TOP DRAWER ARTICLE

A CPA Could Fill the Bill
by
HL Carpenter

You’ve handled your personal finances all your life, but now you find keeping up with your monthly bank statements or managing your portfolio more of a burden than a joy. You’d like to turn the job over to someone else. Someone you can trust to handle your fiscal matters as well and as privately as you do.

A Certified Public Accountant (CPA) may be the professional you’re looking for. And the place to find out how CPAs measure up in the ‘rules of integrity’ department is the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants web site at: http://www.aicpa.org/Pages/Default.aspx.

A glance at the left column leads you to Professional Ethics. A click of your mouse will take you to the AICPA Code of Professional Conduct. Another click brings you to Section 50 – Principles of Professional Conduct.

Printed here are the accepted standards set for accountants and CPAs. Once you’ve assured yourself that public accountants are held to a very high ethical code, surf over to: http://www.accountantsworld.com/.

This site lists qualified CPAs in your area. Simply type in your city and state and select the service you need. After you’ve chosen several names, obtain referrals from bankers or friends.

Now that you’ve narrowed your list, finding an accountant or CPA that fits your privacy and first-rate requirements may be just a phone call and an interview away.

Originally published September 2004.

Last update: January 8, 2011