Now that the 2026 tax season is fully underway, Americans nationwide are beginning the process of gathering documents and preparing to file their returns. While some Americans use varying services to file online themselves, others turn to seasoned experts to guide them through the painstaking process and mitigate any worries that may come alongside it.
For Pat Smith, helping his local clients through tax season has been something he has done for several decades now. Inside Smith’s office, outfitted with model tractors and farm decor, Smith can be found pouring over stacks of paperwork and various W-2s.
“I’ve been preparing taxes for over 25 years,” Smith said.
Smith’s journey into the tax world was not his original career plan. What began as just an idea for a part time job eventually turned into Smith’s long term career.
“I kind of always enjoyed doing it,” Smith said on the tax preparation process. I was doing my own taxes and doing several friends.’ I took a tax class with H&R Block and then they offered me a job.”
Smith worked with the company for more than 20 years before he eventually decided to continue his career by serving clients independently. Over his time as a tax preparer, he has worked with a variety of different clients, adding that most are individuals and small businesses.
“Mostly individuals, small businesses,” he said. “I do a few farms.”
Despite the vast changes in technology and tax formats over the past several decades, Smith says that the overall structure of the business has stayed mostly consistent.
“In some way, taxes are less complex, in some ways they’re more complex,” he said. “But the actual business has stayed pretty much the same.”
During the busy tax season, Smith’s workload naturally increases. Much of his workday is spent preparing returns, researching varying tax questions, and working with his clients to make sure that everything is reported accurately.
“Just doing returns, research, and stuff like that,” he said about what keeps him busiest during the spring preparation season.
Smith said that taxpayers should not expect any major changes in 2026 compared to previous filing seasons.
“There’s not really a lot of big changes,” he said. “A few minor changes that changed some of the deductions a little bit. Nothing really earth shaking new out there for the average taxpayer.”
Even without any big filing changes, Smith says that preparing taxes can still be confusing for many people. He added that the most rewarding part of the job is helping his clients further understand the complicated tax process.
“I enjoy helping them understand the tax process a little bit more,” he said. “For some people they stress about it, so [I’m] trying to relieve some of the stress.”
While there are various different online programs at various price points, Smith cautions that mistakes can still occur when taxpayers attempt to file everything by themselves.
“The programs out there are good, but you still have to input everything into them,” he said. “I see mistakes made by people putting something in the wrong place or misunderstanding something.”
Smith is registered with the Internal Revenue Service and is required to undergo continuous education programs before each season in order to stay up to date on new changes and filing requirements.
“I have to take 24 hours of class every year,” he said. “About a third of that is just updates on what happened last year.”
Smith’s training helps ensure that his clients receive accurate information and that any new updates are not missed. Although there is not one single deduction or credit that people commonly miss, he said that people can make simple mistakes that would easily have been caught by someone more experienced with taxes.
“I’ve seen it all,” he said. “You see people miss stuff you thought was elementary.”
For Solon residents and locals who have not prepared their tax documents yet, he said that most taxpayers should already have all the necessary forms they need.
“Most of the reporting documents are supposed to be out by the first of February,” Smith said. “You should have everything you’re going to have. Just everything from last year, pretty standard stuff.”
Overall, Smith said that many of his clients choose to work with him for peace of mind.
“For a lot of people it just relieves the stress to let somebody else figure out what you can benefit from and what you can’t,” he said.
Residents interested in setting up a tax appointment with Pat can contact the business at 319-530-3617.