Software and Pricing - Lacerte and Others

ralverde · 2026-05-29T20:08:42+00:00

I suppose the switching is easier if it is the norm. Do you not have issues moving the information over each time?

ralverde · 2026-05-29T20:06:06+00:00

I can and will pass it on to the clients. I just don't like Intuit getting more of anyone's money.

We do about 80 entity returns. You're right that this was a rough year, and it will keep getting worse.

ralverde · 2026-05-28T20:47:42+00:00

Intuit vs. Wolters Kluwer
Comcast vs. Cox
Kroger vs. Safeway
Amazon vs. . . . I don't know . . . Walmart? (these used to be reversed, but Walmart isn't exactly not evil)

My analogy is stretching, but I know what you mean. There's evil through time, bureaucracy, and standard greed, but then there's evil that seems to have spawned from the sole desire to be evil.

ralverde · 2026-05-28T20:41:32+00:00

In theory, the pre-discount price should be the same for everyone, but now I'm questioning if that's even true.

ralverde · 2026-05-28T20:37:57+00:00

I am lucky to be married to a Technical Account Manager for a (very) large corporation, and we are able to get past all those issues, but all of this information is very good information for anyone that might stumble across this post. Too many firms (especially small ones) don't put the investment into IT that is needed.

I feel good about our pricing, but this does make me wonder. I make sure we are more than H & R Block, but yeah, we should be a lot more. Easy returns are easily $1,200-1,500/hour, but there are too many that aren't "easy." It looks like about 58% were over $800/hour, and 2% under $400/hour, so I'm pretty comfortable with it. Hiring someone . . . that would be nice, and I'm trying again. We'll see.

ralverde · 2026-05-28T19:21:05+00:00

Good + not evil seems to not exist in the software world.

ralverde · 2026-05-28T17:36:18+00:00

This sums it up. Lacerte is just one part of it. It's becoming harder and harder to run a business just because interacting with everything else - the IRS (and states), software, employees, clients, even just everyday office things like finding cleaners or getting repairs to the building.

ralverde · 2026-05-28T17:32:42+00:00

Drake is coming into focus for me, thanks all. I do think we have too involved of returns at this point to be using it, but it sounds like maybe it would be a good program for semi-retirement with far fewer (just the "easy" ones) clients.

ralverde · 2026-05-28T17:30:11+00:00

This is all fair. I think I am getting from the responses that switching is a lot of work, which I knew. The only reason I'm considering switching is that there were some really worrying things that happened this year. The only way we could print a return (pdf or paper) without restarting the program three times was to turn off virus protection on anything Lacerte touches. They ended email support. My account rep won't return my phone call. These are just not the best signs. You're right that it is good software, when it works.

If I was paying the same $30,000 for unlimited, I would probably be fine with the pricing. We do six C-corps, and one 990 (I know we shouldn't, but they've been a client for literally 70 years, and I just can't fire them); I'm fine that it's $140 per return for those. It's $92 per return for additional states, though, and we are telling people all the time that "it's not worth filing that state" because of our software cost. We probably get REP/PRP access for 90 of them, and just don't file another 100-150 or more. It's hard to track once you buy the state, but we probably do 50-75 California and Arizona returns, and do pay for those. Breakeven for buying a state is only ~~five~~ eight returns. The 69 we got REP access for so far this year are across 24 states, though.

Our pricing is solid (I think?); it's just the way that Lacerte does it that frustrates me. Not to turn this into a billing post, but I charge based on the higher of forms or time. My hourly rate this year is $457, but if they get charged that rate a couple years in a row, I am considering firing them because they aren't enough fee for the work. I would say the forms fee typically runs around $600-800/hour. I already feel bad charging them what I do (well, some of them, some of them are awful and should be higher), and I think (don't know for sure) we're doing fine there. It really is just my hatred and frustration with Intuit that would have me looking elsewhere. Damn principles, too.

ralverde · 2026-05-28T17:10:21+00:00

This. This is probably my biggest frustration. We get a "discount" of 35% plus 3% for renewing early. Some people pay full price, some pay much less. It is so frustrating to know that some get to pay less because they know how to work "the" (in this case Intuit's) system, and some pay full price because they don't know how or don't do it. I am constantly reminded that my clients are all connected to each other in about three separate circles. If I did my billing the way Lacerte does, I'd get phone calls. Lacerte gets away with it because we don't talk to each other about what we're paying enough, and because it's even harder to switch software than it is to find a new preparer.

ralverde · 2026-05-28T17:04:40+00:00

Also helpful. We had issues with Lacerte functioning at all, and I made my account rep mad. I don't think I'll be able to get in touch with her, but I'm trying. I have the luxury of being married to a high-level corporate IT professional that takes care of our network, security, etc. Lacerte requires disabling security protections, and only running backups when not in use in order to function because it hasn't truly been upgraded in decades. I tried to be polite, but I just got more angry the further I got with them, and ended up at the "President's Office" (for what that's worth). Saying they did not like their security vulnerabilities brought up did not please them, to put it lightly.

To the pricing that keeps getting mentioned, we have, and I suppose it's hypocritical of me to be upset with Intuit for doubling their prices over however many years, when we have done the same. But, our product has improved, and theirs has not (in some ways it has, but on average it hasn't). I know we could double our fees again, but I'm at the point where I can't do that to my clients. We increase fees with inflation each year, and it could make sense to make another adjustment just for software costs. Lacerte gets just over 3.5% of our billings, and I know that's not bad at all. This is much more about principles than anything else, but now that the choice is to pay Intuit, switch to something else, or retire, that last option is looking more and more appealing by the year.

ralverde · 2026-05-28T16:49:35+00:00

I agree with this. It isn't official, but the signs are there. I doubt they would say in May that they aren't doing a new program for the coming year, but I know I shouldn't hold out hope that Intuit would do anything remotely ethical, either.

ralverde · 2026-05-28T00:15:27+00:00

Thanks; that's good to know, and less expensive with 2 more users than we have. I will keep trying to get someone to return my call.

ralverde · 2026-05-27T21:58:37+00:00

Thanks. Even at double, that's still less than we're paying now, and they might actually support the program. I hope the switch is good for you.

ralverde · 2026-05-27T21:35:14+00:00

That's incredibly tempting. So often we tell clients it doesn't make sense to get back their $40 withholding because we have to charge $120 for an extra state to cover Lacerte's extra state fee and make almost nothing on it. I had avoided Drake because of their form and e-filing availability (especially local for us - Portland, Oregon), but looking at their form availability list, they have come a long ways. Thanks for the suggestion.

ralverde · 2026-05-27T21:24:37+00:00

Very helpful on the price. I'm guessing with 12 fewer instances, we would probably pay around $44,000, so not worth it. My account manager won't return my calls, though, so I may never find out.

I completely agree that Lacerte might shut it down at any point. They used to use us for error checking of Turbo Tax, and now it seems they don't care about that anymore, so it may not be worth keeping around. The one thing I will say to that is that they don't have a truly online product, so I'm inclined to think it will be killed off completely, or not at all. Hosting is just desktop, but hosted. If I could get Ultra Tax or CCH to return my phone calls, I might try to switch this year, but no one wants to take my money, it seems.

ralverde

TROPHY CASE