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Trust and Estate CPA Serving Suffolk County — Based Right Here in Sayville

I'm Kevin Ellis, a CPA based in Sayville who focuses on trust and estate accounting, New York estate tax, fiduciary accounting, and divorce financial analysis. Suffolk County isn't a market I serve from a distance — it's home, and it's where the core of my practice is built.

Local Roots, Specialized Focus

Suffolk County clients come to me for one of two reasons: they're navigating a trust or estate and need someone who handles the full accounting picture, or they're going through a divorce and need financial analysis their attorney can't provide. In both cases, they're looking for a specialist — not a general accountant who fits estates in between payroll runs and bookkeeping clients. Trusts, estates, and divorce financial analysis are the core of what I do. That's the entire practice.

 

I work with executors, trustees, beneficiaries, and divorcing individuals throughout Suffolk County, including Sayville, Islip, Babylon, Commack, Smithtown, and Hauppauge. Whether you found me through a referral from a local attorney or came across this page searching for help, the conversation starts the same way: a direct call or consultation with me.

We believe financial planning should feel understandable, collaborative, and steady.

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We believe financial planning should feel understandable, collaborative, and steady.

This is the text area for this paragraph. To change it, simply click and start typing. Once you've added your content, you can customize its design by using different colors, fonts, font sizes and bullets. Just highlight the words you want to design and choose from the various options in the text editing bar.

Working Directly With a CPA — Not a Firm

Some clients specifically ask for a solo practitioner. They've worked with larger firms before and found that the person they met with isn't the person doing the work. With my practice, that's not a concern. You work with me from the first conversation through the final filing. I know your file because I built it.

 

That model works particularly well for trust and estate matters, where the details are layered and the stakes are real. Executors dealing with a taxable estate, trustees navigating ongoing fiduciary obligations, beneficiaries trying to understand what they're entitled to — these aren't situations where you want to re-explain your circumstances to a different person every time you call.

Helpful answers for people preparing for what’s next.

Helpful answers for people preparing for what’s next.

frequently asked questions

Helpful answers for people preparing for what’s next.

  • Are you actually based in Suffolk County, or is this just a service area page?

    I'm based in Sayville, which is in Islip Town, Suffolk County. This is my home market, not a geographic expansion. Most of my trust and estate referral relationships are with Suffolk County attorneys.

  • Do you handle fiduciary accountings for Suffolk County Surrogate's Court specifically?

    Yes. I prepare fiduciary accountings in accordance with New York EPTL requirements and with the expectations of Suffolk County Surrogate's Court in mind. Attorneys who refer clients to me do so in part because the work comes back formatted correctly for the court.

  • What's the difference between a fiduciary accounting and an estate tax return?

    A fiduciary accounting is a formal financial report showing how estate or trust assets were received, managed, and distributed — it's required for Surrogate's Court approval and for accounting to beneficiaries. An estate tax return (Form ET-706) is a separate filing required when a New York estate exceeds the state exemption threshold. Many estates require both, and I handle both.

  • Can you help with trust income tax returns if the trust has beneficiaries in multiple states?

    Yes. I prepare Form 1041 trust income tax returns with the required New York IT-205 companion filing. For trusts with out-of-state beneficiaries or multi-state complexity, that's a routine part of what I handle.

  • I'm going through a divorce in Suffolk County. How does working with a CPA fit into that process?

    Your attorney handles the legal strategy; I handle the financial and tax analysis your attorney isn't equipped to provide. That includes modeling the after-tax value of proposed asset divisions, analyzing spousal maintenance from a tax perspective, and making sure you understand what a settlement actually costs before you agree to it. I work alongside your attorney, not instead of one.