Bay Aea tax advisor with knowlege of option exercise implications?

December 18, 2013 12:27 PM

In the next few weeks I have to make a decision about exercising some incentive stock options. I have a general idea of the tax implications of this event, but I would like to meet with an accountant who can run me through the exact numbers.

Please recommend tax professionals in the San Francisco or Oakland area who you have worked with in the past specifically on AMT/option calculations. Thanks!

posted by outlaw of averages to Work & Money (3 answers total)

I use these guys in Walnut Creek (across the street from BART). They have lots of experience with securities.
posted by colin_l at 8:28 PM on December 18, 2013

Also, I should add that their standard line on stock options is this:

"Don't worry about the tax. Make the decision that's right for you, and then just figure out what the tax is. The tax is almost never significant enough to change the base of the decision."
posted by colin_l at 8:29 PM on December 18, 2013

are you buying the options or same-day-sale ? Either way, the calculations are pretty trivial - you can figure out what you'll make from the sale, and can use any number of ways to see if you'll end up in AMT land or not..

The only issue I've had is that the numbers were reported on my W2 AND my 1099 from the broker (e-trade). The W2 reported a "gross" value (as if I paid $0 for the shares) whereas the 1099 was the actual gain (ie sell price minus strike price). Which made filling out the schedule D a headache.
posted by k5.user at 7:52 AM on December 19, 2013