Husband and I live in the Washington, DC area and we need an accountant or a tax preparer who is versed with tax laws for families who care for loved ones with dementia. This is the first year I've spent own money for husband's care and I hear the money is tax deductible. I just don't know how to do it. Any recommendations?
IRS publication 501 explains this.
Sometimes the pros are active in the community or provide outreach to elder groups. If you check websites, you might want to see how active the firm or specific individuals are in their fields.
When I needed a trust attorney (desperately, for the first time I had to prepare the trust 1041), I started by calling the big firms, not really expecting them to handle my needs but hoping they would offer suggestions.
I did actually find someone at a mid-size firm but the cost was prohibitive. They operated like a large law firm; the principal worked with a younger associate, who did the work which was then reviewed by the principal. Two people, two levels of charges. Too expensive for me.
I think I may have googled "accountants" or "trust accounts" and then just called several until I found one I liked. And it worked out well; he was quick and the cost was reasonable.
Although I've never tried this, you might search for a local accounting group, something comparable to the legal bar associations and contact them for a list of accountants specializing in elder care accounting.
Good luck. Let us know how you eventually find a suitable one; we can all benefit from these professional searches.
Only thing I remember there is an income-vs-deduction equation that is used.
Like geewiz mentioned above, any reputable tax preparer should be able to answer your questions. Or you may want to establish yourself with a CPA who can help you out any time during the year. IRS laws are always changing and it is impossible for us mortals to keep up or even understand any of it :P