Oops, I should have specified - find a good tax advisor. I'd always assumed tax advisors were all pretty competent, but I guess some aren't.

And, to be clear, I'm not talking about a tax preparer. Where I live, pretty much anyone can take an online course and become a tax preparer. An actual tax advisor would typically be someone with a degree in accounting, at a minimum.

It's just frustrating because financial articles always say "consult a tax professional before making any moves" or something like that. But how many of us have our own tax professional? I don't even know where to find one.

I don't mind paying the tax. That's not the problem. I just hate all the complexity. We shouldn't have to rely on an entire industry just to file our taxes. I remember the days of filling out a 1040-EZ by pencil and mailing it in to the IRS. Nowadays, my nephew (single, no kids) pays someone $140 to file a simple return.