Good Neighbor Podcast: Pittsburgh

E95: Calming the Tax Panic and Fixing Problems the Right Way with David Luczak

• Leila Carter & David Luczak • Episode 95

Share episode

What makes David Luczak with Pallas Associates a good neighbor? 

A letter from the IRS shouldn’t send your heart racing. We bring on enrolled agent and local neighbor, David Luczak of Pallas Associates, to demystify what those notices really mean, how representation works, and why the smartest tax strategy isn’t a giant refund- it’s paying the least tax legally over time. With experience that runs from banking to working inside the IRS to leading his own firm, David shares a practical roadmap for staying compliant, solving problems, and building a plan that fits real life.

We walk through the core services that matter most: precise tax preparation, proactive tax planning, and trusted IRS representation when audits, back taxes, or collections appear. David explains how complexity compounds fast-children and credits, dependent care, mutual funds, rentals, small businesses- and how an enrolled agent can reduce risk while finding legitimate savings. You’ll hear how referrals from other preparers and bankruptcy attorneys flow his way, what that says about reputation and results, and why small business owners benefit from clean books, consistent reporting, and smart timing on deductions and contributions.

Beyond the forms and notices, there’s a neighborly thread here: calm over panic, clarity over rumors, and a focus on durable strategies that hold up under scrutiny. If you’ve ever wondered when DIY is fine (single W-2) and when to call a pro (investments, rentals, credits, business), you’ll leave with a clear line. And if an IRS letter is staring at you from the kitchen table, you’ll know the first move: don’t panic- get help from someone authorized to speak for you.

If this conversation helped you rethink your tax game, follow the show, share it with a friend who needs it, and leave a quick review. Your support helps more neighbors find the right expert at the right time.

To learn more about Pallas Associates go to: 

http://www.pallastax.com

Pallas Associates

(412) 453-8295


SPEAKER_00:

This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Lila Carter.

SPEAKER_03:

The Good Neighbor Podcast. Are you in need of a tax service? One might be closer than you think. Today I have the pleasure of introducing your good neighbor, David Luzak, with Palace Associates. David, how's it going?

SPEAKER_02:

It's been busy.

SPEAKER_03:

Oh, good.

SPEAKER_02:

It's not tax season. It's busy.

SPEAKER_03:

Oh, I'm sure. Yeah, we're excited to learn all about you and your business. So please tell us more about your company.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay, Palace Associates is a full service tax firm. We do tax preparation, we'll do tax planning for clients, and we also do tax representation. I'm an enrolled agent, which is the highest designation the IRS gives to tax preparers, and that authorizes me to represent a client that has tax problems before the IRS. So if they've got back taxes or unfiled returns or collections, audits, that type of thing. I am familiar with the rules and regulations of the IRS and I am permitted to represent you before them to get it resolved.

SPEAKER_03:

Excellent. Excellent. How did you get into this business, David?

SPEAKER_02:

I had been working primarily in banking in my original career and doing seasonal tax work for a small accounting firm. I found I liked doing the tax work better and transitioned into actually working for the IRS. And I worked for them for a while and then decided I can just do this on my own. I became an enrolled agent and set Palace Associates up.

SPEAKER_03:

Very cool. Yeah, you kind of saw the behind the scenes and then said, all right, let me jump in, huh?

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, a little bit, yeah.

SPEAKER_03:

Yeah. What are some myths or misconceptions in your industry that you'd like to speak about today?

SPEAKER_02:

Getting letters from the IRS is don't panic, is my first thing. Okay. The fact that you owe the IRS money is not a crime. Okay. The crime is if you don't file.

unknown:

Okay.

SPEAKER_02:

Umbody's going to come to your door with handcuffs and take you away because you owe tax money unless you've committed fraud. That's a whole different animal.

unknown:

Okay.

SPEAKER_02:

But a lot of people panic just because they got a letter from the IRS saying they made a disadjustment and they owed this or that. Don't panic. Call somebody who knows what they're doing, and we can get it resolved pretty easily most of the time.

unknown:

Okay.

SPEAKER_03:

Very good. And so, as we know marketing, you know, as a heart of any business, who are your target customers and how are you currently attracting them to Palace Associates?

SPEAKER_02:

Okay, I do not do much advertising at all. Okay, most of my clientele comes from referrals from other tax preparers who are not enrolled agents, and their client got themselves into some type of jackpot. They're not permitted to handle that resolution. So they refer them to me. Uh I am uh I am currently the vice president of the Pennsylvania Society of Enrolled Agents. So at conferences, I meet a lot of other preparers, so they know me around this area and send me those. I also work with several attorneys, particularly bankruptcy attorneys who have clients that owe more money before they go into bankruptcy, and we'll work with them to see if that's getting that resolved. The rest of it comes from referrals from clients I already have.

SPEAKER_03:

Right, so mostly word of mouth. Have you ever thought about perhaps doing your own podcast to reach these different audiences?

SPEAKER_01:

I have thought about it, I just haven't had the time to do it. That's the problem.

SPEAKER_02:

I am swamped with work at this point. Uh but you know, my staff can keep up with a lot of it for me. Uh, it's it's just finding a time to do things like that.

SPEAKER_03:

Right, absolutely.

SPEAKER_02:

Nothing I've pursued at this point.

SPEAKER_03:

Outside of work, what do you do for fun, David?

SPEAKER_02:

We like going to the beach, the family. I uh all of my children and I we all get together at least once a year down at the beach. And and outside of that, I do some woodworking at home as a hobby.

SPEAKER_03:

Oh, very cool. I'm currently having two side tables fashioned from the tree that we cut down in the front yard. There were actually two trees, and they were maples, and whenever we sliced into them, we found out that they were showing ambrosia. So yeah, so we we decided all right, well, let's make these into side tables so we have a little uh a little trinket from uh from that tree. So it keeps it.

SPEAKER_02:

Those are nice, yeah. Especially dry the slabs out, they'll make beautiful woodwork.

SPEAKER_03:

Yeah, I'm super excited. So um I should be getting those back next week from our woodworker.

SPEAKER_00:

Good. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03:

My my grandfather was actually a woodworker his whole life and even taught woodworking at CMU.

SPEAKER_02:

And he's probably a little more advanced than I that's a really cool hobby, though.

SPEAKER_03:

Very neat. So, David, please tell our listeners one thing that they should remember about Palace Associates.

SPEAKER_02:

We're here to help. Okay. Uh, one of the things I tell my clients is you need to understand that as a tax professional, my job is not to get you a big tax refund. My job is to make you pay the least amount of taxes. It's a little bit of a discrepancy in how you understand what I'm doing. Uh, and as long as you want somebody to prepare the tax return to the best and give you the best advice to pay the least, consult a professional. That's all I'm saying.

SPEAKER_03:

Absolutely. Yeah, there's a lot of people that think they can DIY things, and sometimes you're just better off, you know, going to someone who kind of knows the ropes.

SPEAKER_02:

Well, if you're talking about a, for example, a single person with one W2, they probably can't do it themselves. It's not a big deal. But it gets complicated when you have children because you have tax credits and uh daycares and things like that to take care, or you have investments, rental properties, a small business, uh, even mutual funds. Now it can get complicated real quickly. Um that's where you need somebody that knows the ins and outs of how to get you the best tax return.

SPEAKER_03:

Yeah, well, we have a lot of business owners that listen to this show, so I'm glad they know where to find you.

SPEAKER_02:

Keep busy with them. We do we handle quite a few of the businesses around locally, uh handling their books and doing their tax returns.

SPEAKER_03:

And how can our listeners learn more about Palace Associates?

SPEAKER_02:

They can visit our website at palacestax.com, or there is a uh a LinkedIn page they can use for Palace Tax. Uh or I think just give us our phone at the office here, it's uh 412-349-8744.

SPEAKER_03:

Very good. Well, David, I really appreciate your time today and having you as a guest on our show. We wish you and the tax firm the best moving forward.

SPEAKER_02:

Thank you.

SPEAKER_03:

Thank you.

SPEAKER_00:

Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor Podcast. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to gnppittsburgh.com. That's gmppittsburgh.com or call four one two five six one nine nine five six.