Accountant prices

[jezza888]

Ok,

Now i know this is a very ambiguous question... so i'll split the question in to 3 levels of accounting.

(1 being the novice -> 3 being the top dog).

In your opinion... What kind of $ per hour would you think is reasonable for the below range of accountants (based on your experience) :

1). Entry level small business / work from home accountant / works for small company. Does basic tax returns and has a general idea with all kinds of investments.

2). Mid level accountant, either has well known record, has multiple properties / portfolio themselves, specialises in property tax and deals with semi complex portfolios under different structures.

3). Top Dog... either has own business or is a partner in a very successful firm, well known in the industry, Can setup and give advice for very complex tax strategies, does have a good legal understanding, may have a large property portfolio which performs well and may be involved with large scale property projects.

I prob missed a few things for the descriptions, but you get the gist...

 

[jezza888]

I'll start,

1). $100-150 ph
2). $200-300 ph
3). $500-600 ph

 

[Terry_w]

Sounds about right, but the top tax lawyers are charging around $1500 per hour.

 

[Paul@PFI]

There are many cheap accountants who don't charge enough and some who are cheap who shouldn't be doing tax. That said I have seen some expensive one's who aren't worth even half what they charge. Price may reflect nothing about the provider and their quality. A accountant charging $150hr may be slow and incompetent or really good and they undercharge. Just cause they are located in the CBD and have high costs doesn't make them good.

I prefer to agree to fixed prices with all SS clients so that hourly rates are MY problem not the clients. When you take your car for repair you don't pay by the hour. Same with a dentist.

For example how many here are told by their accountant that it costs $X per rental; ??? I don't do that. Doing three or twelve isn't that much harder than one. I find most SS people summarise it well and are good with numbers etc and so if I'm given quality data the cost reflects it. I try to work to ensure that a portion of my time is spent on the high level review to ensure audit queries are minimised and risks are addressed and that deductions are maximised.

 

[Paul@PFI]

Sounds about right, but the top tax lawyers are charging around $1500 per hour.

But they don't do tax returns for that rate

I introduced a client of mine to Frank Egan (LAC Law) to settle a length and costly tax issue. He said he charged a lot and quoted a hourly rate higher than this. But within two weeks a eight year dispute was settled well below what others had sought and failed to achieve...His hourly rate may have been high but the value of each hour was probably $100,000. Best fee my client ever paid.

Cost and value are two different measures. I was taught this by a Partner of a mid tier firm I worked at years back. He suggested you have to imagine the value of the work in one hand and the cost in the other. While the "cost" based on charge rates may be $X if you feel $Y is the most you can charge then it likely to be $Y. Unfortunately, many professional firms use timesheets to value client work rather than its intrinsic value.