Optima Tax Relief Brings Transparency to the Industry

In 2011, when Wharton alums Jesse Stockwell and Harry Langenberg founded the company, the tax resolution industry was suffering from a lot of bad press. Several companies in California, Minnesota, and Texas were either under investigation for, or had been charged with, fraud for misleading consumers about their ability to negotiate with the IRS and set up manageable payment plans. The two MBAs, who aren’t accountants, decided to turn the mistrust in the industry into an advantage and create a business to help Americans who owe the IRS a lot of money. An initial consultation is free. The fee to start an investigation is $995, and the average total cost for resolving a case is about $4,000. Optima, based in Santa Ana, Calif., started with eight employees and has grown to 330. “To provide tax resolution ethically ... is expensive,” Stockwell says.

• “Managing our growth has been a continual challenge. You have to take resources away from certain areas and focus them on other areas. So we brought our entire technology development team in-house, and we’re a tax resolution firm. Building in-house teams gives us very high quality control and makes us very nimble. Unlike a mortgage servicing business, you have accountants, tax preparers, an investigations team, enrollment agents.”