Ely Tama, CPA, President and Managing Shareholder

Business acumen doesn’t magically appear overnight.  That’s why Ely Tama has spent the better part of the last 45 years cultivating his talents and a strong commitment to client service.

It all began in 1969 when Ely left Lawrence Technological University with a Bachelor of Science in Accountancy.  From there, he moved to Los Angeles where he practiced at a firm specializing in the entertainment industry. Ely returned to Michigan in 1971 and the firm of Linden, Klein, Israel & Ross where he built the core of his public accounting expertise.  Then in 1975, Ely got the last job he would ever have.  It was at a firm established in the early 60s called Velick & Haas.  With the help of Jeff Budaj and Emil Raab, Velick & Haas was eventually transformed into Tama, Budaj & Raab, P.C.

As the firm’s President and Managing Shareholder, Ely draws on his wealth of experience to serve a diverse clientele.  Audits, tax, management and general business advisory in closely-held business—particularly real estate—is core to his offering. 

Ely is currently licensed in Michigan and Florida, is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants and the Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants.  He is also a member of the Oakland County Sheriff’s Advisory Council.  Ely has been one of the top fund raisers for the MS 150 Bicycle Ride for the local Michigan Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society for the past 25 years and he’s still going strong.  Ely has raised over $500,000 over 25 years to assist in the search for a cure and/or treatment of Multiple Sclerosis.

When Ely isn’t helping his clients live their financial lives to the fullest, he’s living his own to the fullest.  As an elite cycler and marathoner, Ely’s pride in his athletic feats is matched only by his dedication to his family.

Jeffrey F. Budaj, CPA, MST, Vice President and Shareholder

Jeff has been in public accounting since 1979 when he started his career at Coopers & Lybrand, now known as PricewaterhouseCoopers in their Emerging and Small Business Services group.  As an Engagement Shareholder at Tama, Budaj & Raab, P.C., Jeff will have overall responsibility for the conduct and completion and staffing of the engagement.  He has an extensive and diverse background in accounting, auditing and tax.  Jeff is licensed in both Michigan and Georgia.

Jeff’s client responsibilities include serving closely-held/entrepreneurial companies and their owners/shareholders and helps executives grow, prosper, save taxes and solve problems. Some of the industries he works in include real estate development, property management and affordable housing areas.  He also works as a strategic and trusted advisor to his clients who are health care professionals in medical and dental practices, manufacturing, wholesale and distribution and other service industries as well as the owner/entrepreneurs of these businesses.  He also works with other high net-worth individuals in tax and business planning. His focus is on providing high quality service tailored to the client’s needs.

Jeff also is responsible for the Firm’s business valuation and litigation support practice.  He has valued businesses for estate planning and gift tax purposes, business disputes among partners and shareholders, buy-sell agreements, ownership succession and divorce and has served and provided expert testimony, as needed.

Jeff has previously served on the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountant’s real estate and construction and forensic and litigation support services committees. He graduated in 1979 from Wayne State University with a Bachelor degree in Accounting and in 1986 from Walsh College with a Master of Science in Taxation.  Jeff is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants. He is a member of the AICPA’s Forensic and Valuation Services division and member of the National Association of Certified Valuation Analysts.

Jeff’s civic duties include being a board member of JVS (Jewish Vocational Service and Community Workshop), Jewish Community Center of Metropolitan Detroit, and an audit committee member of the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit, JVS and Jewish Family Service.  Jeff’s hobbies include golf and travel.

John W. Weipert, CPA, MST, Director of Tax Services

John is the Director of Tax Services at Tama, Budaj & Raab, P.C. He started in public practice in 1987.  He has experience providing tax preparation and advisory services, with special emphasis in real estate, partnership, estate and trust taxation.  He is licensed in Michigan and Florida.

His work in real estate taxation includes tax consulting and compliance for builders, developers, property managers and owners of commercial and residential (single and multi-family) properties.  Experience includes choice of entity, like-kind exchange and casualty loss.  John also works with homeowners’ associations of neighborhood, condominium and cooperative entities.  In addition, he works with affordable housing including federal and state low-income housing credits.

John's work in partnership taxation includes evaluating transaction structure, providing tax compliance advice; evaluate tax credit allocation and recapture and tax-loss reallocation issues.  He has experience with partner changes resulting in outside basis and technical termination issues.

John's work in the estate and trust area includes planning and administration of estates and trusts of all sizes.  His experience includes estate tax returns and estate tax audits, gift tax returns, family limited partnerships, charitable remainder trusts, irrevocable life insurance trusts, generation skipping trusts, private foundations, qualified personal residence trusts, grantor retained annuity trusts, revocable grantor trusts and irrevocable trusts.

In addition, John oversees the tax research planning and tax return compliance for closely-held businesses and their owners, as well as for a number of high net-worth individuals.

Education

B.B.A. magna cum laude - Cleary College, Ypsilanti MI

M.S. in Taxation with distinction - Walsh College, Troy MI

Professional Affiliations

American Institute of Certified Public Accountants

  Tax Division

  Information Technology Division

Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants

Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants

Barton A. Lowen, CPA, MST, Accounting Manager

Bart has been in public accounting since 1979.  He has been with Tama, Budaj & Raab, P.C. since 1985.  As Accounting Manager of Tama, Budaj & Raab, P.C., Bart provides accounting, tax and advisory services to numerous closely-held businesses.  He has considerable experience with a wide range of business operations and industries including real estate construction and development, health care, manufacturing, affordable housing and other professional service organizations.

Bart is dedicated to helping clients achieve business success by helping them establish practical and sound tax and financial processes.  Focused on services for small to medium-sized businesses, he is committed to delivering tax and financial services that meet each client’s unique objectives.

Bart provides a variety of business services to his clients including tax planning, retirement and financial planning, acquisitions and dispositions of business operations for business entities including corporations, partnerships, limited liability companies, and sole proprietorships.  Bart’s responsibilities include the conducting, supervising and reviewing of annual and interim engagements and examinations of the financial records of clients.  He also has experience with numerous tax related issues and has represented clients before the Internal Revenue Service and other state and local regulatory agencies.

Bart received his Bachelor of Accountancy and Master of Science in Taxation from Walsh College.  Bart is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants.  Bart is also a member of the AICPA Tax Division and the Financial and Estate Planning Council of Metropolitan Detroit, Inc.  Bart’s hobbies include reading, martial arts and weight lifting.

Michael R. Finnigan, CPA, Manager

Mike started his career in public accounting in 1985 after graduating from Michigan State University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Accounting.  He has worked at several local CPA firms, KPMG tax department (formerly “Peat Marwick”), and has been at Tama, Budaj & Raab, P.C. since December 2003.  He has an extensive and diverse background in accounting, auditing and tax.  Mike is a licensed CPA in Michigan.

Mike’s responsibilities include serving closely-held companies and their owners, members and shareholders in industries such as: affordable housing, health care, manufacturing, professional services, property management, real estate, residential construction, retail and other service industries.  He has extensive experience in federal and state taxation for corporations, individuals, non-profits and partnerships.  He also consults with businesses and individuals regarding business planning, compliance, tax planning and other concerns and issues that may arise.  Mike’s focus is on providing excellent quality service to the client.

Mike is a member of the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants.  His civic duties include being a former board member for several local churches.  Mike’s hobbies include bicycling, bowling, camping and exercising.

Thomas D. Madouse, CPA, Associate

Prior to joining Tama, Budaj & Raab, P.C., Tom started his career in 1982 at a small accounting firm where he worked until 1996.  He then worked as a controller for three years at a growing electrical contractor before joining Tama, Budaj & Raab, P.C. in 1999.  Through experience, Tom has gained a well rounded understanding of the business and accounting environment.  Tom is licensed to practice in Michigan.

Tom’s responsibilities include working with closely-held companies in property management, affordable housing, health care and other professional services, retail and other service industries.  His experience includes corporate and individual taxation, both federal and states, as well as many types of profit sharing and pension plans.  Tom specializes in tax planning and compliance for individual and business entities. Tom also has extensive experience in the preparation of estate and trust returns as well as gift tax returns, family limited partnerships, charitable remainder trusts, generation skipping trusts, private foundations and grantor trusts. 

Tom is a member of both the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants.  Tom graduated with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Cleary College in 1984.  Tom’s hobbies include bicycling, water skiing and travel.

Heeral Patel, CPA, MBA, Associate

Heeral started her career in public accounting in 2009. She has provided auditing, accounting and tax services to wide range of businesses and individuals. Her experience includes planning and performing compilations, reviews and audits of businesses, government, not-for-profit entities and 401(k) audits.

Heeral graduated from Wayne State University with a Master of Business Administration in 2017. She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants. Heeral is a licensed CPA in the State of Michigan.

Crissy L. Williams, Staff Accountant

Crissy has been working in public accounting since 2000.  She started her career at a small firm before moving to Arizona where she worked for the third largest accounting firm in Tucson.  When Crissy returned to Michigan in 2006, she began her career with Tama, Budaj & Raab, P.C.

At Tama, Budaj & Raab, P.C., Crissy's responsibilities include working with clients in various industries such as property management, professional and other services and real estate.  Her experience includes corporate and individual taxation as well as payroll and personal property tax preparation.  Crissy is also involved in many special projects which include Offer in Compromise preparation, new business set-up and reconciliation of books and records.

Crissy graduated with honors from Walsh College, earning her Bachelor in Accountancy in 2002.  Crissy's free time is spent with her three young children, going to the park and playing sports.

Daiana Turcanu, MAC, Associate

Daiana graduated from Walsh College with a Master of Science in Accountancy in 2017. She started her career in public accounting in the same year. Since then, she has provided accounting and tax services to individuals and businesses. She also has experience in Bookkeeping, Payroll, Sales Tax and Personal Property Tax preparation.

Daiana has her certification for QuickBooks Online which helps her to assist clients with their bookkeeping and accounting questions, as well as reconciliation of books.

Daiana’s hobbies include travel, cooking and spending time at parks with her husband and two children.