Miami CPA
Miami money moves fast. Your tax plan should move first.
Tax planning, accounting and Fractional CFO support for Miami founders, investors, nightlife operators and everyone who just traded a northern winter for Brickell.
The short answer
What a Miami CPA should bring to the table
Bette Hochberger, CPA, CGMA is a boutique South Florida CPA firm that works with Miami business owners, founders, investors and new Florida residents. The firm handles tax planning, tax returns, Florida domicile planning, crypto and foreign investor tax, outsourced accounting and Fractional CFO work, with most meetings on Zoom.
Bette built part of her career inside Miami’s startup community, and the firm has worked with crypto clients since 2014. That shows up in the questions Miami clients bring: a liquidity event, a move from New York, a condo bought through an LLC, a token grant nobody priced.
Moving to Miami
Moving from New York? The paperwork is half the move.
Florida has no personal income tax, which is why so many people land in Miami. The state you left does not let go just because you signed a lease on Brickell Avenue.
Domicile is about intent, and intent is proved with records. Your old state will look at where you vote, where your driver license is from, where you spend your days, where your doctors, accountant and family are, and what happened to the house you used to live in. New York in particular can treat you as a statutory resident if you keep a permanent place to live there and spend more than 183 days in the state. The firm has run a Florida domicile practice since 2018, mostly for people leaving New York City and Washington, D.C.
Timing matters more than usual right now. Florida’s November 2026 ballot included a property tax amendment (CS/HJR 1F). If it is adopted, it would expand homestead exemptions starting January 1, 2027, and people who become Florida residents after that date would generally wait five years for the larger exemption. Check the final result before you lock in a closing date.
Cut the old ties
Plan the sale or rental of the old home, move accounts and update professional relationships.
Build the Florida record
License, voter registration, Declaration of Domicile and homestead filing, in the right order.
Count the days
A simple day log is the cheapest audit defense you will ever buy.
Questions to settle in your first year
- Did you keep a home in your old state, and who uses it now?
- Where were you physically on each day of the year?
- Have you filed a part-year return in the state you left?
- Did you sell stock or a business before or after the move date?
- Do your will, trust and accounts reflect a Florida address?
Venues, promoters and nightlife
Running a Miami venue? The cover charge is taxable.
Miami nightlife is a real industry with real margins, and it has a few rules that catch new operators off guard. Florida taxes admissions, so cover charges and ticketed events generally carry sales tax. Talent, promoters and DJs often get paid as contractors, which means 1099 reporting. Bottle service, service charges and tips each follow different rules.
- Sales tax on admissions, food, drinks and service charges
- 1099 reporting for DJs, promoters and performers
- Payroll and tip reporting for floor and bar staff
- Inventory and comps that tie back to the POS
- Cash flow planning for slow summers and big event weekends
We build the monthly close around how the business actually runs, so you can see your margin on a Tuesday instead of guessing at it on a Saturday night.
See outsourced accounting ↗
Where Miami tax gets complicated
Three areas where a generalist gets lost.
Miami concentrates the kinds of transactions most preparers see once a year. We see them every week.
Crypto and digital assets
Cost basis across wallets and exchanges, staking income, token grants and the new Form 1099-DA. The firm has worked in crypto since 2014.
02Foreign investors and buyers
FIRPTA withholding, withholding certificates, U.S. entity structure and the returns a foreign owner needs to file and recover excess tax.
03Founders and funded startups
Investor-ready books, board reporting, cash runway and Fractional CFO support for companies growing faster than their finance function.
How the work flows
One team for the whole Miami picture.
Most Miami clients have more than one of these going on at once. The value is in connecting them.
Map the moving parts.
Entities, properties, wallets, states and deadlines on one page.
Plan before the transaction.
Model the sale, the move or the funding round before it closes.
Keep it clean all year.
Monthly books and quarterly check-ins so filing season is quiet.
Miami FAQ
Questions Miami clients ask first
General answers to the questions we hear most. Your facts decide the right move, so treat these as a starting point.
Sources: Florida Department of Revenue, 2026 discretionary sales surtax rates (DR-15DSS); Florida EDR, 2026 local option transient rental tax rates; Florida Administrative Code 12B-4.012 (documentary stamp tax); IRS, FIRPTA withholding; IRS, Digital assets; Ballotpedia, Florida homestead exemption amendment (2026).
Photos: Christopher Alvarenga on Unsplash; Michael J. Vega on Unsplash; Unsplash contributor; Unsplash contributor.
This page is general information, not tax or legal advice for your situation. Rates and deadlines shown are for 2026 and can change.
The night is young. The tax year is not.
A 15-minute call is enough to spot what needs attention before year end: a move, a sale, a token grant or books that stopped making sense.
Put 15 Minutes on the Calendar ↗ Call 954.639.4060 ↗