NATALIE C. PAPAGNI, CPA
Tax, Planning & Advisory Services
4275 Executive Square
La Jolla CA 92037
Natalie C. Papagni, CPA
Tax, Planning & Advisory Services
serving individuals, high-income earners & privately held companies
throughout California that expect and deserve more.
We believe we are La Jolla's favorite CPA because we provide every client with what they want, expect and deserve:
The technical depth of a leading firm
coupled with the direct access, responsiveness & unhurried attention
of a boutique firm — without the elevated fees.
Let's get our Conversation Started Today.
CLIENTS WE SERVE
INDIVIDUALS
High-income individuals & families - Proactive, multi-year tax planning and tax preparation for high-income individuals and families in La Jolla, San Diego and throughout California. We project federal and California taxes throughout the year with quarterly tax management, so there are no year-end surprises, and every strategy fully complies with current tax law.
Professionals & executives with equity compensation - Tax planning and tax preparation for professionals and executives paid in RSUs, ISOs, NSOs and ESPP shares. We build federal and California tax projections, multi-year ISO and NSO exercise sequencing strategies, and AMT minimization and AMT credit recovery plans. We update them at least quarterly as fair market values change, so your plan stays reliable.
Physicians & healthcare professionals - Multi-year tax planning and tax preparation for physicians and healthcare professionals, from residency through retirement. We cover W-2, 1099 locum tenens and private practice income, reasonable compensation for S-corporation owners, post-formation entity set-up and California PTET planning.
Owner-entrepreneurs - Tax planning and tax preparation for business owners, starting with entity selection: sole proprietorship, LLC or S-corporation. Services include post-formation S-corporation and LLC set-up packages, business financial management, multi-year tax planning, and personal and business tax returns.
PRIVATELY HELD COMPANIES
Professional Medical Corporations - proactive, multi-year planning and tax preparation for physician-owned professional medical corporations and their shareholders, in full compliance with tax laws designed to optimize tax outcomes and avoid year-end surprises. S-corporation election analysis, federal and California corporate returns (Forms 1120-S and 100S), reasonable compensation analysis, accountable plans, shareholder basis & distributions planning, cash balance and retirement plan strategy, PTET election and quarterly tax management.
S-corporations - proactive, multi-year planning and tax preparation for S-corporations and their shareholders, in full compliance with tax laws designed to optimize tax outcomes and avoid year-end surprises. Federal and California S-corporation returns (Forms 1120-S and 100S), reasonable compensation analysis, accountable plans, shareholder basis & distributions planning, PTET election, quarterly tax management and multi-state filings.
Limited Liability Companies (LLCs) - proactive, multi-year planning and tax preparation for single- and multi-member LLCs and their owners, in full compliance with tax laws designed to optimize tax outcomes and avoid year-end surprises. Partnership returns and K-1s (Forms 1065 and 568), California LLC tax & fee planning, S-corporation election analysis, member basis & distributions planning, PTET election and quarterly tax management.
Partnerships - proactive, multi-year planning and tax preparation for partnerships and their partners, in full compliance with tax laws designed to optimize tax outcomes and avoid year-end surprises. Federal and California partnership returns and K-1s (Forms 1065 and 565), partner basis & capital account tracking, guaranteed payments & distributions planning, PTET election, quarterly tax management and multi-state filings.
Tax Preparation vs Tax Planning:
Your Equity Comp, Explained:
The ISO AMT Trap:
How Incentive Stock Options Trigger AMT - and How to Plan Around It →
The ISO 100k Rule:
Choosing Your Business Entity:
Should Your Practice Elect S-Corporation Status?
Why Clients Choose Natalie C. Papagni, CPA
Direct, Year-Round Access to the Principal
Natalie C. Papagni, CPA works directly with high-income professionals, physicians & healthcare professionals, executives with equity compensation, business owner - entrepreneurs, professional medical corporations, S-corps, LLCs, partnerships and successful sole proprietorships on tax strategy and planning initiatives, the preparation of their individual, business and trust tax returns, and personalized advisory and consulting interests.
Most CPA practices are built for volume: compliance-driven, historically focused, rigid in their guidance, provide limited service, frugal with their time and structured to view clients as a transaction. Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Tax, Planning & Advisory Services was built for clients who expect and deserve more.
Technical Expertise Found at Leading Firms with the Personalized Service found at Boutique Firms - without the Elevated, Hourly Fees
With more than 15 years of experience as a tax CPA, Natalie Papagni architects tax strategy, guides advanced planning, and personally prepares her client's individual, business and trust tax returns. A licensed California CPA and AICPA member, Natalie offers the credentials, technical depth and precision found at large firms, with the direct access, personalized attention and responsiveness found at boutique firms - without the elevated fees.
Natalie C. Papagni is a CPA, Tax Strategist and Trusted Advisor in La Jolla with 15+ years of experience serving high income earners and businesses throughout La Jolla, greater San Diego, and the state of California.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Do you work primarily with high-income earners?
Yes. Clients we typically serve have household incomes in the $300,000 - $ 2 Mil + range and have evolving financial structures. Clients include professionals and executives with and without equity compensation (RSUs, ISOs, NSOs. founder stock), physicians & healthcare professionals, owner - entrepreneurs and the S-corporations, LLCs, partnerships and successful sole proprietorships they own and control. Our business is built on clear and efficient communications, proven processes and trust.
What is the best way to contact Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Tax, Planning & Advisory Services?
The best first-step is to schedule a complimentary consultation with Natalie C. Papagni, CPA on the link provided at www.lajollataxcpa.com, sending an email to npapagni@lajollataxcpa.com or calling (858) 754-8277.
Which La Jolla CPA firm can handle my personal and business tax planning and tax preparation needs?
Located in La Jolla, CA Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Tax, Planning & Advisory Services serves clients in La Jolla, greater San Diego and throughout California, and specializes in coordinating the personal and business tax planning initiatives, tax preparation and financial planning activities for our business owner clients at levels providing them the best opportunity to target and achieve optimal outcomes.
What issues do individuals you meet for the first time often have?
Most clients who come to us previously worked with CPA firms — small, mid-sized, or large — whose approach was compliance-driven, high-volume, and reactive rather than strategic. They grew frustrated with impersonal service models: rotating staff, inconsistent communication, slow responsiveness, high fees, avoidable errors, and mediocre results. Often, they had stayed with those firms for years without ever receiving meaningful guidance on the tax and financial issues that mattered most to them. They received generic, one-size-fits-all planning instead of strategy tailored to their circumstances and goals. As a result, they were left unclear about what actually drives their tax liability, which planning opportunities apply to them, and how major financial decisions affect their long-term outcomes. Instead of making informed decisions in advance, they found themselves reacting after the fact.
Compounding the problem, many were receiving fragmented advice from professionals working in isolation — their CPA, financial advisor, and attorney rarely coordinating. The result: conflicting strategies, missed opportunities, and no cohesive long-term plan.
Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Tax, Planning & Advisory Services was specifically built to overcome these obstacles.
How is working with a CPA specializing in tax planning different from a traditional CPA relationship?
Many CPAs view their client relationships as transactional and retrospective. At Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Tax, Planning & Advisory Services, we value and respect every client we serve and invest the time to build a productive, high-trust relationship. Unlike most CPAs, we are forward-focused, act as your tax strategist and ensure our clients have the information they need to make smart, timely and effective decisions to achieve optimal tax outcomes - year after year. We excel in building financial and tax projections factoring in scenario analysis, tax strategies, applicable tax laws and explicit decision frameworks to guide actions throughout the year. For most of our clients, the preparation of year-end federal and state tax returns is the final step of the year's tax planning initiative - not the primary service we provide.
What should I look for when searching for a CPA near me in La Jolla, greater San Diego and California?
You will want to definitely look for a CPA with deep expertise in areas relevant to your financial and tax structures that places a strong emphasis on building a relationship, understanding what matters to you most, and how you like to communicate, and has an unwavering commitment to quality, integrity, transparency, upholding tax laws and service excellence.
Do you work with clients throughout California, or only in La Jolla and San Diego?
Natalie C. Papagni, CPA serves clients located in La Jolla, greater San Diego and throughout California - notably the San Francisco Bay Area. Throughout the year, when appropriate, Natalie C. Papagni, CPA travels to visit clients located outside of Southern California. We also regularly communicate with clients in La Jolla, greater San Diego, throughout California and out-of-state through zoom meetings, phone calls and email. Coupled with our firm's secure file sharing portal encrypted with bank-level security, at Natalie C. Papagni, CPA location is never a barrier.
Can I work with Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Tax, Planning & Advisory Services if I'm not currently a high-income earner however that is my future?
Yes. Natalie C. Papagni, CPA- Tax, Planning & Advisory Services is, in fact, currently working with a number of Residents in the last year of their Residency, professionals with ISO and RSU grants and new business owners with evolving financial structures that are not currently high-income earners. These clients are able to materially benefit from our financial and multi-year strategic tax planning guidance and related services, and we value them as clients.
I have a busy schedule, making it difficult to schedule a meeting business hours. Are you available to meet early evenings and on Saturdays?
Yes. Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Tax, Planning & Advisory Services frequently schedules early evening, Saturday and Sunday appointments (by appointment only) for busy professionals via phone, Zoom and/or in-person. In fact, we prefer to schedule meetings in the early evening, on Saturday or on Sunday vs during business hours if a meeting during business hours would be inconvenient, or our meeting would be rushed.
What is your fee structure?
Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Tax, Planning & Advisory Services, offers fixed fee arrangements - agreed up in advance.
Can the firm fix mistakes made by a previous tax preparer?
Yes. Natalie C. Papagni, CPA reviews returns prepared by prior CPAs and preparers, and handles remediation directly: amended individual and business returns, corrective filings for retirement plan contribution errors, and penalty abatement requests where reasonable cause exists.
What questions should I ask before hiring a new CPA firm?
Ask these six questions before engaging any CPA firm, and pay attention to how directly they're answered: (1) Who will actually prepare my return — you, or staff? (2) Who reviews and signs it? (3) How long has that person been with the firm? (4) Will I have direct access to a CPA, or does communication go through staff or admin? (5) Are fees fixed and quoted in advance, or hourly? (6) Is any part of the work outsourced?
The first three questions expose the leverage model: at many firms, the person selling you the engagement is not the person doing the work. You should leave the initial consultation knowing exactly one name: the person responsible for your work. If you leave with a team org chart instead, the relationship will be diluted from day one.
At Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Tax, Planning & Advisory Services, you have direct access to Natalie C. Papagni, CPA, the Principal of the firm. Natalie C. Papagni, CPA will work closely with you to architect your tax strategy, guide you through advanced tax planning initiatives, and prepare and sign your individual and business tax returns. You will not be handed off to junior staff or experience rotating staff year-after-year.