Seeking affordable financial planning/tax help!

January 21, 2013 3:03 PM

I'd like to have a professional guide my new husband and I through filing taxes jointly, investing and saving for future goals, and so forth. How on earth do I find a financial planner to help us get started?

I feel like most financial planning is geared (and priced) towards middle-aged professionals who have Jobs, 401ks, estates, houses, cars, and all those Big Things most people hope to have someday. But my husband and I live off his grad school student stipend, and we have big loans and little assets. We're early 20-somethings just getting started in this complicated life. :)

While I'm taking an online financial planning class to try to educate myself, I could really use professional help, but I cannot afford a lot. An additional pressing thing is that we'll be filing taxes together for the first time, which I'd like to do ASAP. Where should I be looking for help?

If geographic specificity helps, we'll go for Boston area or NYC.

posted by The Biggest Dreamer to Work & Money (4 answers total)

If I were you I'd give Turbotax a try on the taxes. With very little income taxes are generally very simple. Your will probably be straightforward even with your husband having to do his own withholding. His university will probably have more info on this, maybe on their website. Harvard's for example.

Anyway with Turbotax I think you only pay at the end so you can go through the process and if you can't figure something out, stop, and then look in to paying a professional. Your situation is probably sufficiently simple that someone from H&R Block or the like would do the trick.
posted by Aizkolari at 3:21 PM on January 21, 2013

Best answer: Start here. Always use a fee-based financial planner. The person you contact will likely have different "price points" depending on what complexity you bring to the table.
posted by dhartung at 3:22 PM on January 21, 2013 [3 favorites]

Response by poster: Thanks for the link, dhartung!
Also to address the other tip: I've used Turbotax for years, and it's been more or less fine. I guess I'm just really afraid of mucking things up this year. :) But maybe I should consider H&R Block or the like..
posted by The Biggest Dreamer at 8:08 PM on January 21, 2013

But maybe I should consider H&R Block or the like..

NO! RUN AWAY!

H&R Block is a Preditory Lender. They offer high interest loans against your tax refund. Doing your joint tax return is a cinch, I use TurboTax for this.

If you feel you need a pro to do your taxes, for goodness sake us an accountant that's recommended by a friend or relative.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 9:30 AM on January 22, 2013