Nino Cefalu & Co

I have been using Allen for more than 8 years. It all started because I used Turbo Tax and entered the wrong information and got audited and he quickly identified my mistake and helped me resolve "my" issue...

Decided not to trust the "easy" way but now, working with his company, it's worth every penny.. Having access to his consulting services throughout the year helps me plan for unexpected surprises accordingly all year long with those ESPP's/RSU's for future tax implications.

I continue to use his services, even though I relocated 5 years ago to Texas. We work remotely together and it's perfect... Every now and then, when I am on business trips to the Bay Area, we meet up if I have pressing issues. HIs staff is great.

Highly recommended and excellent service. My sister has been using him for 10 years..

Not a great service for $2200 for my 2019 return. Did not even file automatically withdrawal. Using intuite software you get better service.

If you're looking for an accountant by searching through Yelp, it probably means you need someone who knows how to deal with stock options and the AMT. Such as: How to plan for AMT a) before joining a startup, b) after joining a startup, c) pre-IPO, and d) post-IPO. It's even more complex than you think. Allen is your man.

Also: Allen provides this feng-shui enhancing water sculpture to soothe the mind while he patiently explains the enigmas of the AMT: http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/nino-cefalu-and-co-inc-sunnyvale?select=qL6WD_E7IaOgChvLU82GDQ#qL6WD_E7IaOgChvLU82GDQ

Way too expensive, not worth it, go do your homework. There are other more affordable and more qualified CPA firms in the Bay Area. You have been warned.

The Cefalu's have been doing my taxes for 30 years-Allen for 28 or so. The returns have always been well prepared and Allen has been very generous with guidance and advice. On two occasions we were threatened by IRS audit. Allen took care of things promptly and smoothly.
For the past 20 years Allen has also filed our corporate returns.
Knowing that your reporting and taxes are in good hands gives great piece of mind. I just do not worry about the IRS.

Thank you Alen and Jennifer. Both were supportive and confident in their skills to help me with my exhaustive tax audits by both the IRS and the CAFTB for years 2006, 2007, 2008. The amount was in the 100K's and I was in a tizzy as I am a Science Teacher on a teacher budget!

Alen is professional, courteous, responsible, generally all-around good person, and most importantly knowledgeable on the tax rules and responsibilities. He was very straight forward giving me the good and the bad scenarios, and would show confidence that things would work out. That was evident when I was lucky enough to hear him one day interact with the auditor and I was convinced that he was the man for the job. Alen is not one to back down, he takes a stance for you, and fights for you. I always left Alen's office confident in his abilities and rarely worried about my future.

In the end, it turned out to be better than I expected. I had to pay some fees, minor, a few hundred dollars to the state. As for the IRS, they are refunding me nearly $10K! :D I was floored when that happened. Quite a difference from owing over $150K.

I can't communicate enough to you how important it is to have Alen in your court when you are in this sort of predicament. Not that it will always come out this pleasant. I'm confident however, that Alen will do his best to fight for you and to do what's right.

Allen has been our accountant for 10 years. We sent my brothers to him, my parents and my parents in-law. My wife and I highly recommend Allen and the entire team at Nino Cefalu and Co.

Allen is thoughtful, easygoing and very professional. He is a high integrity person and I have found his billing practices very fair. He helped me through some extremely complex tax issues, and was unaffraid to call the IRS to chase down issues, to appeal rulings, to tell me when it made sense to hire a tax lawyer, and in the end it produced a huge win for us. He pursued our refund as if it were his own money, which is the highest praise you can give an accountant.

I have found that the most valuable thing is to meet with him between September and December to do planning. He is generous with his time during these meetings as it is considered part of your "anual service". It is during these meetings that actions to save money can be identified and acted upon. If you wait until February to ask your accountant how to save money in the previous year, there is little that can be done.

Allen and team are top notch. Allan in particular is an excellent communicator, very pleasant to deal with, and a man of genuinely good character.

My in-laws have used Allan and Nino for decades, and referred me to him.

I came to him eight years ago he really took the time to help me understand the intricacies of the complex situation with ISO stock options, AMT, Cap Gains, credits and deductions for my specific situation.

He is always there to help me plan to minimize my liability and avoid a number of mistakes based on bad assumptions.

I can not recommend Allan and Nino Cefalu and company any more highly.

I went to Allen based on positive reviews here but had a similar experience as Deepa, the other 1 star review. This entire tax firm is totally close minded and after discussing my options I realized they are totally unwilling to work with clients needs but focus more on their way of doing things whether or not it is good for their clients. Unless you are totally cookie-cutter, I suggest finding a different CPA.

Folks,

I wanted to warn you to be wary of dealing with Alan. He did my 2008 tax returns and believe it or not forgot to file it! I had given him the e-file authorization and it appears the e-file bounced and they forgot all about it!!!

Yes, I was expecting a refund so no financial loss.

He offered to have my husband and I come into his office and said he would mail it to the IRS for us... so I took him up on it. I drove down today and signed the return and when I said my husband would come in separately to sign it, he was extremely disrepectful and said he was not a mailing service and I could pick it up and have my husband sign it and mail it out myself. What a two faced creature!

Beware. As I was not his client for my 2009 returns, he seems to believe he can get away with being disrespectful! I am sooo glad I don't go to him anymore..