Do you ask?

This time of year I'm getting more calls from "prospective clients"
do you ask, "why are you leaving your current CPA/EA/Tax Preparer?
I certainly do not want someone else's past headache client,
whose been fired.
How do you protect yourself from inadvertently agreeing to
serve a royal pain in the Axx?

I ask.
Lately the response is: He/she retired/died.

I always ask. If from a lesser expensive firm they are typically a one off. I also get last 2 years 1040s, potentially 3. If I see more than one preparer I’m probably not interested unless there is a good story.

I always ask. Had a new client this afternoon and their reason for leaving prior preparer was that he made a mistake. It was of the sort that we all make during tax season. I’m taking them on because I am an eternal optimist.

Ask the prospect if they currently have a tax pro, or if this is a new step for them. If the former, you ask why they want to change, and if their response isn't reasonable, you dig in. It's not uncommon that I come to the conclusion that a prospect is high maintenance or unreasonable after digging.

Request the prior three year's returns. Review them. If you see two or (big red flag) three different firms on those three years worth of returns, you ask why they're changing so often. If the response isn't reasonable and relatable, pass.

I also note how long it takes a prospect to respond to my emails. If it consistently takes one week or more I pass. We're all busy professionals. My clients who make seven figures each year and have toddlers can generally reply within 48 hours. I'm not going to take on a prospect who takes 2 weeks to respond.

I ask.
The number one reason for leaving the prior preparer? Preparer is too busy and always extends my return.
These clients have proved to be very loyal and cooperative with me.

I always ask, and plus one to everything mentioned in this thread.

Never have I been more strict in screening clients as I have been lately. I'm as strict as MvT.

It's not just because I'm overloaded with clients either. I would do so with even average demand, as long as I could afford to pay the bills.

This job is hard enough without trainwreck clients. Be very skeptical and heed the red flags!

I don't generally ask new clients directly, but it does come up in conversation a fair amount. We are seeing many people moving to our area and they are often looking to establish a local CPA relationship. That's probably the biggest reason for changing preparers. The other reasons we see frequently is old preparer retired or their tax situation has gotten too complex for DIY.

This time of year I'm getting more calls from "prospective clients"
do you ask, "why are you leaving your current CPA/EA/Tax Preparer?
I certainly do not want someone else's past headache client,
whose been fired.
How do you protect yourself from inadvertently agreeing to
serve a royal pain in the Axx?

Always... I always ask.

Vetting clients is rule #1 to build a quality practice.

Set a GOOD price, on the high side. That helps vet out bad clients.

Set a GOOD price, on the high side. That helps vet out bad clients.

Does it though? What makes the PITA that the high paying clients cause more endurable if not the high price we get paid. Thus returning to what others have said about PITA clients... what is the true account of this PITA, the PITA itself or because no justification for a high price can be made. In other words is there truly a PITA client or just a low paying client. This is interesting because i have read at least one or two threads on this forum about a client that was PITA. Now im wondering if we're casting blame where we're actually accusing someone of being PITA, but we're actually the ones to blame for doing the work at such a low rate.

As an aside, this work is hard, the supply of good practitioners is tight, i absolutely agee with Southpark! And Merry Christmas!!

I agree with Terry.

It is an interesting dynamic that if you charge a "good" price, that you will naturally weed out many PITA clients. But we all know that this won't filter of all of them.

Having PITA clients is often "our fault" for underquoting, not setting expectations, inadequate client management/controls, and ignoring red flags. Many "bad" clients are just a result of "bad" management on our part.

Also, as many of us realize, when we already have a PITA client (or take in a new one by mistake), raising their price to "price them out" or "be compensated for their PITAness" just makes them even more of a PITA and you are most often better off firing them.

Set a GOOD price, on the high side. That helps vet out bad clients.

Does it though? What makes the PITA that the high paying clients cause more endurable if not the high price we get paid. Thus returning to what others have said about PITA clients... what is the true account of this PITA, the PITA itself or because no justification for a high price can be made. In other words is there truly a PITA client or just a low paying client. This is interesting because i have read at least one or two threads on this forum about a client that was PITA. Now im wondering if we're casting blame where we're actually accusing someone of being PITA, but we're actually the ones to blame for doing the work at such a low rate.

As an aside, this work is hard, the supply of good practitioners is tight, i absolutely agee with Southpark! And Merry Christmas!!

Thank you. Agree with you as well.. my point is that if they become a PITA, at least they paid for the right. But yes, money wont fix PITA.