My Son, Potty Training and the IRS

What The?!

Your first question, logically, is what the heck do these three things have in common? Read on…

Just Plain Stubborn

I love my son but he is very very stubborn. He is 3 years old and we are in the process of potty training him. Unfortunately, he is not making it easy.

We’ve tried words of praise and rewards – nothing. Sterner words and maybe letting him feel a bit damp for a spell – he laughs at us puny mortals. Finally, in desperation (and because Mom hates doing tons of laundry), we take him to the bathroom as soon as we see/hear sounds of impending waste disposal.

Slowly, painfully but gradually he is beginning to comply. My goal is to have him housebroken before he goes off to college. So how does this apply to the IRS?

Enter the IRS

Like a parent, the IRS uses a carrot and stick approach to getting compliance from taxpayers who haven’t paid their taxes.

If you file and pay your taxes on time, you get the warm satisfaction of doing your civic duty. For most people they take the easy route to compliance. But some people whether by accident or on purpose (like my son) they cannot pay their taxes on time and so the IRS has to take it up a notch.

The IRS sends out streams of notices notifying you that you have failed to pay your taxes (which get sterner upon each subsequent letter). It will even tack on penalties and interest to let you know that things will only get better once you get with the program.

Failing at that, the IRS begins to take more drastic steps like putting a lien on your property (so when you sell you have to pay the IRS first) or by seizing money in your bank account or garnishing your wages. At this stage, the IRS is not going to wait for you to get with the program, like we are with potty training my son.

In Summary

If you find yourself in trouble – don’t let it get so bad that the IRS has to stand over you (hopefully no where near a toilet). I hope you will not be as stubborn as my son so I have provided a helpful video (a painlessly short one) that explains how to get started with resolving your IRS tax debt. Click the link here.

Sincerely,

James “Wish-Me-Luck” Wade, cleaning up IRS messes since 2013.

I am Maine’s IRS Problem Solver. My firm helps Maine taxpayers in trouble. If you or someone you know in Southern Maine wants more information on how to resolve your unpaid taxes, please feel free to contact me directly at 207-502-7181 or by filing out my contact form. A Maine tax attorney can help you consider your options.

James D. Wade, Esq.
Law Office of James D. Wade
57 Portland Road, Unit 3
Kennebunk, ME 04043
207-502-7181
jwade@jdwadelaw.com
www.jdwadelaw.com

Our Satisfied Clients

Do you owe in back taxes to the IRS and are under audit? Afriad to deal with the IRS? Hear from a few of our satisfied clients who we helped navigate their tax issues.

An incredible result!

I engaged Jim Wade earlier in 2018 to represent me in an IRS collection case arising out of several years of unpaid personal federal taxes, and was impressed by his professionalism, knowledge of tax laws, and experience in representing taxpayers before the IRS. At our first meeting he explained clearly the IRS collection process and recommended a number of steps I should take to put our position in the best possible light. He worked closely with me to gather all necessary information and formulate an offer of a repayment plan for the nearly $360,000 I owed in unpaid taxes, penalties, and interest.

David G., Falmouth, ME

Incredible Commitment and Service

My husband and I were looking to qualify for an offer in compromise with the IRS to pay off taxes that we owed. We hired Mr. Wade for a very fair price. After he investigated and crunched the numbers in every way possible to help us, he concluded that we would not qualify. His commitment to helping us did not end there. He continued to work with us to pay off our taxes, offering his expert advice. He answered all our questions thoroughly and continued to help us see this through to the end. We are very grateful for all of his hard work, his knowledge in tax law, and his full commitment to us as his clients. I would recommend his firm to anyone who needs help in taking care of and resolving any tax issues they may have no matter how big or small.

Heather C., Gardiner, ME

Highly Recommended

Jordan H., Wells, ME

Easy to Work with

We have worked with James on an IRS issue that had been on-going since 2019. The IRS claimed we owed them more than we had paid in taxes on our Federal return. When we followed James’s advice and filed an amended return, the IRS agreed with James position and we received a significant refund (enough to buy a good used car!). James is easy to work with and highly responsive. He is willing to answer emails and provide advice without always charging hourly fees. Highly recommend him and I will use him in the future if we ever have IRS issues again.

Stuart J., Florida

kind, helpful, and reassuring

I am an attorney in a different field of practice and I have clients with a variety of income tax needs. I need the tax information I receive and pass along to be spot-on accurate. I recently had an extended consultation with James, and I found that he has in-depth knowledge of the tax laws. His explanations were in plain English and provided great clarity. His demeanor is kind, helpful, and reassuring. He is a valuable professional resource.

Brent Poirier, Attorney in Portsmouth NH

Fantastic Tax Attorney

I was referred to James Wade for a very cumbersome tax lien bill problem that was put on my home by the IRS. James was extremely helpful and gave me tremendously helpful legal advice whenever I had a question or thought of going a different legal route. Thank goodness to his legal advice I waited it out and he did accomplish and was successful with having the lien removed from my property. This was so crucial as I am a single mother and needed this legal help desperately and he saved us from a lot of financial agony…seriously! If you have a tax issue James would be your go to guy for his legal expertise. He’s very helpful, prompt and available to you. He will get back to you right away if you leave him a message and actually prefers the phone as a better means of communication depending on the status of your case. To me that means he really cares and takes each case personally and wants to see each client be successful. I’m so glad that he was referred to me and I could not have asked for a better nor more competent attorney! Highly, highly recommend him!!

Elena B, Westbrook, ME

info@beacontaxadvocates.com

207-502-7181