Taxation & Estate Planning

20 Questions to Ask an Enrolled Agent Before You Consider Hiring Them to Solve an IRS Problem Part 3 of a 4 Part Series

By Darrin Mish

Here is part three of our four part series about questions you should ask of your enrolled agent before hiring them to handle your irs problem. As I have stated before, almost daily I hear horror stores from taxpayers who have hired a large national tax problem resolution firm. They met in a "local office" with a person who turned out to be a salesperson (not a lawyer, CPA, or enrolled agent) who promised the moon and couldn't even deliver a shooting star! Dramatic promises were made about a specific dollar amount that the taxpayer's large liability could be settled for, yet the time to actually file the Offer in Compromise or actually pay the "pennies on the dollar" settlement never come. Yet other taxpayers complain that once payment has been made, they never once hear from the supposedly reputable company again. These are danger signs that you need to watch out for, and these 20 questions should go a long way to helping you avoid these painful stories. With these questions at your disposal (and good old fashioned common sense) you should make out fine.

Full post as published by IRS Problem Solver Blog on November 10, 2008 (boomark / email).