Gardena Financial

We got to work with Kiak as our tax preparer for 2023. He is knowledgeable, friendly, and easy to work with. He kept us organized and informed during every step of the process, making sure we felt comfortable and secure. He helped us get back a bigger tax return than we could've on our own. The service was priced competitively for tax preparation, and the expertise we recieved definitely made it worth it.

Kiak is rude and arrogant and knows it. He actually strives to be this way. But if you're in a pinch he will help you while teaching you self control at the same time because you'll want to curse him out each time you get on the phone with him. Taxes are a pain the --- anyways and Kiak is the cherry on top. You'll pay top dollar in taxes with him but you'll sleep well at night knowing there's no way they'll audit you because he just signed you up to give the IRS all your money. Just get them done, ignore him, and move on with life...

When the subject matter is finance, you definitely want to work with someone you can trust. I was referred to Kiak for my tax preparation, and I've never felt more comfortable and safe. Kiak, is not only very knowledgeable, but he is exceedingly educated and experienced. Although he is very straight forward, you can clearly see he has only good intentions for his clients. First time working with him and I've already feel confident in referring him to my friends and family. Me and my husband plan on working with Kiak for the future because we've establish a great bond with him.
You will find that he is well organized and he is punctual with his work. I am thankful I got the opportunity to work with him.

I was in need of financial advice and Gardena Financial really helped me out. They gave me some info I didn't have, but really needed to hear. Thanks again!

Kiak is excellent! This review is long overdue. I had just moved to the south bay LA area with a complex tax return including sales of securities and real estate, so I searched for someone who can handle these kinds of issues. I was so anxious that I'd owe so much taxes on income and gains. Kiak made it such a great experience as he was thoroughly detailed and organized but with a fun sense of humor, while keeping me accountable so that we'd get everything in on time. I was so happy I ended up with reasonable taxes than I originally anticipated all thanks to Kiak's expertise and advice. And as far as his fees, you definitely get what you pay for.. which is top-notch professional tax preparation. Let's just say I'm about to send my retainer for the 2022 tax year and definitely look forward to his services again!

Would not recommend this service. I gave this business a call to inquire about personal income tax preparation for the most recent year and instead got a text message asking what I need. I responded that I would feel more comfortable speak over the phone versus sharing confidential information via text. The owner (I believe) called 1 hour later, and after asking me again what I need done again, rudely suggested I go check his rates before calling again. Wow-- the customer service is completely no existent with this company. I recommend taking your business elsewhere!

Gardena Financial is truly the best place you can go to do your taxes. Kiak is very helpful and knowledgeable. He takes his time to explain you everything and most importantly he cares about you. I would definitely recommend Gardena Financial to everyone who's looking for an excellent experience filling their taxes.

I called to get a quote and someone from the company texted me back. I sent them my personal documents as requested and my tax return is very simple. He asked about who did my taxes before and after I responded, he declined me due to "my situation and his workload." I asked him what "my situation" was and he declined to answer. I have a very easy W2 job and I made some commission that didn't even total $7K. My taxes have been filed on time every year so I'm struggling to figure out how he could've judge my file within 5 mins. of texting. The only thing he did was send me an unhelpful link about fee averages. He never quoted me anything. Not even a phone interview for clarity on my file.

****Update after initial post (same day):****

***He responded after I told him I was going to leave a review about my experience and it's funny that all he explained in his rebuttal review post was not even attempted to be communicated by phone before he dismissed me and said his prices wouldn't "be favorable for me" as if he assumed I couldn't afford him. Please see photos of the actual conversation attached instead of the excuses he is providing to make his Yelp page look more favorable. I don't deny that he has good business, just not with someone like me.

It's one thing if he quoted me a price and I told him I couldn't afford it myself-- but it's another thing to send me a link to a website (that I didn't ask for) on tax prep fees after you refuse my business and tell me what's favorable and what's "likely" for me. You degraded me, not the other way around! How could you not see how discriminatory this is? When you run a business, you should never handle people the way you did to me -- no matter how big or small the file is. Just tell me your fee and if you have files that are more "appealing" than mine or just simply don't feel like doing it (which may be your case), you refer me to someone who can help and not a page on tax prep fees. In business, it's about how you make people feel, whether you meant to insult me or not. You clearly filter your clients and that's fine. But watch how you say things.

It was my first time doing taxes with Kiak and I had a great experience overall. He is very knowledgeable and detail oriented. He explained the whole process and always made sure I understood my taxes. He even looked over my previous taxes from a different tax preparer. It was also convenient that he can do your taxes virtually. I already recommended him to my friends.

Amazing service!
Thank you for being so efficient and quick filling our taxes. I was sad when my CPA retired, but happy to have this team as my go to. Thanks again!