Finding an accountant may be tough as tax deadline approaches

Federal tax deadline day is Friday and Iowans who put off the annual chore may find themselves a bit — overtaxed. Iowans who think they can take a shoebox full of forms and receipts in to their accountant and still get their return done by April 15th are in for some news: you’d better buy TurboTax for your home computer and get to work. West Des Moines C-P-A Jeff Strawhacker says “Most C-P-A firms are pretty well booked up to the end of the season. They’re always willing to try but I think the general response will be to file an extension and then work on it after tax season.” Strawhacker says fewer of us are attempting to fill out that mountain of forms ourselves. Strawhacker says a large percentage of Iowans use tax preparers “simply because the tax laws have gotten so complex and so voluminous that it’s hard for the average person to sit down and work through all the different rules and forms and calculations that are in the tax system today.” He offers a few common sense tips for Iowans who are tackling the taxing task of doing their own taxes. Strawhacker’s advice includes: go back and look everything over on your return, make sure you haven’t missed some deductions you were allowed to take, and double-check your calculations as math errors are the number-one error. He adds, start planning now for -next- year so you’re not in a crunch situation again in 360-some days.