If I could give zero stars, I would. Tera "inherited" our account from a previous CPA that was used by our financial planner. Initially, our interactions with her were pleasant. She was difficult to contact, but I assumed she was busy with more important accounts. This year, my husband and I needed to file an extension to our return, due to a 1099 that was not received until the end of March. The 1099 was only for $900, however Tera told us our tax liability would be almost $1200! Fortunately my husband's sister is a CPA and she informed us that the tax due could not be more than the amount received from the 1099. I mentioned this to Tera, and she immediately became insulted and told me to let our family member file the amended return. We did just that and saved over $800 in taxes due, not to mention the $175 fee Tera was going to charge us for the return. I felt that Tera's reactions were quite unprofessional. I'd advise looking elsewhere. read more

We have been using Tera's services for years. We have been very impressed with her knowledge and it's obvious to see she really cares about her clients. We trust her advice and value her extensive knowledge and experience. read more

I've never left a negative review, but working with Tera has motivated me to start. From the beginning she was extremely defensive over even basic questions (like "what is this spreadsheet"), and incapable of/unwilling to explaining any of her own work. This led to weeks of unresolved email exchanges and several nasty phone calls, where I was continuously spoken to in weirdly rude ways. The last straw was when she hung up on me for asking her to simply explain the documents she had sent - I'll be happily looking elsewhere. It's hard to imagine what would provoke someone to treat their clients with such blatant disrespect. I can only imagine she doesn't quite know her stuff as much as she thinks she does. read more

I couldn't agree more with these poor reviews for Tera. She's very difficult to contact, her online schedule is a mess to work with because it's never updated and you get random canellations, she has a "system" that does the number work for her and she can't and won't explain really important things, she's very defensive if I question a number (I rely on her for the right answers)... EVERYTHING about Tera always feels unresolved. Her now new office assistant knows absolutely nothing and claims the "I'm new here" card for the last couple of months (nice voice but no training). Tera is simply too busy, not reliable, insecure about her work, dishonest about what she REALLY knows, etc. I'm assuming she has updated certifications but she is certainly going through the motions and doesn't take pride in her work. She hung up on me when I had multiple questions about depreciation recapture on a sold investment property... this is way over her head, she's clueless. She told me to get someone else to do my return and hung up on me. Extremely unprofessional... I wish she would've never taken over my previous CPA's business (God rest his soul, he'd be flipping out if he new how she has handled his clients). DO NOT GO HERE. You get what you pay for.. I'd rather pay triple elsewhere. read more

This CPA is lazy & unprofessional, and was unresponsive. She inherited our account from previous owner & that is only reason we stayed as long as we did. They are really just high priced bookeepers, go somewhere else where they will take the time to advise you and make sure you are doing the right thing. We hired a new professional and learned he helped 4-5 people he said that came to him with complaints about this firm. Good to know it wasn't just us. read more

This woman (Tera Kovanes) is horrible and a disgrace! Oh, I forgot.....dishonest! My son and I visited Tera Kovane's office on August 2, 2018. My son was in need of guidance regarding issues with the IRS and I was there to seek help with a new business. She seemed so confident of her ability to handle our needs. Well, fast forward to Monday, September 18, 2018. My son called her to find out the status of the work she was doing for him. Mind you, she requested a $650 down payment for the work she was to do for him. I provided my debit card for the payment on his behalf. She immediately swiped the card and told my son she would request his tax records from the IRS even though he never signed any paperwork giving her authorization to do so. Due to the lack of progress of work by her, my son asked for a full refund. She went on to tell him she did 2 hours of work on his case at $125 per hour. I am not sure what else was actually said during that conversation, but she just hung up the phone on my son after laughing. She immediately called me and based on what my son informed me, I asked for a refund as well as the paperwork she claimed she worked on for 2 hours and she laughed at me as she did with my son and hung up the phone. I still have not gotten any refund as well as any paperwork she purportedly worked on for $125 an hour. This woman is disgraceful and I will be contacting the Virginia Board of Accountancy today. Here is a review of Tera Kovanes that was posted on Yelp by another reviewer. Very similar to my bad experience with her. I wish I had seen this before I went to see her. Too bad I can't choose a minus 5 stars! She doesn't deserve that! Here is the Yelp review I mentioned: The reviewer is SO. "I have never used an accountant before, so maybe I should adjust my expectations. She may be an outstanding accountant, but I never got to find out. I scheduled a preliminary call with her and my request was a little more complicated than a tax return. She indicated she would need to call me back the following week after doing some research. No Call. A few days later, I called her back and left a voice mail as a follow-up. A week later - still no return call. I made a third call over a week ago, and still no return call. Apparently she does not need my business, or maybe my request was too hard for her. I may never know since she does not return calls." read more

So, I have never used an accountant before, so maybe I should adjust my expectations. She may be an outstanding accountant, but I never got to find out. I scheduled a preliminary call with her and my request was a little more complicated than a tax return. She indicated she would need to call me back the following week after doing some research. No Call. A few days later, I called her back and left a voice mail as a follow-up. A week later - still no return call. I made a third call over a week ago, and still no return call. Apparently she does not need my business, or maybe my request was too hard for her. I may never know since she does not return calls. read more

I went to Tera Kovanes for tax planning and preparation of my 2019 tax returns. At our initial meeting she was extremely personable (a bit over the top sharing her personal life) At our "next scheduled meeting" to drop of tax information to her, she was going out the door as I was going in and said she would be back in a few minutes. 50 Minutes later she returned! That was the start of my "nightmare experience" with her. She turned out to be the most unprofessional, shrewd and rude individual I have ever used! I have documented proof in case she denies it. She has a habit of not returning voice mail messages nor emails. On her website there is an option to schedule phone calls. Forget it, because she does not keep them especially once she knows you have questions or issues with her poor service. I hired her not only to do my tax returns but guidance for tax panning which she never did. Once I paid her a hefty fee for my returns, she made it difficult to contact her. I question the legitimacy of the 5 star reviews by others? They cannot be reviewing the Tera Kovanes I had a horrible experience with. read more

Tara is an outstanding CPA. If you are looking for a professional, quick company to prepare you income tax return then look no longer. She is the only one you should be using! read more