Who Are We?


So, what the heck is this firm about? Before I answer that, let’s talk about you:

You are a Canadian, running a private business (maybe you started it from scratch, or maybe you took it over from family) and are married to a US spouse whom you met while down south for university. Your business is growing, but you would like something more from your accountant than just an annual income statement and tax return. You can’t quite put your finger on what that would look like, but your gut tells you that you’re missing something.

Your son is down in the US for school now, but plans on coming back to Canada to get involved with the family business. You aren’t sure how to answer his question about whether he can claim his US tuition as a credit on his Canadian return. You also aren’t sure about the best way to transition him into the business once he comes home.

Your daughter is in university in the same city as you, and when she’s not working part-time you’ll find her at the horse barn taking her jumper horse over double-oxers. She sold her first horse earlier this year, and you’re not sure how she should deal with the sale money.

You have bank accounts at multiple banks, usually corporate with one and personal with another. And right now the bankers are calling you saying something along the lines of “You need to make your money work for you.” When you look at your broker statements, there are certainly pages of activity, but you’re not sure whether the investments are doing what the pretty graph says they are doing.

And when you look at the annual broker fees and professional fees you’re paying for the actual service that you get… Well let’s just say you don’t get a warm and fuzzy feeling inside. In fact, you’re lucky to get anyone on the phone half the time. And when you do call, a week later you get a bill for $280 (0.2 of an hour, plus the admin fee of course….)

If only there was someone who could help with all of this, and make sure that all of the bankers, accountants, lawyers, insurance agents, and property managers, are actually doing what they say they are. And even better if the explanation would be something that was in plain English and not a bunch of financial and tax jargon.

If this sounds like you, you are a good fit for what we do at the firm here. We aren’t specialists, but we do provide a specific set of services that are helpful for people like you.

My brother said once, “If you can’t explain what you do in three words or less, you’re in a pyramid scheme.” I agree with him. His point was that there are a lot of people, businesses, and services, who purposely make things sound complicated so that you think you need them, but then don’t actually do anything for you.

So without any fluff, this is what our firm is about:

We add numbers.

And then we use those numbers to keep everyone honest. These numbers are not from a once a year, one-size-fits-all Quickbooks + CaseWare template that your life was shoe-horned in to. Instead, we give you a specific and true picture of your personal, business, family, and financial life, in hopes that you can use those numbers to help you make some informed decisions.  No fluff. No drama. No complicated financial buzzwords.

We are not the best firm for everyone. We don’t try to be everything to everyone. But if you’ve read this far, give me a call. Whether it’s for a second opinion, or just to see if you’d be a good fit here, I’m always happy to chat.

And if you don’t meet the criteria above, don’t worry. Check out our store for how-to’s and guides, or our podcast over on www.canadiantaxpodcast.ca, where I do my best to provide general commentary on the Canadian tax, business, and financial landscape.