All Forum Posts by: Brandon Hall

@Ori Skloot unfortunately, no one will be able to tell you whether you are paying too much because no one will openly disclose exactly what they had going on.

$4,200 seems high but I don't know what was included in the scope of work. If you had 10 properties, kept your books fairly organized, no entities, and a W2 job or no other income, most firms would be in the low $1,000s. 

If you have a business and are doing relatively well, expect an additional $500-$2,000 depending on scope of work and how organized you are.

If you are using a partnership or S-Corp, you're looking at another $1,000-$2,000.

My firm doesn't bill like this anymore so numbers may not be 100% accurate. 

I do the same as @Llewelyn A. but I also factor in inflation. Just me being an anal accountant.

% of rents is a good starting point but I've found that it leads to pretty horrible margins of error. This is easily seen in my clients who have property Capex coming due whom have mis-budgeted if the budget at all.

@Matthew Lockwood I kind of do. I have a few clients who own AirBnB rentals in the KC area and do quite well, especially relative to the turnkey market.

That said, no where near as well as my clients in other markets using AirBnB.

@Tomer O. if you're willing to spend the time, you can definitely learn how to handle one property (or even a few) on your own. However I'd strongly advise that you be honest with you ability to comprehend financial information and read and interpret tax code. Some people find this easy, others not so.

Don't just read the IRS pubs. If you're preparing your returns based on the IRS pubs, you're already fighting a losing battle.

Get a CPA to review your completed return prior to submission. Should only cost a few hundred bucks.

@Chris Martin be careful with assumptions. I'm not confident these measures will be passed, and if they do, they will likely be different than proposed.

@Chris Martin we have advised our clients to move income streams (real estate, business, etc) into LLCs if they have not done so already. Keep it simple and use a SMLLC and there won't be large tax prep costs, just the annual state filing fee (for NC at least). 

Worst case, you spend $150 per year and gain asset protection. Best case, you gain asset protection and a tax advantage.

We'll know more toward the end of summer.

@Account Closed I'm from Hickory! That's where my parents invest and where I own a three unit. 

Look forward to connecting.

@Buddy Holmes looks correct to me!

@Tim Watcke This is a common misconception.

@Chris Coleman A cash out refi is not a taxable event. Thus the proceeds can be utilized however you want without worrying about triggering tax consequences from receiving the cash.

However (this is a BIG however), we must always use debt tracing rules to determine whether interest is tax deductible.

If you use the proceeds on another property, the interest is deductible on the funds applied to that property. If the funds are used for business, the interest is deductible on Sch C. If the funds are not reapplied but sit in your bank account or are used for personal stuff, the interest is non deductible.

@Justin Fox you'd still have to explain to the auditor why you have income coming in, or how you have certain utilities without ever paying for them.