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J.K. Harris moving to Goose Creek

Published Wednesday, July 01, 2009 8:10 AM

By Jim Tatum
The Gazette

J.K. Harris and Company, LLC, is moving to Goose Creek.

The multi-million dollar tax representation company is moving its corporate headquarters – and more than 300 jobs -- from North Charleston to St. James Avenue this weekend, according to Executive Vice President Josh Baker.

The company is moving into the former National Car Rental call center building, located at 208 St. James Avenue, next to the Publix grocery store, Baker said.

While the company has enjoyed a good working relationship with the city of North Charleston, a number of factors precipitated the move to Goose Creek, Baker said.

For one, most of the company’s employees working at the corporate site live in or near Goose Creek, and the location on St. James is more convenient for them.

The building itself is not only “semi-hardened” – that is, equipped with an uninterrupted power source, fire protection sprinkler systems, and other features, it is also expandable, which means it will suit the company’s needs for quite some time, he said.

Because of the company’s tremendous growth in the past few years, the North Charleston facility has simply become outdated.

“We’re very excited,” he said. “The building really was close to turnkey ready, which really made it attractive. There is plenty of parking, and it allows us to have a consolidated facility.

“The building really dictated much of this. We really needed to find the right facility.”

What started as a request from a business client became a multi-million dollar business for founder John Harris, a CPA who was a solo practitioner in North Charleston before starting his company. According to company spokeswoman Gina Anton, a local retailer asked Harris to solve a problem: the retailer hadn't paid his taxes for several years. Harris trimmed the $90,000 liability to $42,000, set up an installment plan with the Internal Revenue Service to pay off the balance, and received a $3,000 fee.

Serving as intermediaries between taxpayers and the IRS, J.K. Harris' team of professionals attempts to negotiate an Offer in Compromise with the IRS. When an agreement is established, the OIC enables the client to reduce this debt, repaying it through an installment plan or lump sum payment, she said.

“In resolving this tax problem, one shared by millions of Americans, Harris sowed the seeds for a successful new business,” Anton said. “Today, that seed has grown into a company that is approaching $100 million in revenue and serves a broad range of taxpayers suffering tax liability and debt management problems.”

Baker said the company averages consulting with 500 new taxpayers a week.

However, he pointed out that the company’s services are not for people who are just looking for a way to get out of paying taxes.

The company also differs from other tax relief companies in that every potential client meets face-to-face with a consultant before entering into a contract. He also noted that, while J.K. Harris is not offering options that are not already available to the public, what clients are paying for is expertise and representation.

“What people don’t realize is that the IRS has a number of programs that can help people resolve their tax problems,” Baker said. “What we do is make sure the client is eligible for one of those programs, then we present options.

“If the client contracts with us, then we negotiate on their behalf with the IRS.”

While these programs are available through the IRS to taxpayers, many people simply do not know about them, do not know how to go about enrolling in them, or simply prefer not to personally have to deal with the IRS.

“Some people are just terrified of the IRS,” Baker said. “Some people have already tried to deal with them with no success. Usually our clients are already in crisis mode by the time they come to us.

“Included in our workforce, ar CPA’s, lawyers, former IRS agents, and enrolled agents working for us. Basically, we attempt to take the burden off our clients.”

Usually, once a client contracts with J.K. Harris, phone calls and visits and other stressful situations usually stop, he said.

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