Our Spotlight series highlights the careers and lives of tax professionals across the globe. This week’s spotlight is on LuSundra Everett, an Enrolled Agent with a virtual practice in the Richmond, Va., area. Everett is a member of the National Association of Enrolled Agents and on the Board of Directors for the Virginia Society of Enrolled Agents. She’s also a veteran, military wife, and the mother of two children who she refers to as “awesome military brats.” Perhaps not surprisingly, she is always up for a road trip.
What’s your official title and what does it mean? Principal Owner. I’m the chief decision-maker in my business. I take responsibility for success and failures.
Free time: book, audiobook, or podcast? Book. I actively read a book. I highlight, dog-ear, and pretty much abuse a book. By the time I’m done, you know it has been read.
Tax is a huge subject. What’s your area of special interest? My client base is the home business owner with three to five years of business and up to $500,000 revenue. I also represent clients with the IRS with a focus on cryptocurrency issues.
What’s the last movie or show that you watched and loved (DVD, Netflix, or in the theater)? “The Burning of Black Wall Street.”
What college did you attend and what did you study? I attended the Medical College of Georgia for Nursing. The usual follow-up is, “Why aren’t you a nurse?” The quick answer: I hated it.
Go to pick-me-up: Coffee or tea? Small McDonald’s Coke. There still has to be drugs in that stuff.
What’s the best tax or financial advice that anyone ever gave you? It wasn’t advice, but it piqued my interest in tax. I had a tax pro who was an EA. One year he said to me, “Oh God, you don’t know what you’re doing!” It was hurtful, but it sparked my interest in tax to figure out what I didn’t know. Who knew that would be the catalyst for my business?
If you weren’t working in the tax profession, what would your dream job be? Attorney.
If you had the opportunity to make one change in the tax code—an extra credit, a disallowed deduction, whatever—what would it be? I would extend the child tax credit through all four years of college (in 2020, before the temporary expansion, it only applied to children under the age of 17), and I would keep the American Opportunity Tax Credit in place. College tuition is ridiculous, and up to $4,000 in tax credit per college kid would be a great relief to parents paying tuition, as well as all the other expenses that don’t go away just because the kid goes to college.
Favorite food, snack, or candy during tax season (or other busy time)? French fries and Frosties always make rough days better.
What tax news or move made the most impact on your practice or clients this past year? The Economic Impact Payments (stimulus checks) had the most influence on the behavior of my clients and how taxes were filed. Specifically, the stimulus checks brought out those taxpayers who needed to file back taxes to be eligible to receive the payments. There was also an increase in planning opportunities like when to file and whether to file MFJ or MFS. We also had to field calls from non-clients asking questions about stimulus payments. It was brutal.
If Uncle Sam handed you a big tax refund check right now, what would you do with it? Go shopping and travel!
You can find Everett on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube @homebiztaxlady. You can check out Everett’s company’s website here.
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