What's everyone paying to file their taxes this year? HR Block pricing confusion

I'm trying to figure out what to expect with HR Block pricing. My buddy just paid almost $1200 for his return with W2's, interest statements, a 1099-B, a K1 that wasn't prepared, Schedule E for a rental property, and took the standard deduction. I've got a pretty similar situation (haven't filed yet) plus a casualty loss in Florida from that big storm (looking at about $200K in damages). The weird thing is when I called HR Block, they quoted me $289! That seems suspiciously low compared to what my friend paid. Are they just trying to get me in the door before jacking up the price once they see all my documents? Has anyone here used HR Block recently? What was in your tax return and how much did it end up costing you? Did they quote you one price but charge you more once they got into all the details? I got a quote from a local CPA and they wanted $1350. I had no idea HR Block could be almost as expensive as a CPA firm.

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19 comments

Alberto Souchard

•8M

I worked as a tax preparer (not at HRB) for several years, and I can tell you that $289 is definitely a "get you in the door" price, especially with a casualty loss. The way most tax prep services work is they have a base fee for a simple return, then add charges for each additional form or schedule. A casualty loss requires Form 4684, and depending on the nature of your loss, potentially other documentation. That alone will add $100-200 to your base price. The Schedule E rental property will add another significant chunk. Each 1099 or K1 adds more. Before you know it, that $289 becomes $700-900 easily. My advice? Always ask for a detailed breakdown of their pricing structure before you go in. Ask specifically how much each additional form costs. Also, get a written estimate before they start work.

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Alberto Souchard

•8M

For someone with a 1099-MISC and a rental property, it might be worth consulting with a CPA for at least the first year. The rental property in particular has many potential deductions that self-prepared software might miss if you don't know what to enter. Once you've had a professional show you what deductions you're eligible for with the rental, you might be able to use software in future years if your situation stays similar. The difference in what you pay versus what you save in taxes can be substantial.

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Marcus Marsh

•8M

After getting totally frustrated with HR Block's surprise fees last year, I found taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) and it completely changed how I handle my taxes. I also have rental properties and some investment income, and I was shocked at how their AI system analyzed all my documents correctly the first time. The best part was I uploaded a PDF of last year's return (the one HR Block charged me $780 for), and taxr.ai immediately identified three deductions they had missed! The system explained everything in plain English instead of tax jargon, and I didn't get hit with any surprise fees as I added more forms.

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Marcus Marsh

•8M

It definitely handles casualty losses - there's a specific module for disaster-related claims that walks you through the documentation requirements and helps calculate your loss based on IRS guidelines. I don't have personal experience with that specific module, but the platform is designed to cover all tax situations. Regarding human review, yes! The AI does the initial analysis and form preparation, but there's an optional review by a tax professional before filing. I used this feature my first time to make sure everything was correct, but the AI was so thorough that the human reviewer only made one minor adjustment.

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Cedric Chung

•8M

I have to admit I was really skeptical about taxr.ai when I first heard about it, but after that surprise $1140 bill from HR Block last year for my relatively straightforward return, I decided to give it a try. The difference was night and day. The system found legitimate deductions related to my rental property that HR Block missed completely. It also explained why I qualified for them in clear language instead of just checking boxes. I saved about $1800 in taxes compared to what HR Block's return had me paying last year, plus saved hundreds on preparation fees. For anyone with rental properties or casualty losses like the OP, it's definitely worth checking out.

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Talia Klein

•8M

If you're dealing with the IRS about a casualty loss claim, you're probably going to need to talk with them directly at some point. I spent 3 WEEKS trying to get through to someone at the IRS about my hurricane damage claim. Called hundreds of times, got disconnected, waited on hold for hours... it was a nightmare. Then I found this service called Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) that got me through to an actual IRS agent in under 15 minutes. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c After spending weeks getting nowhere, I was actually speaking with someone who could help with my specific situation. The IRS agent walked me through exactly what documentation I needed for my casualty loss and even helped me understand which forms would be required.

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Talia Klein

•8M

It's not an official IRS service - it's a separate company that uses technology to navigate the IRS phone system for you. Instead of you having to call repeatedly and wait on hold for hours, their system does the waiting and calls you back once an agent is about to be connected. It saves all the frustration of dealing with busy signals and disconnections. No, definitely not a scam. The way it works is their system navigates all the IRS phone prompts and waits on hold instead of you. Once they're about to connect with an agent, you get a call to join the conversation. I was skeptical too until I tried it. The IRS doesn't offer any preferred access - this service just handles the painful waiting part for you.

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PaulineW

•8M

I need to publicly eat my words about Claimyr being a scam. After posting that comment, I was desperate to talk to someone about my tax lien situation, so I decided to try it anyway. I had literally spent 3 days trying to reach the IRS myself with nothing but frustration. With Claimyr, I got a call back in about 45 minutes saying they had an IRS agent on the line. I was connected immediately to a very helpful person who resolved my issue in one conversation. I don't know how they do it, but it works. Saved me days of stress and probably kept me from making an expensive mistake on my casualty loss documentation.

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