Ali & Aliyan Associates in Baltimore: Tax and Business Accounting for Mid-Market Firms
Ali & Aliyan Associates is a CPA firm in Baltimore specializing in tax preparation and bookkeeping for small to mid-market businesses, with a secondary practice in individual tax returns and tax planning.
Services and CPA Credentials
The firm offers tax preparation for sole proprietorships, partnerships, LLCs, and S-corporations, as well as bookkeeping, payroll processing, and quarterly estimated tax planning. Both principals are CPAs, which means they hold the certified public accountant credential and are regulated by the Maryland State Board of Public Accountancy. The CPA designation allows them to sign off on tax returns and represent clients in front of the IRS, a credential that distinguishes them from tax preparers, enrolled agents, or bookkeepers without certification.
Tax preparation pricing is engagement-based rather than flat-fee, meaning cost depends on the complexity of your return (number of entities, schedule complexity, foreign income, rental property schedules) and the time the firm spends on your account. Pricing conversation happens during an initial consultation. For ongoing bookkeeping relationships, many clients operate on either a monthly retainer (typically $400 to $1,200 per month depending on transaction volume and complexity) or per-service basis.
Accounting Services and Engagement Models
Ali & Aliyan handles both seasonal engagements, where clients come in once a year around tax season, and year-round relationships. Owners often choose a year-round arrangement if they need quarterly tax estimates, want proactive tax planning to reduce year-end liability, or need regular bookkeeping to stay audit-ready.
Business clients often bring messy records: shoebox receipts, multiple bank accounts, credit card statements across years. The firm's job then includes reconstructing those records so a clean return can be filed. This work costs more than maintaining clean books from month one, but it is a core service for businesses that have fallen behind.
The firm also prepares individual 1040s with federal and Maryland state forms, often for business owners filing both personal and corporate returns. Many of their individual clients are entrepreneurs whose personal and business taxes intertwine, making them a good fit for the firm's hybrid model.
How It Compares to Other Baltimore Accountants
Baltimore has large CPA firms (Grant Thornton maintains an office here) that handle enterprise-level clients, regional firms serving mid-market clients across multiple states, and solo practitioners or small teams like Ali & Aliyan. The key distinction is engagement size and complexity.
Grant Thornton and similar firms bill in the thousands per year for even modest engagements because their overhead is higher. Solo CPAs and bookkeepers in Baltimore often charge less but may not carry the same level of professional liability insurance or may have narrower expertise.
Ali & Aliyan sits in the middle. They are substantive enough for business owners with real tax liability and complex situations, but their size keeps fees from escalating beyond what a growing business needs to pay. Choose a large regional firm if your company operates across multiple states, has multiple entities with substantial intercompany transactions, or needs audit-level accounting work. Choose a solo practitioner or bookkeeper if you have a simple sole proprietorship, one income stream, and rented personal space. Choose Ali & Aliyan if you have a local business with two to five entities, multiple revenue streams, or serious inventory or payroll needs, and you want CPA-level work at a sustainable price.
Who It Suits and Who It Does Not
Ali & Aliyan suits Baltimore-based business owners who want to minimize tax liability through proactive planning, have complicated structures (rental properties, side businesses, professional corporations), or have never hired an accountant and need someone to set up clean bookkeeping and tax strategy from scratch.
They do not suit individuals with very simple returns (W-2 only, no business, standard deduction) and one local bank account. Those returns cost less at tax-prep software or a high-volume tax preparer. They also may not suit clients needing real-time bookkeeping software integration or cloud-based accounting systems; many small CPA practices operate on a more traditional file-based workflow and collect records at year-end rather than syncing QuickBooks in real time.
The First Engagement
Initial consultations are typically unpaid or flat-fee (confirm current policy by calling ahead). You bring or send prior tax returns, bank statements for the last quarter, a summary of income and expenses if you have one, and a list of any deductions you are uncertain about. The CPA asks questions about your business structure, whether you have employees, rental income, investment income, and any major changes in the prior year.
From that meeting, the firm quotes a fee and explains the timeline. Tax prep usually happens February through April, with returns filed in April or early May if you have an extension.
For bookkeeping clients, the first month is often a setup phase where the CPA reconciles historical records or builds chart of accounts in QuickBooks to match your business structure. After that, clients send in monthly statements and transactions, and the firm processes and reconciles them monthly.
Hours, Location, and Logistics
Ali & Aliyan operates during standard business hours, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Confirm current hours and office location by phone or email before visiting. Many clients conduct the bulk of their business with the firm via email or phone, sending documents electronically and receiving finished returns the same way. An in-person appointment is useful for the first consultation but not required for ongoing work.
Ali & Aliyan Associates brings genuine CPA credentials and mid-market experience to Baltimore business owners who have outgrown DIY tax software but do not need enterprise-level accounting oversight.
