In my little southern town, there must be 30 “tax prep” businesses ... and for every tax form they complete that is less $$$$ in the hands of H&R Block, et al ...
So, money. That’s why they did it.
“So, money. That’s why they did it.”
Do you realize an incompetent tax preparer can cost their clients a fortune?
Have you ever volunteered to help people with their taxes, and seen what they do when using computer software? I’ve seen people who failed to deduct alimony from their income. I’ve seen people who did not deduct interest paid on student loans. I’ve seen people who have rented out a house for years and never reported their income from it or took any deductions or depreciation on it.
Remember, those big companies (TurboTax, H&R Block and others) also help lower income (below $62,000/year) people use their filing software for free:
https://www.irs.gov/uac/Free-File:-Do-Your-Federal-Taxes-for-Free
But if you volunteer to help people on their taxes, you will also realize many people should NOT do their own. Not on paper. Not with software. People often pay more tax than they owe, because the law and IRS rulings are just so darn complex. And many states are worse.