A nationwide survey of tax practitioners has found that New York is consistently among the most expensive states when it comes to fees charged to clients. The poll, conducted by consulting firm Canopy, charted average fees for different tax services across the country and found that while New York was never the most expensive, it was always within the top five.

New York placed fifth most expensive in preparing an itemized 1040 and a state tax return, with an average fee of $363; fourth in preparing a non-itemized 1040 and a state tax return, at $285; third for a 1040 plus Schedule C, at $544; third for an 1120-S, at $1,029; and fourth in preparing a 1065, at $998. The only category in which New York did not rank in the top five was in preparing a Form 1120.

The most expensive states for each category, meanwhile, were Hawaii for the itemized 1040 with state tax return ($483); Washington for a non-itemized 1040 with state tax return ($373); Hawaii once again for a 1040 with Schedule C ($733); Louisiana for a Form 1120 ($1,388); Washington once again for a Form 1120-S ($1,230); and, finally, Hawaii once again for a Form 1065 ($1,083).

The Trusted Professional reached out to the Hawaii Society of CPAs to ask why tax fees there might be more expensive than other parts of the country. Executive Director Kathy Castillo said this was largely because everything is expensive in Hawaii, including tax services.

"Like New York, real estate is very expensive, and our property taxes are very high," she said in an email. "Cost of living is also a huge factor—a price we pay for living in ‘paradise’ (food, rent, utilities, etc.) We also have a general excise tax that’s applied to almost everything, including professional services. [The] majority of our goods have to shipped into Hawaii—another downer, as there are many companies who only ship to the 'contiguous states.'  So, there’s nothing in particular—these are all general factors attributed to the high costs in Hawaii," she said.

Nationwide, the survey found average fees for a itemized 1040 plus state tax return to be $302; a non-itemized 1040 plus state tax return was $221; a 1040 with Schedule C for sole proprietors was $400; a Form 1120 was $755; an 1120-S was $721; and a Form 1065 was 682. The poll also found that virtually all firms charge a flat fee for tax work, 81 percent, versus those that charge by the hour, 19 percent.