Hello ALTA:
Today I want to talk about the "cost" or should I say VALUE of knowledge, experience and customer service, you being in the Title industry I am sure are ALL familiar with these concepts.
A little over a year ago we received a call from a foreign seller about FIRPTA compliance, we gave him a quote and will not hear from him until TODAY!, He hired a "much cheaper firm" to do the paperwork and not only the paperwork was done incorrect, the FIRPTA withholding check was given to the buyer without instructions, buyer sent the check almost 8 months later, seller has not been able to recover the FIRPTA deposit (no wonder, money was sent so late), the buyer received an IRS letter, just a TRIFECTA, needless to say this situation has put the seller in a very difficult financial hardship because the withholding is over $85,000.00, seller is driving the agent crazy and the agent is trying to point the finger out the Title company when really there is no one to blame for a cheap tax work nobody bother to review before it was given to buyer.
You know? Fixing something that was done wrong or incorrect in the first place is more expensive than doing things right at front end.... yes, there are people without the knowledge and experience who think is "easy to just write information on a form that you can find online" but when something goes wrong it is vital to have a company who knows how to complete forms correctly, give precise instructions to all parties involved, make themselves available in case something needs to be addressed and mostly, a firm who understands how to deal with the IRS.
IRS misapply payments, loses documents and loses track of transactions (not only FIRPTA) etc., you want to have a company who has experience resolving matters for your agents, sellers and the buyer, so they don't give the YOU headaches.
Remember, sometimes, people get what they pay for.... 🤷♀️
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Mary Enzi CAA
Tax Solutions – FIRPTA Consulting
[email protected]+1 (281) 578-1040
Barker TX
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