CPA in the San Fernando Valley

MangoBooks is a CPA firm for small businesses and individuals in the San Fernando Valley, with its office at 6200 Variel Ave in Woodland Hills. We prepare business and personal tax returns, plan taxes during the year, keep monthly books, run payroll and set up LLCs and S corporations for clients across the Valley. The work is led by Felix Park, CPA, MBA, a licensed California CPA.

Monthly bookkeeping typically costs $650–$1,400 per month, and catch-up bookkeeping starts from $1,500. A business tax return typically costs $2,000–$3,500 per year, and an LLC or S corporation setup starts from $950 plus state fees.

Where We Work in the Valley

Woodland Hills is a neighborhood of the City of Los Angeles, as are Encino, Sherman Oaks, Van Nuys, Northridge and many other Valley communities. We serve clients throughout the Valley, including:

City of Los Angeles: Woodland Hills, Warner Center, West Hills, Canoga Park, Winnetka, Tarzana, Encino, Reseda, Lake Balboa, Van Nuys, Sherman Oaks, Studio City, North Hollywood, Valley Village, Toluca Lake, Northridge, Chatsworth, Porter Ranch and Granada Hills.
Separate cities: Calabasas and Hidden Hills, on the western edge of Woodland Hills, as well as Burbank, San Fernando and neighboring Glendale.
Unincorporated area: Universal City.

Without traffic, the office is about 10 minutes from Tarzana and Calabasas, 10 to 15 minutes from Encino and Sherman Oaks, and about half an hour from Burbank and Glendale.

Situations We Handle

A new business in the City of Los Angeles. A new LLC or corporation in Woodland Hills, Encino or another Valley neighborhood of the city needs the city's Business Tax Registration Certificate in addition to its state filings. We compare how the business would be taxed as an LLC, an S corporation or a C corporation and set out the first-year California payments and filings. See Business Formation.

An S corporation owner in the Valley. We run the owner's salary through payroll, review it against the requirement to pay reasonable compensation, and prepare the company's return together with the owner's personal return. A company in the City of Los Angeles also files the city's business tax renewal by the last day of February. See Business Tax Preparation and Payroll.

Los Angeles Business Tax

The City of Los Angeles, which includes Woodland Hills and the other Valley neighborhoods listed above, has its own business tax, collected by the city's Office of Finance.

Who registers. Every business engaged in business in the city needs a Business Tax Registration Certificate. That includes a business with a fixed place of business in the city, one that regularly solicits business there, and one based elsewhere whose people work in the city on at least seven working days a year.
Small business exemption. A registered business with worldwide gross receipts of $100,000 or less pays no business tax, as long as it files its annual renewal on time.
Renewal deadline. The annual renewal is due by the last day of February, or the following Monday when that day is a Sunday.
The first year. The first year's tax is paid with the renewal in the second year, which the city calls back tax. Some business classifications also pay a minimum tax when they register.
Common rates. Professions and occupations pay $4.25 per $1,000 of gross receipts, retail sales and rental of commercial property $1.27 per $1,000, and contractors $153 for the first $60,000 plus $1.01 per $1,000 above that.
Creative artists. An individual creative artist, or a corporation or LLC whose only shareholder or member and only employee is that individual, pays no business tax on receipts from creative activities when those receipts are $300,000 or less. The exemption covers only those receipts, not income from other work. It is available only to registered businesses, not to new ones, and requires an on-time renewal.
Businesses that never registered. The Office of Finance receives information from the California Franchise Tax Board and writes to businesses that may owe city tax. A business that has never registered and has not yet been contacted can apply for the city's Voluntary Disclosure Program, which limits the look-back to five years instead of up to eight and allows delinquency penalties to be waived. The Office of Finance has a Valley office at 6262 Van Nuys Blvd, Suite 110, in Van Nuys.

Registration, the first-year back tax, the rates for other classes, late penalties and the 2027 due date are set out in our guide, City of Los Angeles Business Tax: Registration and Renewal.

Burbank, Glendale and Calabasas

Burbank. Every business that does business in Burbank registers with the city, whether or not it is located there. For most businesses the tax is a basic tax plus a fee for each employee, paid each calendar year.
Glendale. Every business located in Glendale needs a Business Registration Certificate, which costs $363, with a $121 annual renewal. A home-based business applies for a Home Occupation Permit instead, and a business with no office, retail or industrial space in the city does not need the certificate.
Calabasas. The city does not require a business license.

Rental Property in the Valley

City business tax. An owner who rents out 4 or more residential units in the City of Los Angeles needs a Business Tax Registration Certificate, and revenue from all the properties is reported on one certificate. An owner with 3 or fewer units is not liable under this classification. Rental of dwelling units is taxed at $1.27 per $1,000 of gross receipts.
Housing Department fees are separate. The annual per-unit fees paid to the city's Housing Department (the code-inspection fee, and the rent stabilization or just-cause fee where they apply) are separate from the business tax.
Property tax. The first installment is due November 1 and is late after December 10, and the second is due February 1 and is late after April 10. A 10 percent penalty applies to each late installment.
Assessment appeals. Applications to appeal the regular annual assessment are filed from July 2 to November 30 with the Assessment Appeals Board. A supplemental, escape or roll-change assessment is appealed within 60 days of the date its notice or tax bill was mailed.
Selling in the City of Los Angeles. The city's transfer tax is $2.25 per $500 of the price. For sales closing after June 30, 2026, Measure ULA adds a 4 percent tax on sales over $5,400,000 and 5.5 percent on sales of $10,900,000 or more.
Passing a rental to children. Since February 16, 2021, the parent-to-child exclusion covers only a family home or family farm, so a rental passed to children is reassessed.

Schedule E reporting, depreciation and the tax side of buying or selling a rental are covered on Rental Property Owners.

California Specifics

LLCs. A new LLC pays its first $800 annual tax by the 15th day of the 4th month after it files with the Secretary of State, and after that by the 15th day of the 4th month of each tax year. The first-year exemption covered only tax years 2021 through 2023, so a new LLC owes the tax in its first year. An LLC with total California income of $250,000 or more also pays an LLC fee.
Corporations and S corporations. A new corporation does not pay the $800 minimum franchise tax in its first taxable year. An S corporation pays 1.5 percent of its California net income, with an $800 minimum.
Seller's permit. A business that sells or leases goods that are ordinarily subject to sales tax needs a seller's permit from the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. There is no fee for the permit, though a security deposit may be required.

How We Work

Our office is at 6200 Variel Ave in Woodland Hills, open Monday–Friday, 9:00 am–6:00 pm. Meetings are scheduled in advance, and documents are exchanged electronically. Each engagement begins with a consultation about the work involved, and we then send an engagement letter that sets out the scope of work and the fee before any work begins.

To get started, call (213) 255-4665 or contact us.

Fees

Service	Typical range
Monthly bookkeeping	$650–$1,400 per month
Catch-up bookkeeping	From $1,500
Payroll	$175–$400 per month
Business tax return (1120-S, 1065 or 1120 with the California return)	$2,000–$3,500 per year
LLC or S corporation setup	From $950 plus state fees
Individual return with a business or rental properties	$1,100–$1,800
Individual return with K-1s, stock compensation or several states	$2,500–$4,500

Fees depend on the scope of work and are set out in a written engagement letter before work begins. See the Fee Guide.

Services Involved

Frequently Asked Questions

Which parts of the San Fernando Valley are in the City of Los Angeles?

Woodland Hills, West Hills, Canoga Park, Tarzana, Encino, Reseda, Van Nuys, Sherman Oaks, Studio City, North Hollywood, Northridge, Chatsworth and Pacoima are all communities within the City of Los Angeles. Burbank, Calabasas, Glendale, Hidden Hills and San Fernando are separate cities, and Universal City is unincorporated.

Does a business based outside Los Angeles need a Los Angeles business tax certificate?

It can. The City of Los Angeles treats a business as engaged in business in the city if its people work or provide services there on at least seven working days a year, or if it regularly solicits business there, wherever the business is based. Such a business needs a Business Tax Registration Certificate from the Office of Finance.

When is the Los Angeles business tax renewal due, and who pays no tax?

The annual renewal is due by the last day of February, or the following Monday when that day is a Sunday. A registered business with worldwide gross receipts of $100,000 or less pays no business tax, as long as it files the renewal on time. The 2027 date, late penalties and the first-year back tax are covered in City of Los Angeles Business Tax: Registration and Renewal.

Do rental units in the City of Los Angeles need a business tax certificate?

Yes, once an owner rents out 4 or more residential units in the city, and revenue from all the properties is reported on one certificate. An owner with 3 or fewer units is not liable under this classification. The annual per-unit fees paid to the Housing Department are separate from the business tax.

Does a new California LLC owe the $800 tax in its first year?

Yes. The first-year exemption applied only to tax years 2021 through 2023, so a new LLC pays the $800 annual tax by the 15th day of the 4th month after it files with the Secretary of State. A new corporation, including an S corporation, does not pay the $800 minimum franchise tax in its first taxable year.

Can MangoBooks catch up books that are a year or two behind?

Yes. Catch-up bookkeeping brings the books current for the months or years that were missed, and monthly bookkeeping continues from there. The business and personal returns are then prepared from the completed books. Catch-up work starts from $1,500, depending on how many months are involved and the volume of transactions.

Schedule a Consultation

Call (213) 255-4665 or send us a short message about your situation.

Please do not include Social Security numbers, bank account numbers or tax documents in the form.