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4275 Executive Square Suite 200
La Jolla, CA 92037
(858) 754-8277
Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Tax, Planning & Advisory Services
4275 Executive Square Suite 200 La Jolla, CA 92037
(858) 754-8277
A Different Kind of CPA Firm.
For Professionals, High-Income Earners, Physicians, Business Owner-Entrepreneurs & Businesses
That Expect & Deserve More.
We've Been Nominated
Best of La Jolla 2026 * Accounting Category
Thank you to our clients and
our community
for your continued support!
The Expertise You Need.
The Service You Deserve. A Partner You Can Trust.
Natalie C. Papagni, CPA — Tax Planning & Advisory is a modern, forward-focused CPA firm built on genuine relationships, clear communication, and high-impact tax strategy and planning for professionals and high-income earners, executives with equity compensation, physicians and healthcare professionals and business owner-entrepreneurs - along with S-corporations, LLCs, partnerships, and successful sole proprietorships in La Jolla, greater San Diego and California.
Recognized as one of the best CPA firms in La Jolla (La Jolla Village News) we provide the technical expertise of leading CPA, tax and advisory firms with the personalized service, responsiveness and unhurried attention found at boutique firms - without the elevated fees.
Our clients have high standards and value grounded conversations, quiet confidence and a steady hand. Our services help our clients make smart, timely and intentional decisions to minimize multi-year tax liabilities, increase financial efficiencies, file accurate individual, business and trust tax returns, avoid year-end surprises, plan for the future and live their best lives.
We understand how overwhelming taxes can be for high-income earners with complex lives.
Our services were designed with you in mind.
Working with us, we will assist you transform complexity into clarity, tax savings and peace of mind.
Why Chose
Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Tax, Planning & Advisory Services
Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Principal & Tax Strategist is the founder and principal of the firm, and works directly with high-income earners, physicians, executives with equity compensation, and business owners on tax strategy and planning initiatives, the preparation of their individual, business and trust tax returns, business entity selection and financial consulting interests.
Natalie C. Papagni, CPA — Tax Planning & Advisory Services is built on genuine, long-term, high-trust relationships, transforming complexity into clarity, peace of mind, and confidence. Custom-tailored, client-specific planning comes first — incorporating expertise in the areas that matter to you most — followed by expert-level tax preparation that maximizes tax efficiency in full compliance with the law.
Most CPA practices are built for volume: compliance-driven, historically focused, rigid in their guidance, and structured to view clients as a transaction. Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Tax, Planning & Advisory Services was built for clients who expect and deserve more.
Tax Planning, Preparation & Advisory Services
With more than 15 years of experience as a tax CPA, Natalie Papagni architects tax strategy, guides advanced planning, and personally prepares her client's individual, business and trust tax returns. A licensed California CPA and AICPA member, Natalie offers the credentials, technical depth and precision found at large firms, with the direct access, personalized attention and responsiveness found at boutique firms - without the elevated fees.
Serving La Jolla, Greater San Diego & California
Natalie is an experienced tax CPA in San Diego and a trusted advisor across California, serving clients throughout La Jolla, greater San Diego, and the state of California.
Clients We Serve
Individuals & High Income Earners
Professionals and high-income earners with household incomes typically ranging from $250K to $2 Mil+.
The firm's tax, planning, and advisory services are designed for professionals and high-income earners with multiple income streams — which may include wages, equity compensation (ISOs, RSUs, NSOs, ESPPs, founders stock), bonuses, investments, K-1s, rental real estate, and/or business income.
Physicians & Healthcare Professionals
Physicians and healthcare professionals frequently have multi-layered income streams, including W-2 wages, 1099 compensation, private practice income, complex investments, K-1s, rental income, practice income, and a unique financial trajectory. Each layer of income introduces unique tax implications.
Working with a CPA who specializes in physicians and healthcare professionals, from residency-to-retirement, is essential for those that value and expect expertise in areas that matter most.
Business Owners - Entrepreneurs
& Businesses
Business owner - entrepreneurs navigate entity selection decisions, multi-layered entity-level filings and tax obligations, unique S-corporation, LLC, and partnership tax rules, and a shifting regulatory landscape. Services for business owner - entrepreneurs and businesses include:
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Entity Selection & S-Corp Optimization
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Advanced Tax Planning for Shareholders and the Businesses they Own
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Compensation, Benefits & Multi-Layered Retirement Plans
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QBI & PTET Optimization
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Shareholder Basis Tracking & Distributions Guidance
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Tax Preparation for Shareholders and the Businesses they Own
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Tax Consulting
Working together, we will help you transform complexity into clarity, align your entity structure with your intentions, optimize the benefits of business ownership, minimize tax liabilities, risk and uncertainty, and close each year out strong.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Do you work primarily with high-income earners?
Yes. Clients we typically serve are high income earners ($250,000 - $2 Mil+/-) with growing financial structures, including professionals with and without equity compensation, physicians and healthcare professionals - from residency to retirement, business owners - entrepreneurs and businesses. Our business is built on relationships, strong communications and assisting our clients target and intentionally and strategically achieve their tax liability and effective tax rate minimization goals.
What is the best way to contact Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Tax, Planning & Advisory Services?
The best first-step is to schedule a complimentary consultation with Natalie following the link on this website, call (858) 754-8277 or send an email to npapagni@lajollataxcpa.com.
Which La Jolla CPA firm can handle my personal and business tax planning and tax preparation needs?
Located in La Jolla, CA Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Tax, Planning & Advisory Services serves clients in La Jolla, greater San Diego and throughout California, and specializes in coordinating the personal and business tax planning initiatives, tax preparation and financial planning activities for our business owner clients at levels providing them the best opportunity to target and achieve optimal outcomes.
What issues do individuals you meet for the first time often have?
Most clients who come to us previously worked with CPA firms — small, mid-sized, or large — whose approach was compliance-driven, high-volume, and reactive rather than strategic. They grew frustrated with impersonal service models: rotating staff, inconsistent communication, slow responsiveness, high fees, avoidable errors, and mediocre results. Often, they had stayed with those firms for years without ever receiving meaningful guidance on the tax and financial issues that mattered most to them. They received generic, one-size-fits-all planning instead of strategy tailored to their circumstances and goals. As a result, they were left unclear about what actually drives their tax liability, which planning opportunities apply to them, and how major financial decisions affect their long-term outcomes. Instead of making informed decisions in advance, they found themselves reacting after the fact.
Compounding the problem, many were receiving fragmented advice from professionals working in isolation — their CPA, financial advisor, and attorney rarely coordinating. The result: conflicting strategies, missed opportunities, and no cohesive long-term plan.
Natalie C. Papagni, CPA was specifically built to overcome these obstacles.
How is working with a CPA specializing in tax planning different from a traditional CPA relationship?
Many CPAs view their client relationships as transactional and retrospective. At Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Tax, Planning & Advisory Services, we value and respect every client we serve and invest the time to build a productive, high-trust relationship. Unlike most CPAs, we are forward-focused, act as your tax strategist and ensure our clients have the information they need to make smart, timely and effective decisions to achieve optimal tax outcomes - year after year. We excel in building financial and tax projections factoring in scenario analysis, tax strategies, applicable tax laws and explicit decision frameworks to guide actions throughout the year. For most of our clients, the preparation of year-end federal and state tax returns is the final step of the year's tax planning initiative - not the primary service we provide.
What should I look for when searching for a CPA near me in La Jolla, greater San Diego and California?
You will want to definitely look for a CPA with deep expertise in areas relevant to your financial and tax structures that places a strong emphasis on building a relationship, understanding what matters to you most, and how you like to communicate, and has an unwavering commitment to quality, integrity, transparency, upholding tax laws and service excellence.
What is the value of tax planning? Will it pay for itself?
For most clients with a business entity or complex income, yes — often several times over. Prior to beginning an engagement, Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Tax, Planning & Advisory Services works on fixed, flat fee agreements. If additional information is provided during an engagement increasing engagement complexity or scope, we will discuss the additional work effort required and agree upon any additional fees.
Do I need to be in La Jolla or San Diego to work with you?
No. Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Tax, Planning & Advisory Services serves professionals & high-income earners, physicians & healthcare professionals, business owners - entrepreneurs and businesses throughout California. We generally travel to Northern California multiple times a year for client meetings. Our full encrypted file sharing portal, state of the art technology, responsiveness, and availability for Zoom meetings and phone calls make location irrelevant.
What is the company's culture?
Our company is rooted in four key values– quality, compassion, integrity, and always striving to add high-impact value and results. We are committed to building authentic and genuine relationships, deliver excellence, exceed expectations and supporting the clients and communities we serve.
Can I work with Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Tax, Planning & Advisory Services if I'm not currently a high-income earner however that is my future?
Yes. Natalie C. Papagni, CPA- Tax, Planning & Advisory Services is, in fact, currently working with a number of Residents in the last year of their Residency, professionals with vesting RSUs and new business owners that are not currently high-income earners, however benefit from our financial and multi-year strategic tax planning guidance as their financial growth trajectory is strong.
I have a busy schedule, making it difficult to schedule a meeting business hours. Are you available to meet early evenings and on Saturdays?
Yes. Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Tax, Planning & Advisory Services frequently schedules early evening, Saturday and Sunday appointments (by appointment only) for busy professionals via phone, Zoom and/or in-person. In fact, we prefer to schedule meetings in the early evening, on Saturday or on Sunday vs during business hours if a meeting during business hours would be inconvenient, or our meeting would be rushed.
What is your fee structure?
Fees are fixed and quoted in advance, so you know the cost in advance, and can rest assured there is not a meter running every time we speak, or when you call with a question. I use this model intentionally. I do not want clients to hesitate to reach out throughout the year when I can assist them explore their options when making material financial decisions, and add meaningful value.
Can the firm fix mistakes made by a previous tax preparer?
Yes. Natalie C. Papagni, CPA reviews returns prepared by prior CPAs and preparers, and handles remediation directly: amended individual and business returns, corrective filings for retirement plan contribution errors, and penalty abatement requests where reasonable cause exists.
What questions should I ask before hiring a new CPA firm?
Ask these six questions before engaging any CPA firm, and pay attention to how directly they're answered: (1) Who will actually prepare my return — you, or staff? (2) Who reviews and signs it? (3) How long has that person been with the firm? (4) Will I have direct access to a CPA, or does communication go through staff or admin? (5) Are fees fixed and quoted in advance, or hourly? (6) Is any part of the work outsourced?
The first three questions expose the leverage model: at many firms, the person selling you the engagement is not the person doing the work. You should leave the initial consultation knowing exactly one name: the person responsible for your work. If you leave with a team org chart instead, the relationship will be diluted from day one.
At Natalie C. Papagni, CPA - Tax, Planning & Advisory Services, recognized as one of the best CPA firms in La Jolla, you have direct, year-round access to Natalie C. Papagni, CPA, the Principal of the firm. Natalie C. Papagni, CPA will work closely with you to architect your tax strategy, guide you through advanced tax planning initiatives, and prepare and sign your individual and business tax returns. You will not be handed off to junior staff or experience rotating staff year-after-year.
Do you work with clients throughout California, or only in La Jolla and San Diego?
I serve clients located in La Jolla, greater San Diego and throughout California - notably the San Francisco Bay Area. I schedule trips to visit clients located outside of Southern California throughout the year. I regularly schedule zoom meetings and phone calls with clients in La Jolla, greater San Diego and throughout California when beneficial. And, my firm's secure file sharing portal encrypted with bank-level security ensures location is never a barrier. I am able to build strong, productive high-trust relationships with clients in La Jolla, greater San Diego, throughout California and clients located out-of-state with ease.
La Jolla Tax CPA & Tax Strategist — Tax Planning, Preparation & Advisory
Who We Serve
Natalie C. Papagni, CPA is a boutique CPA firm in La Jolla, CA, and a proactive tax strategist for high-income earners, physicians and healthcare professionals, executives with equity compensation, and business owners. Client referrals and clients searching for a tax CPA near me, the best CPA in La Jolla, or a CPA and tax strategist in La Jolla, San Diego or California contact us for a highly personalized experience, expert-level work, year-round access to a CPA and tax strategist, our fixed fee structure, and friendly service.
Tax Planning, Preparation & Advisory Services
Our practice pairs advanced, forward-looking tax planning with expert federal and California tax preparation. Engagements are handled on fixed fees quoted in advance, so working with a fixed-fee CPA in La Jolla means no meter running when you call. The work spans S-corporation strategy, equity compensation planning, and high-net-worth tax planning built to lower your effective tax rate year after year.
Serving La Jolla, Greater San Diego & California
Recognized among the best CPAs for high earners in La Jolla (La Jolla Village News) the firm provides year-round tax planning coupled with tax preparation for high-income earners statewide — including the San Francisco Bay Area. State-of-the-art technologies, including our secure file sharing portal, video conferencing, phone and accessibility make location irrelevant.
Natalie C. Papagni, CPA
Tax, Planning & Advisory Services
4275 Executive Square Suite 200
La Jolla, CA 92037
(858) 754-8277
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