Whether you get them done early, do them online, or wait until the last week required, taxes are on the 'to do' list every year.
 
A local company has been busy preparing taxes for more than two decades.
 
Karen Mele has been a tax preparer for more than 20 years. She says, "When people are ready to have their taxes done, they want them done now."  
 
Mele joined Tax Strategies Preparation in 2011. She says the biggest game changer in doing tax prep services is technology.
 
Mele says, "We get daily updates from our software company that keeps us informed of any changes, especially this year, we've had so many changes due to COVID with the unemployment compensation and Affordable Care Act."
 
COVID-19 prompted plexiglass at the front desk and in front of preparers that have in-person clients.
 
Safety signage is up in different places, but for most clients - they only just drop off and pickup in the lobby. 
 
Now in its 25th year, Mary Dylewski was the very first tax preparer for the company.
 
And you can now say it runs in the family. Her niece Kara Talarico is one, too.
 
After working as an administrative assistant for years, she became a certified preparer during the pandemic.
Talarico says, "I was hoping to do it in person so I could have hands-on, so it was different doing it all virtual."
 
Tax Strategies Preparation, located along 4420 Peach Street in Erie, also provides payroll services, along with doing quarterly and end of the year reporting.