Akron Income Tax Co.
Income Tax Fees and Pricing Cost Structure
Basic Tax Fees 2026
Basic Short Form $ 130
MFS Short Form $ 220
Basic Long Form $ 220
MFS Long Form $ 320
MFS = Married Filing Separate/ 2 returns
Businesses $90.00 + time
Taxpayer must provide totals of income and expenses
Rentals $90.00 + time
Taxpayer must provide totals of income and expenses
Stock Sales $90.00 +time
Dependent (tax return) $60.00
One State and One City Return is Completed Free
An Extra State or Cities returns may require an additional fee
Let’s break this down some more…
The above price list works for about 95% of our clients. But there lies the problem, what about the other 5% of the time when the tax fees exceed the “Basic” posted tax fees.
When should you realize that your taxes are more than “Basic” and should expect an adjusted tax fee.
More extensive tax documents require more time…
Short Forms include first hour of preparation time. Long Forms (Business, Rentals, Stocks sales) include 1 ½ hour of preparation time. After the included free prep time, there is a time-charge of $25 for every additional 15 minutes.
We offer forms for clients that have businesses and rentals to use to minimize their client prep time by providing totals.
If you have a basic form with a business (totals provided) it is $130+$90=$220. If you have a basic form with a business and a rental (totals provided) it is $130+$90+$90=$310. If you have a basic form and multiple stock sales that require form 8949 it is $130+$90+a time charge=???.
There are a few simple stock sales that we just don’t charge any fees for. But if you have to use form 8949, we will charge the minimum $90. Yes, we may charge more if you have lots of entries for our time. Any stock sales with wash sales take more time to report. You should understand your stock investments may require more work than normal and will cost you more to report this activity to the IRS. It is the cost of investing.
What are some reasons we increase prices over the “Basic” charges?
It comes down to the level of work and time involved to deal with each person’s individual taxes. We don’t want to set fees on every form used, that is what our big box competitors do and we feel that is just wrong, especially when there maybe just a single entry on a form. But we do have to get compensated for our time, our knowledge and our experience. This is why you should Choose Akron Income Tax Co.
Our forms that require an automatic fee increase are Sch C’s for businesses, Sch E’s for Rentals and Royalties’ and Form 8949 for Stocks sales that need special attention. For clients with businesses or rentals, keeping the cost at a minimum means that they bring us compiled totals for income and expenses using either our forms or their own version.
We are not against compiling this data from raw receipts. It is an accounting or bookkeeping function and we do charge for this, but to keep your fees low our clients need to bring us totals to work with.
Other types of returns
1065 Partnership returns start at $600 and increase based on complexity.
1120 Corporate returns start at $600 and increase based on complexity.
1041 Estate returns start at $600 and increase based on complexity.
It is not a basic return when you…
Have a 1099NEC (this is a business return)
Have 1099MISC
Do you have more than 5 W2s
Have more than one state return or City Return
Have stock sales or stock wash sales that require Form 8949
Do you have more than 5 cities on your w2 and require a city return
I wish this list covered every instance, but it may not due to the complexity of the tax laws but I just wanted to cover the main reasons for our increasing fees. Furthermore, there are times that we do not charge these additional fees even if you may have some of these items, depending on the situation.
FAQs
What is included in a “Basic” tax return fee?
Our Basic tax fees cover the majority of individual returns (about 95% of our clients). Basic pricing includes preparation time, filing, and completing one state and one city return at no additional cost.
When should I expect my tax preparation fee to be higher than the posted basic price?
Your fee may increase when your return requires additional time or specialized work, such as:
- Businesses (Schedule C)
- Rentals or royalties (Schedule E)
- Stock sales requiring Form 8949
- Multiple states or cities return
- Extensive documentation or bookkeeping needs
Our pricing is based on time and complexity, not simply the number of forms used.
How can I keep my tax preparation costs as low as possible?
The best way to minimize fees is to bring compiled totals for income and expenses for businesses and rentals. We provide optional worksheets for this, or you may use your own. When totals are provided, we can prepare your return more efficiently and keep costs down.
Do you charge extra for every additional tax form?
No. Unlike big-box tax services, we do not automatically charge per form. We believe that would be unfair, especially when a form may only have one or two entries. Our fees are based on time, expertise, and complexity, not just form count.
Is a return still considered “basic” if I receive a 1099?
Not always. A 1099-NEC is considered business income and is not a basic return. Other 1099s (such as 1099-MISC) may also increase complexity depending on the situation. Each return is evaluated individually to ensure fair pricing.
Why should I choose Akron Income Tax Co. over national tax chains?
We offer:
Transparent, time-based pricing
No unnecessary per form fees
Personalized service from experienced professionals
Fair pricing based on actual work performed
Our goal is to prepare your taxes accurately, efficiently, and fairly, while keeping costs reasonable whenever possible.
Do I have to bring totals for business or rental income and expenses?
Yes, to keep costs low, taxpayers should provide compiled totals for income and expenses. We provide worksheets to help. If you bring raw receipts, compiling them becomes a bookkeeping service and may increase your fee.