Question 1

What does tax advisory include?

Accepted Answer

Tax advisory is the planning side of tax work, entity structure, how you pay yourself, retirement contributions, the timing of equipment purchases and income, and the write-offs your situation actually supports. Tax preparation files the year that already happened; advisory shapes the year that has not. The strategies that apply depend on your numbers, which is exactly what a discovery call sorts out.

Question 2

What kinds of tax strategies do you actually use?

Accepted Answer

The ones the tax code provides and your numbers support: S-Corp compensation structure, retirement plan stacking, hiring family members correctly, accountable plan reimbursements, vehicle and equipment timing, the home office done right, and more. Every strategy I recommend is grounded in the statute and documented properly, no gray-area schemes. Which ones fit your business is the first thing I look at.

Question 3

When should a business owner start tax planning?

Accepted Answer

Before year-end. Most of the moves that actually lower a tax bill close on December 31, not in April. And the more your profit grows, the more each planning decision is worth. If you are past roughly six figures of net income and no one has walked you through your options, you are almost certainly leaving money on the table.

Question 4

How do I stop getting surprise tax bills?

Accepted Answer

Surprise bills come from finding out what you owe after the year is over. The fix is knowing the number while you can still do something about it: books that stay current, a running profit picture, estimated payments that adjust as the year moves, and planning conversations before December instead of a scramble in March. That is the core of the tax advisory work I do.