Christopher H. Gaynor, CPA, MS
CONSULTING PRINCIPAL
Chris Gaynor, CPA, is a Consulting Principal of KROST. His level of expertise ranges from retirement planning to tax controversy. Chris has successfully performed hundreds of tax audits during his career.
Chris earned his undergraduate degree in political science at UCLA, and then finished his formal education with a Master of Science in Accounting at California State University, Northridge.
Chris resides in Pacific Palisades with his wife Rose. They have two children, Nicole and Scott.
Professional Experience
- KROST, Consulting Principal (2022 — Present)
- KROST, Principal (2019 — 2021)
- Gaynor & Umanoff, Partner (2005 — 2018)
- Gaynor, Handelman & Gaynor, Partner (1978 — 2004)
- Price Waterhouse (1975 — 1977)
Education
- Master of Science Emphasis in Business Administration and Accounting, California State University at Northridge
- Bachelor of Arts Emphasis in Political Science, the University of California at Los Angeles
Professional Affiliations
- Member of California Society of CPAs (1978 — Present)
- Member of American Institute of CPAs (1984 — Present)
- The conference planning committee for UCLA annual Tax controversy conference
Extracurricular Activities
- Member of The Westwood Village Rotary
- President of The Westwood Village Rotary Club (1993 — 1994)
- Extensive Foreign Travel
- Tennis
Tax Thought Leadership

Fiscal Year 2023 Revenue Proposal: How Does the Biden Administration’s Proposal Impact the Real Estate Industry?
May 19, 2022Recently, the Department of Treasury released the General Explanations of the Administration’s Fiscal Year 2023 Revenue Proposals. The proposals are built around the Build Back Better Act, passed by the House of Representatives on November 19, 2021, but were stalled in the Senate. If you are in the real estate space, it is important to Read the full article…

Types of Trusts
May 11, 2022In the last article in our series, we covered the benefits a trust offers for creators and beneficiaries. In this article, we’ll dive into more detail about the types of trusts that can be established and the pros and cons. Types of Trusts Revocable Trusts Revocable trusts (living trusts) can be changed or canceled at Read the full article…

Delays Continue – The IRS, the California Franchise Tax Board, and Tax Software
March 10, 2022There are so many tax reporting deadlines and for the past two years, every time we came closer to the next deadline, there was some reason (beyond our control) for delays. Coming into this tax season, we were hopeful that things would be better. With reasons beyond our control, we are expecting more delays. There Read the full article…

AB150 Update – What do I do Now?
February 25, 2022As previously communicated, recent updates to the State and Local Tax (SALT) workaround issued by the State of California, clarified some of the more troubling provisions of this law. This update should allow taxpayers to take advantage of the new deduction opportunity. The election and payment for 2021 are due by March 15th. The deduction Read the full article…

Get Organized with KROST’s Will & Trust Asset Legacy Planner
February 25, 2022Please note the following updates for 2022 Estate and Gift Exclusions: Estates of decedents who passed away during 2022 have a basic exclusion amount of $12,060,000, up from a total of $11,700,000 for estates of decedents who passed away in 2021. The annual exclusion for gifts increases to $16,000 for the calendar year 2022, up Read the full article…

More on the State Tax Deduction Workaround (AB 150)
December 22, 2021Over the weekend, we received clarification regarding a couple of the many unanswered questions regarding the implementation of the State Tax Deduction Workaround. First, we are being advised that a Grantor Trust is eligible to participate in making the election to pay tax on a partnership/LLC or S corporation. Second, since it is unlikely that Read the full article…

Advantages of Trusts for Estate Planning
December 20, 2021In the first article in this series, we covered what a trust is and the type of assets you may transfer to a trust. As a reminder, a trust is a legal agreement between two parties: the trustee and the trustor (sometimes called the settlor or grantor). The trustor is the person who establishes the Read the full article…

Did You Miss Your State Tax Deduction?
December 16, 2021If you are a shareholder of an S Corporation, partner/member of a partnership/LLC, you might be able to get some of your state tax deduction back. As you may remember, the federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act reduced the amount of the SALT deduction individuals can claim on their federal tax return to $10,000 starting Read the full article…

Tax-Saving and Advisory Services for the Real Estate Industry
November 30, 2021The real estate market can be volatile, full of risks and challenges. Real estate professionals should enlist an expert to ensure compliance and navigate the specifics of real estate tax and accounting. At KROST, we provide specialized real estate accounting services to a diverse range of clients in the real estate industry, including developers and Read the full article…

KROST Recognizes New CPA Licensees at the CalCPA LA Chapter ABC Networking Mixer 2021
November 24, 2021KROST recognized our new CPA licensees at the CalCPA LA Chapter ABC Networking event on November 18th at the Luxe Hotel on Sunset in Hollywood. Our M&A and Capital Markets Practice Leader, Paren Knadjian was invited on the M&A panel to talk about succession planning for CPA firms and practices. Congratulations to: Shelby Anna Brennan, Read the full article…