In This Article
This article is presented by Range.
Your CPA is great at what they do, which is to look backwards on the year. They take last year’s numbers, apply the tax code, and file your return. But by the time they see your financials, it’s too late to implement strategies that could save you thousands.
Let’s say you closed on a fourplex in June, started renovations in August, and placed tenants in October. By the time your CPA sees these transactions next March, every opportunity for proactive tax planning has already passed. The entity structure is set, the depreciation schedule is locked in, and the chance to time your income and deductions for maximum benefit has passed.
Most real estate investors don’t realize that there’s a massive difference between tax preparation and tax strategy. Tax preparation is all about compliance and happens after the fact, while a strong tax strategy is all about preserving your wealth throughout the year.
If you’re hiring a CPA just for tax preparation, you’re not just missing deductions; you’re missing the entire gamut of tax strategies available to sophisticated investors, which you can use to keep more of what you earn. Let’s talk about what these strategies actually look like, and why working with a company like Range may make all the difference.
The CPA’s Limited Scope
Your CPA isn’t a villain if all they’re doing is helping you prepare your taxes. They’re doing exactly what they’re trained, licensed, and paid to do. The problem is that what they do and what you need are two different things, and it’s important that you voice your needs ahead of tax season.
The compliance focus
Most CPAs operate in the world of compliance. Their primary job is to ensure your tax return is accurate, complete, and filed on time. They’re experts at interpreting the tax code, applying deductions, and keeping you out of trouble with the IRS. This is valuable work, but it’s fundamentally reactive.
When your CPA sits down with your documents in March, they’re working with a historical record of every transaction that has already happened. Their job is to document what occurred and calculate what you owe, based on those facts.
The time crunch reality
The typical CPA’s calendar usually looks like this: From the beginning of February through April 15th, they’re drowning in returns. During tax season, the average CPA handles anywhere from 50 to 200 returns. With corporate deadlines, extensions, and amended returns, many work 70-hour weeks just to keep up.
In this environment, your return likely only gets two to three hours of attention. That’s enough time to input numbers, check for obvious deductions, and ensure compliance. It’s not enough time to analyze whether you should have structured a property purchase differently, or whether a cost segregation study would have made sense for your portfolio, or if you could have timed your transactions better.
The liability shield
CPAs are trained to be conservative. Their professional liability insurance and license are on the line with every return they sign. When in doubt, they err on the side of caution. This means that an aggressive depreciation strategy that’s open to real estate investors might seem too risky to a regular CPA, and that a creative entity structure likely doesn’t seem worth the audit risk.
This conservative approach makes sense from their perspective. However, this could mean that you’re paying more in taxes than necessary. And this isn’t because your CPA is incompetent; it’s because their incentives are aligned with keeping you safe, not with maximizing your wealth.
Real-life example
Take Sarah, a software engineer who owns three rental properties in Austin. Her CPA filed her return perfectly last year. Every number was correct, and every form was completed.
However, her CPA never mentioned that Sarah’s $400,000 property purchase included about $20,000 in closing costs that could have been added to her depreciable basis. They didn’t suggest a cost segregation study that could have accelerated $60,000 in depreciation. They also didn’t advise her to time her roof replacement for December instead of January to maximize current-year deductions.
Why? Because by the time they saw her information, these decisions were already made. The CPA’s job was to report what happened, not to influence what should happen.
But when you work with a company like Range, your entire financial picture will be taken into consideration for any tax recommendations.
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The Missing Strategic Pieces
Lots of items fall through the cracks between your annual CPA meeting and actually optimizing your real estate taxes. And these aren’t just minor deductions; they’re fundamental strategies that can reshape your entire tax reporting.
Year-round tax planning
Your tax strategy is a year-round endeavor. It doesn’t just happen in March when you sit down with your CPA to file your taxes. It happens in January, when you’re deciding whether to sell or hold a property.
Not only that, but it happens in May, when you’re choosing which property to add to your portfolio. And it happens in September, when you’re timing repairs and making improvements to your rental property.
There are lots of ways to be proactive about minimizing your tax loss throughout the year. If you’re showing a gain on one property sale, you might strategically sell an underperforming property in the same year to offset that gain. But this only works if you’re monitoring your portfolio’s tax position throughout the year, not discovering it during tax prep.
You should also consider your income timing. Maybe you’re approaching a higher tax bracket this year. A proactive approach might be to delay closing on a sale until January, or accelerate expenses into the current year. Your CPA can help you long before March to aid in your decisions that keep more of your money in your pocket.
Entity structure optimization
Most investors default to a simple LLC for each property they add to their portfolio and leave it at that. As your portfolio grows, though, this basic structure could cost you thousands in avoidable taxes.
Should you elect S-Corp status for your property management activities? Would a series LLC make more sense? Should you create a holding company structure? What about a Delaware Statutory Trust for certain properties?
These are questions you can discuss with your CPA, but only ahead of tax season. They require forward-thinking analysis of your growth plans, risk tolerance, and long-term strategy.
The integration challenge
Most real estate investors aren’t solely real estate investors. You might have W-2 income from your day job, stock options from your tech company, and/or a side consulting business. Each income stream affects the others from a tax perspective.
Real Estate Professional Status (REPS) is a perfect example of this. If you qualify for REPS, your rental losses can offset your W-2 income.
But qualifying requires careful documentation and planning throughout the year. Your CPA can’t retroactively create the time logs and documentation you need to track all year long, so it’s important to know what your goals are as an investor, and work with your CPA throughout the year to strategize accordingly.
Similarly, if you have RSUs vesting from your tech job, the timing of when you exercise those options should be coordinated with your real estate activities.
Sell appreciated stock in a high-real estate loss year. Time property sales for years when you have stock losses. This integration requires someone looking at your complete financial picture, not just your real estate returns.
Proactive strategy examples
Cost segregation studies: These can accelerate 20% to 30% of your property’s depreciation into the first year. These need to be planned before or shortly after purchase.
1031 exchange preparation: These tax-deferred exchanges have strict timelines and requirements. You need identified properties within 45 days of the sale of your initial property, and must close within 180 days.
Qualified Business Income (QBI) deduction: This 20% deduction for pass-through entities has income thresholds and requires specific structuring. Maximizing it means managing your taxable income throughout the year.
Short-term rental strategies: The tax benefits of short-term rentals are significant if you qualify. Qualifying requires specific usage patterns and documentation that must be planned and tracked all year.
The pattern is extremely clear: Every one of these strategies requires proactive planning, not reactive filing.
The Real Cost of DIY Coordination
If you recognize these gaps in your tax strategy and preparation, it’s essential to fix them early on, and with the right CPA (or CPA team). You’ll need to become the quarterback of a team that actually meets, and help coordinate with professionals from various backgrounds regularly.
The professional juggling act
Most investors have the following team in place:
A CPA for taxes
An attorney for entity structure and asset protection
A financial advisor for investment planning
An insurance agent for coverage
Potentially a bookkeeper for monthly tracking
Each professional operates in their own silo, seeing only their piece of your financial puzzle. You, as the investor, are the only one who sees the complete picture, and you likely have so much on your plate that you can’t spot the connections and conflicts between all these moving parts and professionals.
Your attorney sets up an LLC structure that makes sense for liability, but creates tax complications your CPA discovers too late. Your financial advisor recommends portfolio changes without considering the tax implications for your real estate holdings. And your insurance agent doesn’t know about the entity restructuring that affects your coverage needs.
It’s your responsibility to coordinate all of these moving parts, because at the end of the day, it’s your money in (or out) of your pocket.
The hidden time tax
When coordinating all these professionals, there’s a practical cost that should be considered. You’re scheduling separate meetings with each professional, you’re explaining your situation to each of them, you’re trying to translate advice from one expert to another, and you end up catching discrepancies and asking whether your CPA’s advice conflicts with your attorney’s structure.
If you value your time at $100 per hour and you’re spending two to three hours per month just coordinating between professionals, that’s $2,400 to $3,600 of lost productivity annually—not to mention the mental load of keeping all these balls in the air.
The Integrated Solution
This fragmentation is exactly why modern platforms like Range are revolutionizing how successful real estate investors manage their wealth. Instead of juggling multiple professionals or tools that never talk to each other, imagine having a unified team that sees your complete financial picture and actively coordinates to maximize your opportunities.
Range isn’t just another tax preparation service or investment advisor; it’s an all-in-one wealth management platform built specifically for high earners with complex financial situations, including real estate investors who are tired of leaving money on the table.
The power of integration
When you have your entire wealth picture on one platform, your tax strategy can directly inform your investment decisions. Your real estate holdings are evaluated in context with your stock compensation, while your entity structures are optimized for both tax efficiency and asset protection simultaneously.
When Range’s team reviews your portfolio, they’re not just reacting to last year’s returns; they’re actively analyzing your upcoming RSU vesting schedule, evaluating whether a cost segregation study makes sense for your newest property, and timing your investment moves to maximize tax efficiency. Everything is proactive, coordinated, and optimized for your specific situation.
Year-round strategy, not just tax season
With Range, tax planning happens in January, June, and October, not just during the April scramble. Their CFPs and CPAs work with you throughout the year, proactively identifying opportunities to maximize your investments.
If you have a property you’re thinking about selling, they’ll analyze whether a 1031 exchange makes sense, given your complete financial picture. If you have stock options vesting next quarter, they’ll help you coordinate the timing with your real estate activities to minimize tax impact.
This is the difference between reactive filing and proactive wealth building.
Real estate expertise built in
Range understands real estate investors because they’ve built specific tools and partnerships for them. Their partnership with Zillow helps you evaluate new opportunities. Their team understands cost segregation, depreciation strategies, and the nuances of real estate professional status. They speak your language and understand your goals.
Stop Leaving Money on the Table
At the end of the day, you have two options: keep coordinating between disconnected professionals, hoping nothing falls through the cracks; or you can modernize your approach with a platform that brings everything together.
Range offers all-in-one wealth management for a flat fee, with zero AUM fees eating into your returns. Their team of CFPs and CPAs work together year-round, ensuring you capture every opportunity to build and preserve wealth.
Ready to see how much you could be saving? Schedule your personalized Range demo today, and discover what integrated wealth management really looks like for real estate investors.
Stop looking backward and start building forward.
