Financial Consulting Firm Serving Chicago

At Assured Financial Services, most consulting work in Chicago starts with an IRS problem. We pull your account transcripts, check which years are filed, and look at income, assets, expenses and where you are in the collection process. That tells us which doors are open: an installment agreement, penalty abatement, Currently Not Collectible status or an Offer in Compromise. Then we prepare the paperwork and handle the IRS contact ourselves.

Yes. The founder holds the Enrolled Agent license from the Treasury Department, which carries unlimited practice rights before the IRS. That covers audits, collections, payment negotiations, appeals and penalty requests for individuals and businesses in Illinois or any other state. Being based in Maryland doesn't limit it; IRS representation is federal, and we handle Chicago cases by phone, video and secure upload.

You pay the balance over time instead of all at once. Smaller balances can often be set up with limited paperwork; larger ones require a full financial statement so the IRS can test the monthly amount. You have to stay current on new returns and payments, and interest keeps running on what's left. A plan that's too aggressive tends to default, so we size it to what your budget can carry.

Often. First Time Abate relief can remove failure to file, failure to pay and failure to deposit penalties for a single year if your prior three years are clean. Reasonable cause covers things like a serious illness, a fire or flood, or records that were destroyed. The request has to tie the facts to the specific penalty, which is where most homemade requests fall short.

Call right away and keep every letter. A bank levy holds the funds for 21 days before they go to the IRS, which gives a short window to act. A wage levy keeps going every pay period. We contact the collection unit, confirm the balance, and work on the condition for release, usually a payment arrangement or proof of hardship, while making sure you stay compliant going forward.

Generally, yes. The IRS won't approve most payment plans or offers until your required returns are filed. Filing also replaces any substitute return the IRS prepared, which usually overstates what you owe because it leaves out deductions. We prepare the missing years with the rest of the case in mind, since each return changes the balance and the options.

Taxpayers whose realistic ability to pay is lower than what they owe. The IRS calculates that from income, allowable living expenses, equity in assets and expected future earnings, and you must be up to date on filings and estimated payments. We run that math before anything goes in, because a weak offer just costs you the fee and several months.

Pull together your IRS letters, filed returns plus a list of any missing years, payroll tax filings, recent bank statements and a current profit and loss report. Then write down what's most urgent: a levy, a payroll tax balance, an audit date or a cash crunch. If your company holds federal contracts, mention it; we also do GovCon accounting and fractional CFO work, and those issues often overlap with the tax side.