Schedule a CPA Consultation
The initial consultation is free. It is about scope: what you are dealing with, what the work would involve, and whether this firm is the right one for it. Nothing is agreed on that call — you should know what you are engaging before you engage it.
Who it is for
Business owners
A new entity, a structure that no longer fits, a first year with employees or a second state, or a return that has outgrown the software you have been using.
Individuals with a complicated year
A move between states, equity compensation, a property sale, an inheritance, self-employment income, or foreign accounts.
Property investors
A first rental, a portfolio that has grown past a spreadsheet, a short-term rental where the loss treatment matters, or a sale where a 1031 exchange is on the table.
Anyone with an IRS notice
An audit letter, a proposed adjustment, a penalty assessment, or years that were never filed. These have response deadlines, so they are worth raising early.
What happens, in order
- 01
You send the form
Tell us what the situation is, which service it relates to, and what the deadline pressure is if there is one. More detail means the first conversation starts further along.
- 02
Sophie follows up to schedule a meeting
In person at the Charleston office or virtually, whichever suits — office hours are Monday to Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., by appointment. If what you need is not something this firm should be doing, we would rather say so at this point than after an engagement letter.
- 03
We agree the scope
What the work covers, what it does not, what we need from you and when. You get that in writing before work starts.
- 04
Documents move through the client portal
Not email. Tax documents contain Social Security numbers, bank details and full financial pictures, and email is not a secure channel for any of them.
Worth having to hand
You do not need to prepare anything to have the first conversation. If you want it to be more productive, the fuller checklist is on our documents to bring page — but the short version is: your last filed return, any notice you have received, and a sense of what changed this year.
- Your most recent filed tax return
- Any IRS or state notice, in full
- What kind of entity the business is, if there is one
- Which states are involved
- What changed this year, and what the deadline is
A note on sending documents
Please do not attach tax documents to an email, including to us. Use the client portal, which is linked at the top of every page. If you are not yet a client and need to send something before portal access is set up, ask on the call and we will arrange a secure route.