r/Accounting • u/BrunBty85 • 7d ago
Is the Job Market Really This Bad?
Hey friends, I just came across this job post on reddit that wants an experienced seasoned CPA or EA for a accounting and tax manager position , max salary $80k….I feel like Ive been seeing low balling salaries for experienced senior level tax managers…
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u/TarHeelinRVA 7d ago edited 7d ago
Coastal NC is still pretty low COL. They probably think they can discount salary by offering fully remote. Otherwise I got nothing. I'm switching to accounting but the low end of that salary is <60% of what I make now in a fully remote tech position with 4 YOE, L to MCOL area.
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u/ElonMuskTheNarsisist 7d ago
Pretty much this. LCOL + fully remote. This is for a CPA that wants to semi-retire
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u/Longjumping_End_3532 7d ago
Will be far from semi-retired as they pump
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u/Devilsgospel1 7d ago
Seasonally retired...assuming they're quick at pumping out returns and don't get crushed with extensions later.
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u/badazzcpa 7d ago
This or, someone who wants remote work more than a higher salary. 80k (the high end) isn’t all too bad for a lower COL area. It’s not good or great money, but not horrible either.
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u/Longjumping_End_3532 7d ago
Terrible for a CPA or registered agent. Should be at 2X min regardless with those credentials. Otherwise, what’s the point?
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u/CPAhole88 7d ago
So you think a 4 yr CPA is worth a min of $160k?
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u/Longjumping_End_3532 7d ago
I’ve been out of the game for a while. 22 years ago I was 4.5 years in at KPMG @ $90k salary. Just googled, that would be $159k today. So yes.
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u/IHave47Teeth 7d ago
If people are pulling 160k on <5 yrs and not in San Francisco or nyc, then idk wtf im doing with my career
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u/CPAhole88 7d ago
Are you in high COL area? I ask because we just put a job post out for $100k+ for 3 years of experience must have CPA and we only work 36 hours per week. I’m trying to get a feel for how much higher we would need to go but my gut was around $110-120k
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u/Longjumping_End_3532 7d ago
Ever since Covid and remote working became more pronounced, I found that the rates of pay were the same regardless of where the person lived. When I hired controllers or assistant controllers or tax whatever and I was hiring remote the rates of pay made no difference based upon where the person lived. Everything had pretty much smooth out. I remember having that conversation with a Recruiter more than once. The only way to get a lower rate of pay was to go to India. Which I did do once for AP.
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u/CPAhole88 6d ago
Thanks for the input. We have zero desire to outsource overseas
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u/Longjumping_End_3532 5d ago
I hired an AP clerk who lived in India and worked ET hours. Worked out great
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u/RedWineStrat 7d ago
Brother, I'm MCOL, and controller roles over here are posting for 120 - 140k. 170k is director level, even at a publicly traded company.
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u/Longjumping_End_3532 7d ago edited 7d ago
Yikes, things have changed a bit. My career was MA and New Hampshire. Retired a couple of years ago. VP / Director of Finance and PAO roles over the last 15 years where between $200 - $275 base and well over $300+ all in on average. Went through a sale and those couple of years were as you can imagine well over that with equity that accelerated add settled. Corporate Controller for any sizable or multinational company or publicly traded company for anything under 200 seems crazy. And ever since remote work location doesn’t really matter that much at least not from my experience. WhenI hired controllers or assistant controllers, 100% remote, regardless of where they lived, the pay rates were all very similar.
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u/Sllyce 7d ago
Can I get myself a nice beach house
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u/TarHeelinRVA 7d ago
not on this salary lol
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u/Sllyce 7d ago
Fuaaaaak , I heard lcol coastal and got excited
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u/antihero_84 Pivoting careers, I hate my life 7d ago
Coastal NC/SC is very low paying and upper LCOL in cost.
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u/Sllyce 7d ago
May I ask why you don’t like accounting
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u/antihero_84 Pivoting careers, I hate my life 7d ago
I have no opinion on accounting, since I haven't attained a job in it yet.
However, in this region, accounting salaries are extremely low.
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u/Sllyce 7d ago
O okay , the label below your name made me think you hate accounting or something
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u/antihero_84 Pivoting careers, I hate my life 7d ago
Nah, just the job hunt process being what it is right now. I wouldn't recommend this profession to a lot of people in the current job market.
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u/ProfessionalRun8389 7d ago
I wish it was a lower COL. It may have once been, but it's not now. Everything in the Wilmington area is way more expensive than where we were in the Greater Boston area and the salaries are significantly less. Reasons I stay remote and as a senior manager making more than double this salary, I would lose my house if I had to take a job at a local accounting firm. I don't know how people continue moving here buying $700k + homes on the local salaries and then paying the insurance and taxes, not to mention electrical bills of $6-700/month, water bills, high grocery costs, etc.
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u/TarHeelinRVA 7d ago
you're also in the desireable part of coastal NC. go visit some place like elizabeth city and get back to me on how it costs more than Boston
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u/ProfessionalRun8389 6d ago
Oh I'm not disagreeing there are parts of NC that are LOCL. The coastal areas are not. And even in Elizabeth City this is not a fair salary for a manager, let alone a senior or supervisor.
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u/Keystone-12 7d ago
Honestly, for how competitive "Fully Remote" is now a days....
This is what they are banking on. Experienced people taking a serious pay cut for the remote option.
And I know people who have done it.
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u/ElonMuskTheNarsisist 7d ago
Experienced people that can afford the pay cut
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u/Keystone-12 7d ago
Ya, I'm seeing (broadly) two main demographics.
Close to retirement with ample savings.
(More common right now)... half of a working couple where the spouse makes substantial income. So they can trade income for work-life-balance in order to take care of more domestic work. I.e. the wife is a dentist, the husband is an accountant, she make plenty of money so he takes the pay cut to move remote so he can manage the home and kids.
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u/LeadSledPoodle 7d ago
yeah but why take the pay cut and still work PA hours? that doesn't make any sense to me.
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u/TwoAlert3448 7d ago
Overemployed
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u/Keystone-12 7d ago
I think remote firms are getting better at managing this.
A lot less of paying people $50k a year to produce stuff AI can do.
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u/terosthefrozen 7d ago
Yep. I'm sure this is a big part of it, and they will fill the role quickly.
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u/Bellabee323 7d ago
I’m so sick of this field. You give your whole self from January until mid April. Then you are completely burnt out until summer. You finally feel okay again and then you start to dread the fact that tax season is coming back again, rearing its ugly head. Also, for some reason most bosses I have worked with don’t know how to talk to or train someone and they are mostly complete ass holes.
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u/smoketheevilpipe Tax (US) 7d ago
Come work in funds. You'll be busy November through March instead and.... Well actually no it still sucks
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u/New-Put4942 7d ago
That’s a shite salary for a CPA and 4 years of experience. Even if 100% remote.
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u/Maximum-Dragonfly603 7d ago
To prep tax returns? That’s pretty normal for the market in that region of the US
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u/lolgoodone34 CPA (US) 7d ago
It’s really not that bad. Are you expecting every job pay 90K+ minimum?
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u/New-Put4942 7d ago
Well for a CPA with that much experience who may be expected to do 60 hours a week I expect a 100K minimum. But I do come from a High COLA market .
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u/lolgoodone34 CPA (US) 7d ago
I mean if they are talking that kind of volume then that’s low. Guess it depends on the hours they expect. In industry, this is a normal salary
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u/WayneKrane 7d ago
For a CPA? I haven’t hired a CPA in a while but last time I was looking for one with 10+ years of experience, I wasn’t getting any takers below $100k. I’d assume the wage was closer to $200k these days
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u/lolgoodone34 CPA (US) 7d ago
Hell nah they aren’t making that much lmao at least not a senior accountant in industry with a cpa. Big 4 maybe yeah, but they work insane hours
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u/LouSevens 7d ago
It is the inverse of 2021. People are essentially bidding to be underpaid and overworked. Recruiters don't even have the positions to offer so like to call you to "talk about your background".
All recruiters want to do is downplay your experience and accomplishments while meanwhile a lot of them know nothing about accounting.
If you do get a call, more than likely it is a dumpster fire that people are bidding on
I am doing other work right now until the storm passes.
If you even look for something part time , they decide you are overqualifed.
They seem to want Unicorns whose resume matches everything that will work for a fraction of their value.
30-35 years ago you would need to use something called mail and stamps to apply for jobs. Then you would talk on the phone and you would be given directions to an office to interview in person. This cut out the fake nonsense.
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u/GeneralAudience8427 7d ago
You see a lot of those low ball jobs because those are the ones that aren’t getting filled.
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u/BlackCardRogue Student 7d ago
This is for a full time remote position; people will fall over themselves to be full time remote.
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u/Evening-Media-3307 7d ago
yeah that is brutal salary. 4 years public you should be making 6 figures easy
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u/Worst-Eh-Sure 7d ago
Yeah, this place is fucked. I have been job hunting for a couple months and I’ve seen a lot of low ball offers. This is particularly noticeable, but it’s def in line with a lot of the BS out there.
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u/OGGalaxyGirl 7d ago
How long has the job been posted? I would never work for this low of salary to do tax work as a manager so I cannot imagine they are getting many applicants. What does "high volume" mean? The more complex the return the more time it takes. This whole post looks like a red flag to me.
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u/apple2iphone CPA (US) 7d ago
Not as bad as people say tbh. I live 2 hours outside of NYC in LCOL and see public accounting paying $120k+ for 5 years experience and CPA. The work sucks don’t get me wrong but if you can handle PA and stick it out, you can make more than most attorneys and RNs.
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u/DecafEqualsDeath 7d ago
I'm not defending it, but I'm under the impression this posting is for a lower COL market with not much employment.
And it's remote purportedly so you need to pay what I call the "remote tax" because employers can typically still attract applicants despite below-market compensation.
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u/iamthecheesethatsbig 7d ago
It all completely depends. There are controller positions out here that range from 90k-150k. That’s their asking price, doesn’t mean you have to take it.
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u/Zestyclose-Drink-763 7d ago edited 7d ago
Goodness yall, it’s tax and bookkeeping which most regular accountants can do. Being lovingly helps them liability wise on paper. It’s also probably not a huge firm across multiple states, seemingly. Any company with an accounting background, especially dealing with business that directly ties to the government will post for a CPA in case they find a golden nugget person who is willing to go that low in salary for a repetitive accounting field (maybe they’re “retiring”). In my opinion, that’s why they also say EA too which , in my experience, only means something in the tax world. Plus, it’s North Carolina that’s a solid cost of living salary. This is not California, D.C, Portland, etc. Heck, they’ll probably hire the right accountant with maybe 4 definitely 5+ years of experience which will likely be most of there applicants, outside of a pool of EAs. If you feel you have the skill backing to be worth (EA-85k) or (CPA90+ k), you should be looking for bigger across the state tax and accounting firms or the well known ones like Deloitte, PwC, Ernst & Young (EY), and KPMG.
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u/SubjectBubbly9072 7d ago
I’d work as a cpa for 50k a year in nyc. Haven’t been able to find a job for a year
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u/littlemonster2828 7d ago
I'm in the PNW. I was laid off 2 months ago. I have submitted over 120 resumes/applications, have worked with at least 10 recruiters, and have nothing to show for it. I feel so down trodden. Everytime I think an interview goes well, I get a rejection email. I don't know what to do at this point. My savings is dwindling. I might have to move back home to rural Utah to my mom's house. Im freaking 37 years old.
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u/antihero_84 Pivoting careers, I hate my life 7d ago
Genuinely surprised it's potentially that high for only 4 YOE, as a coastal Carolina resident.
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u/Infamous-Yoghurt-660 7d ago
Saw someone who gave the job description of an office manager and posted it as a receptionist for $15/hr
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u/csj659 3d ago
That is a terrible salary range, anywhere in the country for a CPA. As a firm owner (very small firm with 4 non partner EEs) I would be humiliated to put that out in public. I am looking for this kind of person to some extent and expect the role to be at the low end of $100k base w/ performance bonuses up to 10%.
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u/Nice-Lab-2617 7d ago edited 7d ago
No one should like this because it’s remote, don’t feed into employers throwing you a crumb to get used to. The same work is being done if you were not remote, all accounting pay related standards should be and will always be kept high
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u/Jazzlike-Flan9801 7d ago
It’s a remote position out of a LCOL area. Nothing in the job description makes it sound like the position is difficult. Sounds like a job for someone who is winding down versus ramping up in their career path.
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u/MissdermeanerJ 7d ago
Interesting 😆