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IRS Tax Relief: 6 Tax Help Tips For Hiring a Good Tax Attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist
By Michael Rozbruch | April 29, 2010
You may have heard that a well-qualified tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist (CTRS) can help taxpayers secure offer in compromise settlements, IRS payment plans, penalty abatement, innocent spouse relief, release of liens or levies, non-filer issues and many other tax settlements. Before you hire professional tax help for resolving your IRS problems, don’t miss these tips on how to choose a good tax relief expert.
While taxpayers are allowed to represent themselves before the IRS, many taxpayers seeking tax relief find dealing with the IRS frustrating, time-consuming, intimidating or all of the above.
So they make the decision to hire professional tax help (specialized IRS tax attorney, tax resolution firm, etc.) to negotiate with the IRS on their behalf. An experienced tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist (CTRS) who specializes in providing tax relief to individuals and businesses can help resolve tax problems at both the state and federal level. Before you hire a tax resolution professional, read these top tip for choosing a good tax relief expert to help you resolve your IRS problems.
Tax Relief Professional Hiring Tip #1 - Understand the cost of going solo: There are many advantages to hiring an income tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist, but the greatest advantage is peace of mind and knowing that you are not taking unnecessary risks with your personal and financial freedom. Going in front of the IRS without a tax attorney is like defending yourself in a murder trial. You’ll get creamed. To paraphrase the wise old saying, “He who acts as his own tax attorney has a fool for a client.” Even if you can’t afford to pay your back taxes or have years of unfiled delinquent tax returns, a Certified Tax Resolution Specialist or tax attorney can help you settle your IRS debt by increasing your chances of resolving your back taxes and helping you qualify for a tax relief settlement where you only pay back only a fraction of what you owe.
Tax Relief Professional Hiring Tip #2 - Don’t be penny wise but pound foolish: Even when you know you need a tax attorney, it can still be a difficult decision to make when faced with their fees. However, know that not getting professional tax help can be even more costly. To get the tax relief you need, you need to leverage the specialized knowledge that only an expert income tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist can provide. In many instances, retaining professional and reliable tax attorney and tax resolution services will often result in more affordable IRS payment plans and lesser tax penalties. However, when you owe back taxes and you need a tax attorney’s help to get the tax relief you want, the issue at stake is more than just what’s on your balance sheet. Issues with back taxes and other IRS problems can be both financially and personally crippling – so you will want to resolve them swiftly and permanently.
Tax Relief Professional Hiring Tip #3 - Understand your tax settlement options: Your tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist should help you understand the process for resolving tax debt so that you have realistic expectations for solving your specific tax problem. Because the IRS has very strict guidelines governing eligibility for tax settlement, your tax relief professional needs to let you know up front what tax settlement options are viable for resolving your specific IRS problems.
Tax Relief Professional Hiring Tip #4 - Know that every tax relief case is different: To get the tax relief you need, you will need personalized attention rather than a one-size-fits-all approach to tax resolutions. Beyond being able to leverage the specialized knowledge only an income tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist can provide, you will want to choose a firm with extensive experience and an exceptional track record for tax relief success to help ensure your unique case is in good hands.
Tax Relief Professional Hiring Tip #5 - Look for a firm that offers transparency. It’s unfortunate that there are some tax relief firms out there that will lowball their initial fees – without letting taxpayers know about additional fees that may be involved further down the road. This is a popular tactic that firms use to secure a client. They start the process by quoting entry-level fees – intentionally leaving out the fact that the Offer in Compromise process can take up to 6-7 months. Because a high percentage of Offers are rejected by the IRS, these cases often have to go to the appellate level – at which point these firms will then turn around and hit the client with additional appellate representation fees. You will want to choose a firm that will help you understand exactly what’s involved with achieving a settlement for your specific IRS problem.
Tax Relief Professional Hiring Tip #6 - A tax attorney will keep you out of future IRS trouble: Hiring professional tax attorney and tax resolution services can not only help you resolve IRS problems from the past, but it can also help you achieve permanent tax relief, making sure you don’t run into tax problems in the future.
Hiring a good Certified Tax Resolution Specialist (CTRS) or tax attorney can help significantly increase your chances of securing offer in compromise settlements, IRS payment plans, penalty abatement, innocent spouse relief, release of liens or levies, non-filer issues and many other tax settlements.
During your search for a well-qualified tax attorney, I urge you to look outside your local area for reputable tax resolution firms. There are a number of good reasons for doing so–learn more by reading this article. Also don’t neglect to ask the right questions when you are qualifying your potential tax attorney, you can read more about what questions you need to ask your tax attorney here.
Topics: IRS Payment Plan, IRS tax relief, Offer in Compromise, hiring a tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist, tax help | No Comments »