*Note: CPAs may specialize in different areas. Be sure to check credentials and service offerings.*
If this is your first time working with a CPA, don’t worry — most professionals offer a free consultation and will walk you through what to expect. You may be asked to complete an intake form, share financial documents, or set clear goals for your session.
*Note: Every CPA operates a bit differently. Don’t hesitate to ask questions before committing.*
*Tip: Organize your documents in advance to save time and ensure accuracy.*
*Note: Preparation helps you make the most of your CPA’s expertise.*
*Note: Every CPA is different — take time to find one who fits your goals and style.*
27420 Jefferson Ave STE 104E
Temecula, California 92590
Edfin is truly fantastic! I felt a little lost and overwhelmed when we started the college admissions process for our daughter a few years back and our son last year. Shelly is so very knowledgeable about every grant, aid and program available for students and she makes sure that every opportunity is taken and ensure the paperwork is filled out correctly and in the best way to have a positive impact on grants and aids. We are so grateful for the Shelly and Willie's help and expertise. It saves us a great de
EDFIN was a trusted primary resource I used for my undergraduate studies and I am now using them as an aspiring graduate student. I am always thankful for their help.
It's great working with Shelly and her team. They made it easy to do college applications and made sure that we got the most out of the scholarships and grants available for my son and daughter. It takes out all the worries and saves us time from filling out all the applications and making sure that it is accurate and submitted ahead of time. Shelly also makes sure that we are in the know and guides us through the process. She has to right experience and know-how to guide us through. I highly recommend her
If i could recommend this program to everyone i would! Shelly and her team are absolutely amazing and have helped alleviate so much stress for me and mom. She has helped us saved thousands of dollars and made college so much more of an enjoyable stress free experience! Thank you Shelly!!
Shelly is amazing. I had no clue what to do to help my daughter prepare for college. She did everything for us begging to end. Next step she will be helping with my daughters medical school.
It's been great working with Shelly and her staff. She's been very helpful and efficient on handling my daughters financial aid and college applications. Without her help I would have been lost and my daughter would have not been awarded any aid. Completely worth my time and money to have peace of mind that college is possible for my kids. I would absolutely recommend that you give her a try if you're serious about going to college. Thank you Shelly and staff for all your help!
Shelly has been an enormous help with my financial aid. Other than being friendly, she is a hard worker and tries to do whatever she can to help. I am very thankful she helped me. Also I always felt comfortable talking to her about any questions I had. Shelly as well as Susan made me feel better about paying for college.
This is my second time using EDFIN for my children's college planning. Shelly and her team are very diligent in completing task timely, reducing stress to the student via proper planning, dealing with government agencies, and all in all making the process and seamless as possible. Both my children were awarded thousands of dollars via benefits, entitlements, and other sources. Worth every penny!!!
I am a parent who has been with Shelly since 2014. As a parent to a first time college student, the whole process was totally overwhelming, with all the paperwork, deadlines, etc. Shelly took a load off our shoulders with doing all of that and getting my daughter financial aid we would not have gotten on our own. She got her covered so that we did not have to pay out of our pockets for it. Shelly and her staff have always helped us whenever we needed answers. I highly recommend EDFIN if yourself or you
My friend, Shelly Rufin, helped my friends Leroy and Janice receive financial assistance for their daughter Joy. She is currently a freshman attending San Diego State University. They are glad that I recommended Shelly to assist them with their financial needs. Leroy told me he was impressed with her professionalism and great attitude. Shelly has been helping so many families for the past 15 years. I would recommend Shelly Rufin to ANYONE seeking financial assistance for college. Great job Shelly!!!
Shelly is a very passionate business woman and has this amazing drive in helping students with their grants for college. She is very personable and fun to work with. Her optimistic outlook creates a higher level when it comes to motivating and guilding the future leaders of our community. She is an expert and experience when it comes to college planning.
We needed a miracle for my grandson, Gunnar. He had applied to study at the University of Santa Barbara and had not been accepted. He was invited to send in an appeal. We knew he had only one shot at getting accepted so it had to be perfect. After writing and rewriting his appeal we contacted Shelly Rufin from EDFIN for help. Shelly took quick action and gave us a spot on direction for writing a perfect appeal. Gunnar was quickly accepted to UCSB and it is nothing short of a miracle. He will be able to live
Shelly, and the EDFIN team will help make your application and financial aid processes much less stressful and easier for sure. From my experience, they are very knowledgeable, thorough, and professional. Thank you, Shelly!
Edfin Cash for College is a really great program that helped me gain a lot of knowledge about college planning and financial aid. Shelly took care of us and helped our family with getting what we needed to in order to help with all my college needs. Over 2 years of college I was able to obtain a great amount for my financial aid of $61,000. Thanks Shelly!
Shelly has been an exceptional help for me and my family. My family's particular tax and financial situation left us very unsure as to how to proceed with important applications such as the FAFSA, and without Shelly's help I doubt that I would be getting anywhere near the financial aid that I am now. Shelly was very quick to help me when I had found out about a transcription error in my FAFSA as well. Both my parents were out of state, and neither my parents nor I knew what to do to rectify the errors I had
Shelly?s personalized attention to details has assisted so many college-bound seniors. EDFIN should be you first choice in getting through the financial aid process when applying to school.
EDFIN Cash for Collage is reliable and trustworthy. They help take care of everything you need for college. Shelly has given me really good advice in getting my daughter on the right path so she can accomplish her college dreams. I would definitely recommend EDFIN to any parent that has kids in high school. It's never too early to start thinking about the future of your children.
DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME! This business is a scam. When we regularly contacted Shelly for updates on her progress, she has no definite answers, only excuses and just prolongs our waiting. There were many instances of mishandling my paperwork, and these forms had sensitive information and personal identification on them! the financial aid office on my university campus even told me there were mistakes on my account! We paid her $2500 in cash for her services and only received a fraction of that money back. Ter
Contact Shelly at EDFIN College Prep. She is fully dialed in! Step on her moving sidewalk. She will customize a plan and guide you every step of the way (student AND parents). She customizes every client's gameplan based on individual needs and fully leverages ALL options.
Edfin Cash for College is responsible for helping my daughter receive her scholarship to UC Irvine. Shelly navigated the complex application process for us, and assisted my daughter in targeting her essays to make her stand out. Sara's tuition and books have all been covered, and she is receiving a top notch education. Thanks to Edfin, Sara will graduate with much less debt and a bright future!
EdFin has helped me tremendously with my financial aid and pointing me in the right direction for college. Shelly is a wonderful person and knows everything there is to know about transferring to a university. Without her guidance I would have been lost.
Great service! Shelly has helped me tremendously with financial aid. I had many difficulties if trying to acquire financial aid but she made the process super easy and fast.
Shelly was super helpful through the application process. She answered all my questions and helped me to get everything in on time. I'm so grateful because this really relieved the stress of filling out college apps and finding scholarships. :)
WARNING: Scam Artist Where do I start? I can post the long-winded version of why you should not pay this business OR Shelly Johnson Rufin any money to be your ?Expert College Planner? or you can take this review for what it's worth and message me for any details. All she wants is your 5-star review, that she will never get from me. My daughter did most of the work herself and turns out all help financially a student would/could get is based on PARENTS income and credit, Shelly NEVER disclosed this informati
?? I've found Shelly and her team 2 yrs. Ago in an anxiety moment of my life those days, my son was almost graduating high school in San Diego and I was totally lost. Struggling economically and with just few years new in San Diego ( I'm from Mexico) I found her in Facebook.. and my gutt told me: why not a college expert? Let's see and I texted her. She gave me appointment by phone for next day. We talked, she explained me all an detailed me costs and what included. I moved the world in 2 days because I di
As a senior in high school, Shelly has lifted a lot of the weight off my shoulders by helping me with financial aid, guiding me through the steps of applying to colleges, and much more even while having a busy schedule and helping many other students.
Shelly is so helpful and knowledgeable about everything college and just all around fun to hang out with. If you're looking for help anything college Shelly will 100 percent have all the answers. Will be using her throughout my college career
Prior to discovering EDFIN, I had no idea where to start once admitted into college. I was completely lost. Thanks to Shelly, I can experience college freely without having to worry about being a financial burden. She was always there whenever I had questions regarding college, and always managed to resolve any issues I had even before going to college.
EDFIN Cash for College is making college dreams a reality for many students that wouldn't otherwise be going to college. In addition to providing assistance with navigating the Admissions/Financial Aid process, Shelly Rufin will seek out scholarships and grants available to qualified students, as well as coaching and mentoring students during their college career. I've witnessed her high level of integrity and commitment to the parents and students she serves.
Edfin helped me finish all my college apps and financial aid far before the deadline! Shelly is very punctual and helpful throughout the entire process as well.
Shelly has helped me recieve financial aid the past 2 years to complete my general education at MSJC and now helping me transfer to Cal state San Marcos. She is always so helpful and quick to answer my questions I have
Great service! Shelly was amazing in helping me get back on track for school and to finish graduating!! I will highly recommend! Made it easier to focus on school by not worrying money to pay for school.
I know Ms Shelly in person and she is very knowledgeable, detail oriented, and professional. She and her team will help you through the process thoroughly and in a very professional manner until you achieved your goal. Goodluck!
Edfin has helped me so much with the college planning process. Shelly's knowledge of the college system helps enormously when it comes to getting financial aid, scholarships, and acceptance into the schools i plan to go to.
Shelly stole our money and did nothing for us but falsefy our FAFSA and get us in trouble with the DOE. She doesnt help anyone but hersef and pad her pockets . I pray that someone help to get a a cass action lawsuit against her so we can properly be compansated for what she has done to us. Its a shame and i pray that others dont get bamboozled like we did. Shes a liar and a thief
I love working with Shelly she is so detail-oriented and professional!! I truly loved working with her. She does her research. She works very hard for her clients.
Shelly and her team have been very helpful though the process of applying for grants and Scolarships.Thank you so much for all your hard work!
As a mother of three adult children I can attest to the importance of college planning. It really starts with planting a seed in the child?s mind as early as possible. When there is a vision it helps anchor that seed in the mind. It is what I personally did with my children, discussing how important good grades and discipline in completing their homework would be for them in creating good habits to ensure a successful college entrance and ultimately achieving their degree. However, how does that happen,
We are happy with the services that Shelly Rufin Collegue has given us, it is very effective, when she interviews the student she realizes that she needs help to achieve her goals, my daughter is just in her first year of university, some obstacles, but she helped us quickly and it was resolved, I recommend her, she's really good at her job..
Shelly has really been a phenomenal help to my family and I, we're so grateful for all the help that she has provided us in the application process.
EDFIN has effectively and efficiently assists their student clients. They have further help their students with academic assistance in various subjects like mathematics.
I appreciate the hard work Shelly has put into my daughters with her knowledge that I do not have. It is truly a blessing.
Edfin has done a great job in helping me and my family with dealing with financial aid and allowed me to go through college worry free.
Very helpful. Very proactive company, and provide very welcoming, easy service. Definitely would recommend to any college students!
The staff is so nice and so far my experience there has been very helpful for finding financial aid.
Great assistance, and quality service for college planning. I couldn't have asked for better service and help on financial aid!
Very helpful, reliable and they helped me with earning a full ride scholarship
Thank you Shelly for your help, I look forward to planning my future and starting school!
Saves you the trouble of trying to figure out how all of the work necessary for applying and looking for colleges on your own.
took the boring and complex stuff of handling the fafsa and other stuff so I could just focus on just school!
Amazing financial service!
Look for a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) license, which ensures they’ve passed rigorous exams and meet state requirements. Check for relevant experience in your industry, additional certifications like CFA or CMA, and membership in professional organizations like the AICPA. Verify their credentials through state licensing boards.
Use online directories like the AICPA, CPAverify, or state CPA societies. Search platforms like Yelp or Google for local CPAs with reviews. Ask for referrals from business associates, friends, or financial advisors. Local chambers of commerce can also provide recommendations.
A CPA is a licensed professional who has passed the CPA exam and met state requirements for education and experience. An accountant may lack this certification and could have varying levels of expertise. For complex tasks like tax audits or financial reporting, a CPA is typically more qualified.
Ask about their experience with your specific financial needs, such as tax preparation, small business accounting, or estate planning. Review their website or LinkedIn for case studies or client testimonials. Inquire about their client base to ensure they handle similar financial situations.
Yes, reviews provide insight into a CPA’s reliability, communication, and performance. Check platforms like Google, Yelp, or the Better Business Bureau for client feedback. Look for patterns in reviews, but verify their authenticity, as some may be biased or outdated.
Visit your state’s Board of Accountancy website or use CPAverify.org to check a CPA’s license status. Confirm their license is active and check for any disciplinary actions or complaints. This ensures they’re in good standing and meet professional standards.
Ask about their experience with your financial needs, fee structure, availability, and communication style. Inquire how they handle tax filings, audits, or financial planning. Ask for references or examples of similar work to assess their expertise and fit.
Fees vary based on location, services, and complexity. Basic tax preparation may cost $150-$500, while business accounting or audits can range from $1,000 to $10,000+. Request a detailed fee structure upfront and compare quotes from multiple CPAs.
Yes, many CPAs offer remote services through secure online platforms for document sharing and virtual consultations. Ensure they use encrypted tools for data security. Remote CPAs can be effective if they understand your local tax laws or business regulations.
During consultations, evaluate their ability to explain complex financial concepts clearly. Ask sample questions about taxes or financial strategies and note their responsiveness and clarity. Good communication ensures you understand their advice and fosters a productive relationship.
Beware of CPAs who guarantee specific tax refunds, lack a valid license, or have disciplinary actions on record. Avoid those with poor communication, vague fee structures, or negative reviews highlighting unethical behavior. Always verify their credentials independently.
Large firms offer more resources and specialized teams but may charge higher fees. Solo practitioners often provide personalized service and lower costs but may have limited availability. Choose based on your needs, budget, and preference for personalized attention.
For individuals, annual meetings for tax preparation may suffice. Businesses may need quarterly or monthly check-ins for bookkeeping, tax planning, or financial reporting. Discuss your needs upfront to establish a meeting schedule that aligns with your financial goals.
Yes, many CPAs handle both, but confirm their expertise in both areas. Ask about their experience managing personal taxes and business accounting simultaneously. Ensure they can balance both without compromising attention to your specific financial needs.
Discuss concerns directly with your CPA to resolve issues. If unresolved, check your contract for termination terms. Seek a new CPA by researching reviews, credentials, and referrals. Request your financial records to ensure a smooth transition to a new professional.