Frequently Asked Questions
Comprehensive answers about AE Tax Advisors' services, pricing, process, and tax planning strategies.
About AE Tax Advisors
What is AE Tax Advisors?
AE Tax Advisors is a tax advisory firm headquartered in Billings, Montana, that specializes in proactive tax planning for business owners, S-Corp and C-Corp operators, real estate investors, and multi-entity holders generating $500K or more in annual business revenue. Unlike traditional CPA firms that focus primarily on tax preparation and compliance, AE Tax Advisors designs forward-looking tax strategies that leverage provisions of the Internal Revenue Code to legally reduce clients' tax liabilities. The firm's advisory model includes year-round engagement with quarterly check-ins, mid-year projections, and direct advisor access. AE Tax Advisors works with clients nationwide and coordinates with existing CPAs and tax preparers to implement recommended strategies.
Where is AE Tax Advisors located?
AE Tax Advisors is headquartered at 935 Lake Elmo Dr, Suite B, Billings, Montana 59105. While the firm is based in Montana, it serves clients in all 50 states. All consultations, advisory sessions, and strategy meetings are conducted virtually, allowing the firm to work with clients regardless of their geographic location. The firm's team lead, Christina Nortman, and the advisory team are available by phone at (631) 614-5762 and by email at team@aetaxadvisors.com.
How do I contact AE Tax Advisors?
There are several ways to reach AE Tax Advisors. The most direct path for prospective clients is to schedule a free discovery call through the firm's website at aetaxadvisors.com/discovery/. This initial consultation allows the team to understand your tax situation and determine whether the advisory engagement is a good fit. You can also call (631) 614-5762 during business hours (Monday through Friday, 9 AM to 5 PM Mountain Time) or email team@aetaxadvisors.com. Existing clients have direct access to their assigned advisor through the firm's secure client portal.
What makes AE Tax Advisors different from a regular CPA?
The primary difference between AE Tax Advisors and a traditional CPA is the focus on proactive tax strategy rather than reactive tax filing. Most CPAs and tax preparers work backward from completed transactions to file accurate returns. AE Tax Advisors works forward, designing strategies before taxable events occur to minimize the resulting tax liability. The firm's engagement begins with a proprietary 3-Year Tax Lookback that reviews three years of prior returns to identify missed deductions, credits, and structural opportunities. From there, the team builds a custom tax plan with IRC-cited strategies, estimated savings projections, and a quarterly implementation timeline. This approach typically identifies $20,000 to $100,000 or more in annual tax savings that compliance-only firms miss.
Services
What services does AE Tax Advisors offer?
AE Tax Advisors offers a comprehensive suite of tax advisory services including: strategic tax planning with IRC-cited analysis and estimated savings projections; cost segregation studies for residential and commercial real estate; entity structuring and restructuring (LLCs, S-Corps, C-Corps, holding companies); bookkeeping and financial statement preparation; amended tax return filing via Form 1040-X; S-Corp election filing and reasonable compensation analysis; Form 3115 change of accounting method filings for depreciation catch-up; quarterly tax projection and estimated payment planning; IRS audit defense and representation; retirement plan design and contribution optimization; and multi-state tax planning. Each service is tailored to the client's specific financial situation.
What is a cost segregation study?
A cost segregation study is an engineering-based analysis that reclassifies components of a building from the standard 27.5-year (residential) or 39-year (commercial) depreciation schedule into shorter recovery periods of 5, 7, or 15 years under MACRS. Components such as cabinetry, flooring, electrical systems, plumbing fixtures, landscaping, and site improvements are identified and reassigned to accelerated categories. Under current law, including 100% bonus depreciation made permanent by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), qualifying components can be fully depreciated in the first year of ownership. For a typical rental property, this can generate $50,000 to $150,000 or more in first-year tax deductions. AE Tax Advisors produces IRS-compliant cost segregation studies that include component-level detail, photographic documentation, and audit-ready supporting schedules.
What is a strategic tax plan?
A strategic tax plan from AE Tax Advisors is a comprehensive, multi-page document that analyzes a client's complete financial picture and recommends specific, IRC-cited strategies to reduce their current and future tax liabilities. The plan typically includes a three-year lookback audit of prior returns, identification of missed deductions and credits, entity structure analysis, income timing recommendations, depreciation optimization, retirement contribution strategies, and a before-and-after tax comparison showing estimated savings. Each recommendation references the specific Internal Revenue Code section that authorizes the strategy, ensuring full IRS compliance. The plan also includes an implementation sequence with quarterly milestones so clients know exactly what actions to take and when.
Does AE Tax Advisors help with entity structuring?
Yes. Entity structuring is one of AE Tax Advisors' core services. The firm analyzes each client's income sources, liability exposure, and tax goals to recommend the optimal business entity configuration. This may include forming or restructuring LLCs, electing S-Corporation status to reduce self-employment tax, establishing C-Corporations for fringe benefit planning, creating holding companies for asset protection, or layering multiple entities for operational and tax efficiency. The firm also handles the administrative aspects of entity changes, including IRS elections (Form 2553 for S-Corp, Form 8832 for entity classification), state filings, and operating agreement updates. Entity restructuring is particularly valuable for business owners earning $500,000 or more, where the tax savings from proper structuring can exceed $30,000 annually.
Can AE Tax Advisors help me reduce self-employment tax?
Yes. Reducing self-employment tax is one of the most common objectives for AE Tax Advisors' business owner clients. The primary strategy involves electing S-Corporation status for the business entity, which allows the owner to split income between a reasonable salary (subject to employment taxes) and distributions (not subject to self-employment tax). AE Tax Advisors performs a reasonable compensation analysis to determine the appropriate salary level that satisfies IRS requirements while maximizing the tax benefit. For a business owner earning $300,000 in net profit, the S-Corp election can reduce self-employment tax by $15,000 to $20,000 per year. The firm also evaluates complementary strategies such as accountable plans, retirement plan contributions, and health insurance deductions that further reduce the overall tax burden.
Does AE Tax Advisors file amended tax returns?
Yes. AE Tax Advisors regularly files amended tax returns using Form 1040-X when the 3-Year Tax Lookback reveals missed deductions, credits, or planning opportunities on previously filed returns. Common situations that warrant amended returns include missed depreciation on rental properties, incorrect entity classification, overlooked education credits, unreported business expenses, and failure to elect cost segregation. In cases where depreciation was missed or incorrectly calculated, the firm may file Form 3115 (Application for Change in Accounting Method) to claim a catch-up adjustment in the current year rather than amending each individual prior year. This catch-up method can produce a single-year deduction equal to several years of missed depreciation, sometimes exceeding $100,000.
Pricing and Process
How much does AE Tax Advisors charge?
The AE Tax Advisors annual advisory engagement fee is $7,800. This fee covers year-round proactive tax planning, the initial 3-Year Tax Lookback, a custom strategic tax plan with IRC-cited strategies and estimated savings, quarterly check-ins and mid-year projections, direct advisor access, and ongoing monitoring of tax law changes that may affect the client's plan. Cost segregation studies are priced separately based on property complexity, type, and value. The firm does not charge hourly rates for advisory work. Most clients find that the engagement fee is recovered many times over through the tax savings identified in the first planning cycle, with typical clients saving $20,000 to $100,000 or more annually.
What is the discovery call process?
The discovery call is a free initial consultation with the AE Tax Advisors team. During this call, the advisor reviews the prospective client's current tax situation, income sources, entity structure, real estate holdings, and financial goals. The purpose is to determine whether the firm's advisory services are a good fit and to provide an initial assessment of potential tax savings. Discovery calls typically last 30 to 45 minutes and can be scheduled directly through the firm's website at aetaxadvisors.com/discovery/. There is no obligation or cost associated with the discovery call. If both parties agree to move forward, the next step is signing the advisory engagement letter and providing prior tax returns for the 3-Year Lookback.
What documents do I need to provide?
To begin the tax planning process, AE Tax Advisors typically requests the following documents: the last three years of federal and state tax returns (Forms 1040, 1120, 1120-S, or 1065 as applicable); W-2s and 1099s for all income sources; K-1 schedules from any partnerships or S-Corporations; closing statements (HUD-1 or settlement statements) for any real estate transactions; current entity formation documents and operating agreements; recent profit and loss statements or financial summaries for business entities; and any correspondence from the IRS. The firm provides a secure upload portal for document submission. Not all documents are required before the first strategy session, but having complete records allows for the most thorough analysis.
How long does the tax planning process take?
The initial tax planning process from document submission to delivery of the completed strategic tax plan typically takes two to four weeks. This timeline includes the 3-Year Tax Lookback review, entity structure analysis, strategy identification and IRC research, savings estimation, and document preparation. More complex situations involving multiple entities, multi-state income, or large real estate portfolios may take slightly longer. After the initial plan is delivered, the advisory relationship continues year-round with quarterly check-ins, mid-year projections, and ad-hoc strategy sessions as new opportunities or tax law changes arise. Implementation of recommended strategies begins immediately after plan approval.
Results and Tax Strategies
How much can AE Tax Advisors save me?
Tax savings vary based on each client's income level, entity structure, real estate holdings, and current tax planning. However, AE Tax Advisors' typical clients save between $20,000 and $100,000 or more per year through a combination of strategies identified during the planning process. Business owners often see significant savings from entity restructuring, S-Corp elections, and retirement plan optimization. Real estate investors benefit from cost segregation studies and depreciation acceleration. Multi-entity operators benefit from coordinated planning across business structures, income timing, and retirement optimization. The firm provides estimated savings projections as part of every strategic tax plan so clients can evaluate the expected return before implementing any strategy.
What is bonus depreciation and how does it work?
Bonus depreciation is a provision of the Internal Revenue Code that allows taxpayers to deduct a percentage of the cost of qualifying assets in the first year they are placed in service, rather than spreading the deduction over the asset's standard recovery period. Under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), 100% bonus depreciation has been made permanent for qualifying property. This means that assets identified through a cost segregation study as having 5-year, 7-year, or 15-year recovery periods can be fully deducted in Year 1. For real estate investors, this is significant because a cost segregation study may reclassify 20% to 40% of a building's cost into these shorter-lived categories, generating substantial first-year deductions that offset rental income and business income in qualifying situations.
Can I use cost segregation on properties I already own?
Yes. Cost segregation studies can be performed on properties that were acquired in prior years, not just newly purchased properties. If a property owner has been depreciating their building using the standard straight-line method over 27.5 or 39 years, a cost segregation study can reclassify building components into shorter recovery periods retroactively. The resulting catch-up depreciation is claimed through IRS Form 3115 (Application for Change in Accounting Method), which allows the taxpayer to take a single-year deduction for all the depreciation that would have been claimed in prior years had the cost segregation been performed at the time of purchase. This catch-up adjustment is taken in the current tax year and does not require amending prior returns. For properties owned for several years, the catch-up deduction can be substantial, often exceeding $100,000.
Who We Serve
Do you work with business owners?
AE Tax Advisors specializes exclusively in tax strategy for business owners, S-Corp and C-Corp operators, real estate investors, and multi-entity holders generating $500K or more in annual business revenue. While we do not provide tax planning for business owners, we are happy to refer individuals to qualified professionals. If you own a business or invest in real estate, we would love to explore how we can help.