Daniel Dundon
WHAT DO YOU DO?
“I’m a tax advisor that mainly works with service or creative professionals who work for themselves.”
My clients consist of photographers, cinematographers, designers, writers, makers, dancers, developers and many other creative types.
WHAT STEPS DID YOU TAKE TO GET TO WHERE YOU ARE NOW?
Although I have a degree in accounting and an MBA, I gained most of my tax knowledge through experience and starting businesses myself. My wife and I previously owned and operated a few small businesses so we're familiar with the self employed lifestyle.
How do you stand out in your field?
Tax work can be very complicated so I try my best to communicate the strategies and information in a simple and straight forward way. I believe that if someone truly understands something, that they can explain it to someone very clearly. From a communication standpoint, I try my best to be as responsive as possible to my clients and treat them as I would like to be treated. From a tax standpoint, I am very passionate about making sure that single owner professionals are filing with the proper entity structure. If a taxpayer is filing incorrectly, they could be paying anywhere from $5-10K in unnecessary self employment taxes.
WHAT ARE YOU WORKING ON RIGHT NOW?
Studying how my clients will be impacted by the new Tax Cuts and Jobs Act!
WHAT'S YOUR STYLE/PERSPECTIVE/TASTE? DO YOU HAVE A PROJECT THAT REPRESENTS THIS?
As a tax advisor that serves creative professionals, I myself do not have a style that people would find interesting other than that I value simplicity and run my firm in a minimalist setting.
WE ARE ALL SLASHIES WITH MULTIPLE SKILLS, WHICH ONE DO YOU WISH YOU COULD DO MORE OFTEN?
I love serving creative professionals of all types but would love to work with more social media writers and marketers.
WHAT IS FRUSTRATING YOU RIGHT NOW?
The government.
IF YOU COULD HIRE SOMEONE FOR $20/HR, WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE THEM DO TO MAKE YOUR DAY EASIER?
Sit on hold with the IRS for me.
LET'S BRING OUT THE TIME MACHINE. WHAT DO YOU WISH YOU COULD HAVE TOLD YOURSELF, WHEN, AND WHY?
Go back 10 years ago when I started my career and tell myself that obstacles exist just to make you better. Don't be afraid to face a challenge because you will either conquer it or learn a lesson that will make you stronger next time.
IF YOU COULD TALK TO AN EXPERT TO GAIN MORE INSIGHT ON SOMETHING, WHAT WOULD IT BE ABOUT?
Advanced strategies for deductions relating to self employed taxpayers.
WHAT KIND OF OPPORTUNITIES/PROJECTS ARE YOU LOOKING FOR?
I am looking for creative professionals that need tax planning, tax preparation or IRS help.
DESCRIBE YOUR IDEAL JOB/CLIENT/COLLABORATION.
I love finding "one man bands" that have been filing on a Sch C for years and then saving them thousands of dollars by converting them to a Subchapter S corp.
WHAT IS YOUR HOURLY RATE, RETAINER, OR SALARY RANGE?
I generally charge a fixed price by the form for tax preparation and then hourly if someone has a project like IRS representation or bookkeeping cleanup. There are so many variables that go into quoting for tax preparation but I would estimate on average a 1040 return with a Sch C (sole proprietor) would be in the $350 range and a 1120S (s corp) return would be in the $750 range. All returns include e-file and states.
HOW SHOULD SOMEONE APPROACH YOU ABOUT WORKING TOGETHER?
Call or email with the current state of your business, state of your books and what you are trying to learn or accomplish from a tax perspective.
HOW DO YOU STAY CREATIVE?
2 year olds.
This member profile was originally published in January 2019.