A CPA plus a financial advisor costs the tax-preparation fee, the advisory fee, and any extra equity work. For illustration, a $2,000 tax quote plus a 1% advisory fee on $1 million totals $12,000 a year before other costs. There is no standard “RSU surcharge”: what matters is whether the quote covers withholding reviews, stock-sale decisions, tax projections, and return preparation.
Compare the same work in each proposal
A low tax-preparation quote may cover filing last year’s return but no decisions about the next vest. An advisory fee may include investments and retirement planning but leave return preparation to someone else.
Use written quotes to separate those jobs. The figures below are hypothetical examples, not market averages or Nino prices.
| Arrangement | Calculation | Annual total before extras |
|---|---|---|
| CPA plus an advisor charging by assets | $2,000 tax preparation + 1% of $1 million | $12,000 |
| CPA plus a flat-fee planner | $2,000 tax preparation + $4,000 planning | $6,000 |
| Combined planning and tax service | One $6,000 quote covering the same required work | $6,000 |
A package does not save money simply because it comes on one invoice. In the last two examples, the costs are equal. Compare availability, expertise, and responsibility for the work as well as price.
If the advisor charges a percentage, calculate the dollar cost at different balances. At 1%, $500,000 costs $5,000 annually and $1.5 million costs $15,000, before the CPA or investment expenses. A larger portfolio can change the price even when the RSU work stays similar.
Which RSU work needs an owner?
| Work | What a useful service should produce |
|---|---|
| Full-year tax projection | An estimate combining salary, bonuses, vesting, other household income, and deductions |
| Withholding review | A comparison of expected tax with withholding and payments, followed by specific changes if needed |
| Stock-sale plan | A decision about concentration, cash needs, taxes, and permitted trading windows |
| Tax-return reconciliation | W-2 and brokerage records that recognize compensation and sale gains without double-counting income |
For separately identified supplemental wages, employers can sometimes use a 22% federal withholding rate. That is a payment method, not your final tax rate, and different rules apply above $1 million of supplemental wages. The IRS employer guide explains the rules.
Suppose $100,000 of RSU income is withheld at 22%, but, under your household’s circumstances, that income adds $32,000 of federal income tax. The gap is $10,000 before accounting for other withholding or payments. This is an illustration, not a full tax projection—but it shows why someone needs to check during the year.
A CPA and planner at separate firms can coordinate this successfully. Shared software can help, but someone still needs to make the estimate, communicate changes, and confirm they happened.
Ask for a concrete handoff
Send the same brief to every provider: award types, expected vesting, employer-stock balance, filing states, relevant business or rental income, and upcoming decisions. Ask each to identify what is included and what costs extra.
Before the next vest, agree:
- Who receives the award schedule and updated income figures.
- Who prepares the tax projection and recommends payment changes.
- Who helps choose the sale amount and checks trading restrictions.
- Who reconciles compensation and stock basis when the return is prepared.
If you also hold incentive stock options, ask about alternative minimum tax modeling separately. RSU withholding experience does not establish that an engagement includes ISO exercise planning.
With Nino, you can use AI software on its own to bring account information and financial questions together. You can also add financial and tax services, where a human CPA and CFP team builds your plan, handles tax planning and filing, and helps put decisions into practice. Compare the relevant services plan with quotes for the same work, including the returns and equity situations it covers.