Through email correspondence: After my 2024 taxes went up and I questioned the cause, asking if any…read moredeductions had been missed, I was invited to find my own deductions. This is the primary service for which I hire a CPA. I found that they had not applied a basic deduction in 2024 (one that they had applied in 2023) until it was brought to their attention. Their rate increase from 2023 was not initially disclosed nor explained and when asked if it was tied to to their additional labor to correct their omission of a tax deduction, I was told they actually had not charged me for the extra labor. I was given the option where my filing would be withheld until the fee was paid or find another firm and start over. It was an unsatisfactory experience.

I will start off by saying that the two things I liked about this firm was they are nice people and…read moreoffer fair prices for their services. However, as someone with a full time career and a small business on the side my needs differ from other reviewers. I normally do my taxes myself, but this was my first year in business and I did not feel comfortable doing my own taxes because l wanted to make sure my taxes were done by the books and I did not get audited, and I wanted to maximize my returns. As CPAs and tax attorneys Attaway should be able to do both, leaving me with little worries. Prices for a personal taxes are going to cost more than business tax prep. For a business the cost of doing taxes will range based on complexity, but I have a sole proprietorship pass-through LLC with only 1 year in business. I was very happy with the price I was given ($450). Granted, I did all the leg work by printing a report general ledger, which I used an accounting software to create. There was quiet a bit of detail which made things easier for them and I had stayed on top of my earnings and deductions. I also have a home office which is used 100% for work at both my 9-5 and side gig. I also had student loan interest, mortgage, investments, and charitable donations. It took about 3 weeks for them to process my taxes. During tax season this is a little on the high side, but realistic. The first problem I noticed was that they had me listed as married. I am glad I caught it because I would have gotten a lot back then had to pay thousands to the IRS. After having them correct this I decided to do a very thorough look at the rest of the report. The next BIG issue I found was that they elected to do a simple home office deduction instead of the more complex deduction. When I pointed this out and it was fixed my return went up over $1000. That would have been a very costly mistake! They also had me working from home only part of the year when I have been working from home for years. The next costly mistake was around my investments. I am not completely sure where they got the numbers for my capital gains but they were way off. After this was correctly my return went up even higher. Lastly, I was being urged to quickly look over my tax information then sign a release so that they could submit my taxes ASAP. However, a week went by after I signed so I reached out and was told they needed another signature to verify my bank account information. I had already done that, but technology isn't perfect and neither am I. I would not have been irritated if I had forgotten to save after signing, or if the software didn't record my signature. I WAS irritated that a week went by AND I had to reach to them to be told they were waiting on something. The lack of communication shows they are disorganized, which is worrisome, but it also delayed my return and put the burden on me when I am paying them to perform a service. The first mistake saw my return go from ~$8,000 to $4,500. After I caught the other mistakes and they were corrected my final return ended up being over $6,500. If I had not reviewed and corrected the professionals then I would have either owed money to the IRS or lost out on over $2,000. It probably goes without saying, I will not be using them again. If you are using them for personal taxes you would probably better off with Turbo Tax, especially if you itemize are are not comfortable with doing taxes. Other people had great reviews and they may have done a great job on their taxes, but those people may have also lost money and not known about it. If I had no tax knowledge, or was confused by a 1040 tax return statement, then I would have never known the money I was leaving on the table. If you own a business then go elsewhere, especially if you have complexities. I was interviewed by another well reviewed Atlanta CPA firm before choosing Attaway. They cost a little more, but a couple hundred more is worth saving a couple thousand and making sure you are in compliance.