Taxes. Nobody likes to talk about them at social events (much to my disappointment), and nobody likes to pay them. How did I, a middle school Engineering teacher, become interested in them? Well, you could say that taxes are in my blood... and my blood-in-law.

My late grandfather was an Enrolled Agent and my father-in-law is a Registered Tax Return Preparer. My wife encouraged me to take a class at H&R Block, citing that taxes were the perfect intersection between my frugality and my odd ability to stay organized while filing detail-orientated paperwork. My curiosity was peaked and I decided to pursue the course. I loved it.

I started preparing taxes at H&R Block before deciding to break off on my own. My time spent there, working with both experienced tax preparers and various clients, was extremely valuable and insightful. After seeing many people's financial situations, I started to notice patterns of what I thought were critical mistakes. I saw firsthand how compounding fees (the exact opposite of compounding interest) could erode a person's retirement savings or just how costly the lack of an emergency fund could be when retirement assets were tapped early to cover unexpected expenses. I was floored. I needed to talk to these people but H&R Block (correctly) would not let me give financial advice to its clients. It was time for me to go.

I started taxesdunn so that I could continue preparing taxes as well as give basic financial advice to my clients. My mission is to talk to people about the beauty of compounding interest, the simplicity and elegance of index funds, and the strategic placement of assets across various retirement and taxable accounts. I am not a financial adviser, but I can give you the basic tools that will help empower you to take a more active role in your own finances.