Isabella Wiltse
Costly Mistakes, Unprofessional Behavior, and Zero Accountability We had an extremely negative experience with this firm and specifically with Chris McCleary. Due to a clear filing error on his part, we received multiple notices from the IRS stating we owed an additional $8,600+ in taxes we had already paid for a nanny and ended up having to pay twice over. Despite following their instructions exactly (including overnighting responses to the IRS), we continued to receive escalating notices, culminating in a third notice delivered via certified mail. After repeatedly asking for help, Chris became completely unresponsive. Chris had no urgency or accountability whatsoever for the mistake that had been made. We were forced to hire a new tax firm to resolve the issue and they quickly demonstrated that the original filings were done improperly — something that should never happen when you are paying for professional tax services. Not only was this a case of incompetence, but also of unprofessional conduct. Chris could not be bothered to respond to urgent emails (he once responded to a request for a call about this issue with: “No need for a phone call at 4pm (I won’t be in office anyway)” and there was a complete lack of follow-through even as IRS notices escalated. We got John, the owner of the firm, involved who felt confident the issue would be resolved and after months of the IRS claiming we owed that duplicate payment, we were forced to hire another firm to fix it. Ultimately, this firm’s handling of our taxes was negligent and dismissive of the significant financial consequences to us. I would strongly caution anyone considering using this firm — especially those with complex tax situations or higher incomes. You deserve a tax partner who is accurate, responsive, and stands behind their work. This firm, and Chris in particular, failed on all counts.