<prompt> Human: My dad has an accountant and he swears by him. He runs his own businesses, so I see the cost as justified upwards of several thousands per year. Even before making any personal investments, my dad calls his accountant to walk through the implications and toss around ideas.Personally, I invest a lot of my money in stocks and bonds and I do my own taxes. Im consideringwavering on the idea of getting an accountant. I make around 210k in total income per year after bonuses and stock returns, but I still dont see the reason for an accountant. I get in heated discussions with my old man about this step 1, get an accountant... just do it...; god it becomes irritating after a while lol. However, I am considering getting into the rental property game, and maybe at this point I should look into it? The problem is my dads accountant is as old as he is! So if I got an accountant, Id probably want to find someone younger to establish a long term relationship?TLDR...Do you use an accountant? If not, why not?If so, how much does heshe charge you? Do you only use himher for filing taxes, or do you use him for other purposes?How did you find your accountant? Internet dot com, or were you referred?  <response>: To an individual, the main advantage of an accountant is time saving. If I had enough expenses to itemize and if I didnt enjoy arguing with TurboTax, Id dump that tedium on an accountant in a minute.Accountants may save you money by taking an aggressive stance on tax deductions though and hoping they can exploit tax law grey areas, but I generally dont think the risk is worth it unless youre a multi-millionaire.For somebody with W-2 income and stocks, TradeLog TurboTax is enough.If you start into rental properties, you may then want to consider starting a separate business and letting a CPA advise occasionally. Accounting for rental income isnt a difficult area. 