updated: accountants critical of competitor price-cutting

the average firm may be trimming billing rate increases. but 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 readers aren’t average.

 

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

heading into tax season, cpa firms may be facing new pricing pressures, even as wages and consumer prices increase at record rates, according to a 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 study of new government economic data.

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to be sure, many 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 members responding to our survey are resisting the pressures, and plan on pushing ahead with price increases.

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while inflation is pushing prices up at record rates in major sectors of the u.s. economy, cpa firms appear to be trimming their billing rate increases, slicing 0.2 percent off the average price from october to november, according to 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research.

in malvern, pa., tony coldanato is planning 6-10 percent hikes, explaining in our survey,  “i feel that after this past two tax seasons–and knowing what is ahead dealing with irs, pa, efile issues, and reconciling of advance tax credits/stimulus etc.–i will need to increase fees”

seventy miles west, in york, pa., cpa angie ayster usually raises rates about 5 percent a year. “our strategy this season is 10 percent,” she tells our survey.

in comments below, cpa craig franklin in san antonio, says “i disagree completely since there are going to many issues dealing with the irs, the advanced child credit, late economic stimulus payments, irs backlog, etc.”

it should be said that your mileage may vary. 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 readers represent a particularly savvy and successful sector of the profession.

with the nation’s supply chains stretched to the limit by a surge in consumer spending, overall prices at the wholesale level rose a record 9.6 percent from a year ago, fueled by strong consumer spending and big kinks in supply chains.

cpa firms are showing strong pricing trends in bookkeeping and compilations, but weakness in tax prep and audits.

the latest month-to-month price cuts at cpa firms represent the third monthly decline in the past four months. on average, cpa billing rates have risen in eight of the last 10 years, with declines of 0.6 percent in 2014 and 0.2 percent in plague-ridden 2020.

the picture looks a little brighter when comparing year-over-year changes. on an annual comparison, cpa firms were getting a 0.4 percent hike in rates in november, following a year-over-year gain of 0.9 percent increase in october. but that still represents a slowdown. the biggest year-over-year gains this year came in august, with a 2.6 percent jump in pricing.

in auditing, rates declined month-to-month 1 percent in november, following retreats of 1 percent in october and 0.3 percent in september. but compared to a year ago, when audit prices declined an average of 2.2 percent, this year’s term sheets look much improved, with a 1.3 percent year-over-year advance in november, after a 3 percent hike in october and a robust 5 percent jump in september.

in cpa firm tax prep, prices rose 0.3 percent month-to-month in november, a slowdown from the 0.7 percent advance in october. year-over-year, prices sank 2.3 percent in november, after a 2.7 percent decline in october. november’s decline represents the eighth consecutive month of annual declines.

in bookkeeping and compilation at cpa firms, billing rates rose 0.1 percent in november, after a 0.4 percent pullback in october. year-over-year, pricing showed a robust 5.3 percent 12-month gain in november, following a 5.2 percent increase in october.

posted on december 14, 2021