Tax Accountant (CPA or EA)
Desert Rose Tax & Accounting - Tucson, AZ
Full-Time | $65,000 - $90,000 a year + bonus | In-Office
The one who explains the return, not just prepares it.
ABOUT US
At Desert Rose Tax & Accounting, we help small businesses bloom in the desert. We're a tight-knit, relaxed office where the humor is dry, the client relationships are warm, and the coffee machine is genuinely decent.
We're hiring a credentialed preparer who can do the part the software can't: sit across from a business owner, explain what actually happened on their return, and tell them what to do differently before next year.
Your client time here is the valuable kind. Someone sits down confused about an S-corp distribution or rattled by a notice from the IRS, and you're the person who makes it make sense - the planning conversation, the entity question, the "what should I be doing differently next year."
You'll also be a second set of eyes on our other preparers' work. Not because we're building a hierarchy, but because good review is how a small firm keeps quality high without anyone working eighty-hour weeks in March.
One honest note: tax season is tax season. The hours get longer between January and April and we're not going to pretend otherwise. What we can promise is that the rest of the year looks like an actual life.
If you like the technical work AND the people work, we've been looking for you. If you'd prefer to never speak to the human who has to sign the return, we understand completely, and we'd gently suggest a job where that's an option.
WHAT YOU'LL DO
- Prepare individual and business returns - 1040, 1120, 1120-S, 1065, and the occasional 1041
- Give a client's financials a once-over before prep - catch what's off, decide whether the books are actually ready for a return, and walk the client through what needs fixing. You're judging the accounting, not doing it.
- Meet with clients for real consultations: planning conversations, entity questions, "why do I owe this," and what to change before next year
- Handle IRS and Arizona notices end to end - read it, work out what actually happened, respond, and follow through until it's closed
- Represent clients on resolution work: transcripts, payment plans, penalty abatement
- Review returns prepared by other team members, and give feedback that makes the preparer better, not just the return correct
- Research the strange ones - because there is always at least one strange one
- Keep clear notes in the file so the next person (including future you) knows what you were thinking
- Spot planning opportunities while you're in the return, and raise them instead of letting them slide by
YOU'LL THRIVE HERE IF YOU
- Hold an active CPA license or EA enrollment, and keep it current without anyone reminding you
- Can explain a tax concept to someone who doesn't do this for a living: clearly, patiently, and without a trace of condescension
- Have prepared enough business returns that basis, distributions, and reasonable comp aren't things you look up every single time
- Know the difference between "I'm confident" and "I need to research this," and say which one you're in
- Can read an IRS notice without your stomach dropping
- Are organized enough to carry twenty-plus open items and never lose one
- Give and take review feedback like a professional - it's about the return, not the person
- Are genuinely curious about better tools and ways of working, including AI
TRAITS WE SECRETLY (AND NOT-SO-SECRETLY) LOVE
- You take ownership: if the return is yours, it's yours until it's filed AND the client understands it
- You'd rather ask a "dumb" question in February than discover the answer in an amended return in August
- A number that doesn't tie bothers you until you know why - even when the return would come out the same either way
- You're steady in season - the pace goes up, your quality doesn't
- You notice the thing the client didn't ask about, and you mention it anyway
- You're the person other preparers want checking their work, because you're thorough without being unkind
- You have opinions about tax software and are willing to share them
- You actually read job postings all the way to the end (this will matter shortly)
To prove you did: include the word "ocotillo" in your resume, cover letter, or application message. No ocotillo = no interview. We mean it every time.
REQUIREMENTS
- Active CPA license or Enrolled Agent enrollment - both are equally welcome here
- Active PTIN, or eligible to obtain one before your start date
- Two full tax seasons preparing individual AND business returns in a public accounting or tax firm setting
- You've independently prepared S-corp and partnership returns - not just assisted on them
- Fluent in professional tax software - we run ProSeries
- Comfortable enough in QuickBooks Online to read a set of financials, catch the problems, and judge whether they're tax-ready. The bookkeeping itself isn't part of this job.
- Must work in-office at 5702 E 22nd St, Tucson, AZ 85711
- Must be local or able to relocate before your start date
- Background check required
- Must be authorized to work in the United States - we do not offer visa sponsorship
Close but not exact? Apply anyway and tell us why. We'd rather read your note than guess.
OUR HIRING PROCESS
A video interview, followed by two in-person interviews at our Tucson office.
Three conversations, not seven - and you'll meet the people you'd actually be sitting next to. No timed test, no take-home project. But when you're here in person, expect some real tax questions and a few "walk me through how you'd handle this" moments. Nothing to study for. If you've done the work, it shows.
WHAT YOU GET
- Pay: $65,000 - $90,000 base depending on experience and credential, plus bonus
- Schedule: Full-time, year-round. Standard hours most of the year; longer days and some Saturdays from January through April. We're telling you up front because you'd find out anyway.
- A firm where your license gets used for judgment instead of data entry
- A team that genuinely enjoys coming to work (we know - rare)
- 401(k) + matching
- Health, dental, vision, life & disability insurance
- Paid time off
- Tuition reimbursement
- Employee assistance program
- Employee discounts
- FSA & HSA options
WORK LOCATION
5702 E 22nd St, Tucson, AZ 85711.
In-person only. A real desk, a chair you'll get to know very well between February and April, coworkers who know exactly why you're muttering about basis, and a plant you will absolutely forget to water.
HOW TO APPLY
Send your resume and a short note about the tax work you actually enjoy - and the kind you'd rather hand off. Honest answers score well here; we'd much rather know now.
And don't forget: the magic word is "ocotillo." It goes in your resume, your cover letter, or your application message. Somewhere. Just put it in there.
We can't wait to meet you.
Pay: $65,000.00 - $90,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- 401(k)
- 401(k) matching
- Dental insurance
- Disability insurance
- Employee assistance program
- Employee discount
- Flexible spending account
- Health insurance
- Health savings account
- Life insurance
- Paid sick time
- Tuition reimbursement
- Vision insurance
License/Certification:
Work Location: In person
