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Health & Fitness

35 Years not Taxing for The Old Tax House

At The Old Tax House, personal service is their trademark.

O’FALLON, MO-  From its simple storefront on Veterans Memorial Parkway to its unassuming name, there is nothing flashy about The Old Tax House. Ever since its humble beginnings 35 years ago, the business has focused less on the drama and more in the detail, a method appreciated by all who seek quality service tax service. 

“Tax preparation is a partnership, I think that’s one of the key factors [of our success],” said Lisa Parres, general manager. “We do our very best to meet the client where they are, and meet their needs as they see fit.”

Though it is a fact that the majority share of the tax preparation market in most towns is held by chain stores, that is not the case in O’Fallon.

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“We are the largest prep service in O’Fallon, and have been for many many years,” Parres said of The Old Tax House, which also specializes in small business accounting. “I think we’ve been very fortunate; our customers really are key as far as that’s concerned. The majority of our clients are repeat clients, and we have a tremendous amount of referrals.”

The role that the community has played in keeping The Old Tax House at the top of the market has not been lost on them, and they work to maintain their presence in the daily lives of O’Fallon residents.

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“We’ve been a part of the O’Fallon community and been kind of ‘keeping it in the O’ long before that was a phrase. We’ve always supported local organizations, schools, different community organizations, we’ve always been a participant… and I think our community has in turn thanked us by continuing to support us.”

The Old Tax House has called O’Fallon home since 1977, and has seen a lot of changes in both the town and the people it serves.

“People want things faster, and convenience matters. We give our clients options.” Clients of the Old Tax House can choose to sit down with their preparer or they can drop their tax return information off at the office and pick it up when it is prepared. With an increase in popularity of online tax preparation software, the Old Tax House created a detailed online survey to allow people to provide necessary information to an Old Tax House preparer from the comfort of their own home.

The average, convenience-craving consumer does not have time in the day to keep up with current tax code, which is why it is a full time job at Old Tax House.

“Tax law changes every year…There are changes, additions, and sometimes just entirely new legislations that have passed. We spend a lot of time and a lot of effort making sure that we stay up to date on tax law changes, and understand that training for our employees is key,” said Parres. “When you come in and sit down with us, we are doing everything that we can to get you every legitimate deduction. Getting you the larger refund or the lowest tax liability is our goal.”

Though the preparers at The Old Tax House pride themselves on their education, they see the importance of education their clients as well.

“At the end of the tax prep process, we are doing our very best to make sure that we are explaining the differences and the process so that the client understands what their tax liability is and how they got to it,” said Parres. “We really do go out of our way to provide personal service and do our best for each and every client. I think that is difficult in some respects when you’re dealing with large volume, but we have continued to make that a priority. And when you make something a priority consistently, I think that it shows, and I think that that’s really been a great benefit for us.”

To appeal to new clients to The Old Tax House, Parres believes the facts speak for themselves.

“I think that anyone new to the community, when they take a look at our website or take a look at any of the advertising that we may do, any place who’s survived as a small business for 35 years: I think that really does speak volumes,” said Parres. “To stay in business for 35 years and to be the largest service in O’Fallon and certainly one of the larger ones in St. Charles County as a whole, I think that has to say something to potential clients.”

The Old Tax House is located at 8810 Veterans Memorial Parkway in O’Fallon. Call 636-240-7706 or visit www.OldTaxHouse.com for more information.

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