You may not need anyone
Plenty of people do not need to pay for tax preparation, and it is better to say so plainly. Software is built for the common case, and the common case is handled well.
- Your income is wages on W-2s, plus bank interest and ordinary dividends
- You lived in Massachusetts all year and worked only here
- You take the standard deduction federally
- Your filing status and household did not change
- You sold nothing except, perhaps, a few funds with cost basis reported on the 1099-B
- You have no letters from the IRS or DOR open
Situations where a preparer usually earns the fee
The situations below share a feature: the software asks a question and your answer requires judgment or records that the software cannot check. That is where errors happen, and where the federal and Massachusetts rules often part ways.
| Situation | Why it gets harder | Massachusetts angle |
|---|---|---|
| Rental property, including an owner-occupied two-family | Depreciation, splitting expenses, repairs vs improvements | Massachusetts does not allow federal bonus depreciation |
| Self-employment or a side business | Schedule C, self-employment tax, estimated payments | Different estimated tax rules; no QBI deduction |
| K-1 from a partnership, S corporation or trust | Late forms, basis, state-source income | Massachusetts may treat items differently |
| Sold a home, business or large investment | Basis records, exclusions, timing | Gain counts toward the 4% surtax |
| Moved into or out of Massachusetts | Two states, income split by date | Form 1-NR/PY, prorated exemptions |
| First year with tips, overtime, car loan or senior deductions | New Schedule 1-A, eligibility tests | None of these are allowed on Form 1 |
| Turned 65, retired, started a pension | Social Security taxation, IRA basis | Social Security excluded; circuit breaker credit |
| A letter from the IRS or DOR | Needs a response that matches the return | DOR notices have their own process |
A two-minute self-check
- 1.Did anything in the table above apply to you this year? If none did, software is probably fine.
- 2.Did you use software last year and get a letter from the IRS or DOR afterward? That suggests something is being missed.
- 3.Can you answer every software question from a document you have in hand? If you are guessing, stop there.
- 4.Did the software ask about Massachusetts-only items: rent, commuter passes, 529 contributions, the circuit breaker? If you are not sure, check them.
- 5.Would a mistake cost more than a preparer's fee? For a sale, a move or a rental, it usually would.
A middle option
Some people prepare their own return and pay for a review: a preparer looks over what software produced, particularly the Massachusetts side and any new federal deductions, before it is filed. Others use a preparer only for the year something changes and go back to software afterward.
Either approach is reasonable. What matters is that the unusual year gets more attention than the routine ones.
Where we come in
We prepare federal and Massachusetts individual returns, and we will tell you if your situation does not need us. If it does, we give you a scope and a price in writing before anything starts.
Figures on this page were checked against the IRS and Massachusetts sources listed alongside on 28 Sep 2026. They change — confirm the current amount before relying on one.
General information for owner-led businesses, not advice for your specific situation. Tax and accounting rules change, and how they apply depends on facts particular to your business. Talk to us — or to another qualified professional — before acting on anything here.
