I have scheduled and have talked with him. I can recommend whoever I want to recommend when he or she provides value to me, I provide value back. There are Accountants on here who provide zero value and copy and paste self promotion and get no flack. If you are offended, move along. Ill continue to recommend him any time someone asks for one.

David C. · Answer

@Seidy Lasker

Not sure what the message you sent means, other than perhaps promoting Ashish and his website.  I have noticed that nearly all of your posts name drop Ashish.  My question is this - Does he do your taxes?  If not, personal experience do you have with him?

How have you found their "rockstar" CPA ??

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