10 Mistakes to Avoid When Hiring a Long Island CPA

Are you on the lookout for a reputed CPA in Long Island? If you search Google for a “Long Island accountant”, you will come across dozens of service providers. However, not all of them can deliver a top-notch service to you. 

Most businesses tend to make mistakes while trying to filter that perfect Long Island CPA. To make sure you don’t make such mistakes, we will share 10 mistakes to avoid when looking for a CPA.

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Failing to Check Credentials

Before hiring one of the accounting firms Long Island, you should take some time to go through credentials. Make sure that your chosen CPA as an active CPA license. You can evaluate that from a website such as CPA Verify. Qualified CPAs will provide you with credentials without a hesitation. Working with them would be smooth as that.

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Failing to Ask About Specializations

CPAs have diverse expertise. Some specialize in taxation, whereas others in auditing and forensic accounting. There are CPAs who offer business advisory services as well. You need to understand your needs and look for a CPA who can cater to them. It will not make you end up with any disappointment.

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Ignoring Experience

An experienced CPA will offer better expertise than a novice. You need to ask your Long Island CPA on how long they have practiced. It is a good thing to stick to a CPA who has more than 10 years of experience in working with businesses similar to you. Recent graduates would lack the skills and knowledge to support you.

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Selecting a Bookkeeper Instead of an Accountant

A bookkeeper Long Island is not the same as an accountant. Hence, you should not go ahead and hire a bookkeeper, assuming that you can get accounting services at a lower price tag. The duties of a bookkeeper would include keeping track of invoices, paying bills, and working on financial data entry. However, they don’t offer the financial and accounting services that a Long Island accountant would offer.

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Failing to Check References

Before hiring one of the accounting firms Long Island, you need to ask for references and cross-verify them. At least speak with 1-2 clients that the accounting firm is working with. Then you will be able to get a clear idea about the service offered. It is a perfect method available to understand factors like responsiveness, pricing, integrity, and competency. 

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Focusing Only on Price

Hiring the cheapest CPA often backfires. Yes, consider cost, but don’t make it the deciding factor. Rather, weight expertise, experience, specialties, capabilities, clientele, and fit. Quality CPAs deliver value far exceeding their fees. On the other hand, botched accounting can be very costly!

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Neglecting the Gut Check

If something feels off about a CPA, pay attention to that red flag. Perhaps their credentials don’t quite add up, they seem shifty answering questions or they’re pushing overly aggressive tax schemes. Trust your intuition. You’ll work closely with your business tax preparer, so ensure you’re fully comfortable with them.

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Failing to Check Reviews

Before committing to a Long Island Accountant, check their online reviews. Are past clients largely satisfied? Do any concerning patterns emerge? Reviews reveal helpful insights you can’t glean otherwise. They spotlight a CPA’s real-life performance, strengths, weaknesses and professionalism. Accounting firms Long Island with gleaming 5-star reviews are the ones that you should be focusing on. 

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Not Defining the Engagement Terms

Ideally, engage a CPA via written agreement covering exact deliverables, timelines, fees, payment methods, guaranteed satisfaction, confidentiality, record retention policies, etc. If anything is unclear or assumed, address it. This prevents misunderstandings down the road.

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Not Continuously Evaluating Service

Your engagement shouldn’t end once a tax return or financial statement is delivered. Continuously evaluate whether your CPA provides maximum value aligned with your financial goals. Check-in at least annually to review your needs as well as their capabilities, objectivity and performance. Don’t hesitate to switch CPAs if you receive subpar service.

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Final Words

Always keep these mistakes in mind and make sure that you don’t commit any of them. Then you will end up finding the best CPA in Long Island. After that, you can continue to build a strong relationship with your business tax preparer and experience all benefits that come on your way in the long run.