TL;DR: I only paid $48 in taxes because H&R Block cared enough for me to advise me in the right way. Read on for the full story.

Imagine only paying $48 in taxes? Honestly, I thought only billionaires could pull that off. But that’s exactly what happened for me this year. It turns out you really can slash your tax bill if you stop taking the easy way out and actually track every single expense so the experts have what they need to advocate for you.

For the last four years, I’ve talked with several of you who make about what I do but put in a whole lot more effort, yet you’re still paying way too much. Filing the “easy” way—likely that 1040EZ—is what’s killing you.

And look, you don’t have to track expenses as you go if you don’t mind the nightmare of pulling all your banking records at the end of the year and trying to remember what every single charge was. I did that in a spreadsheet for three years, and even then, my tax bill averaged $300–$370.

But then I stepped it up. I got a real accounting program with all that fancy-shmancy double-entry accounting and receipt splitting. My tracking went through the roof, and the results showed.

The best part is having someone who actually knows the tax codes. Because I provided everything they needed, Mary Ann Medrano at the Bowie, TX location knew exactly which boxes my expenses fit into and which programs I qualified for. You just aren’t going to know those details doing it yourself. Sure, you might “save” on the H&R Block fee by DIY-ing it, but you aren’t going to save on your taxes.

And seriously, don’t waste your time at those pop-up booths in Walmart. Those guys are just filing the basics on your behalf. They’ll get you some money back, sure, but that’s just a refund on money you already overpaid. In reality, you probably overpaid way more than they’re even showing you.

All these years, and I had no idea it could be this much better when you have someone who cares enough to advise you the right way.

Get started with H&R Block today!