Author: tonynova
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New money-saving features in retail banking
The Wall Street Journal carried two interesting articles on retail banking today. I’m in the process of moving our business banking to Wells Fargo that shows up prominently in the list. Wells Fargo is doing a handful of things right. The real story is the growing list of time-saving and money-saving features offered by banks…
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More on CPA risk of unauthorized practice of law
I learned something new today on the topic of a CPA’s exposure to risk of unauthorized practice of law. In this case the matter is a small case civil dispute arising from a tax matter in Pennsylvania. This matter would be brought in the Magisterial District Court, so local court rules apply. The question was…
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New restrictions on partner’s employee benefits
Treas. Reg. § 301.7701-2T(c)(2)(iv)(C)(2), (TD 9766 May 4, 2016) has an adverse impact on planning of employee benefit plans for partners including participation in qualified retirement plans, health and welfare plans, and fringe benefit plans. The bottom line is that partners are not common law employees when the partnership owns a disregarded entity like an LLC that…
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But I’m not a moron
One of the first startling trends of this presidential election was that voters with lower level of income, education and those with a tendency toward bigoted attitudes are more likely to be Trump supporters. It was first reported in 2015 and confirmed by other polls since then. I’ve blogged about the NBC/Wall Street Journal exit…
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Still waiting for tax refund?
If you are still waiting for a federal tax refund and have not received a CP05 notice from the IRS, it makes sense to check the status of your return. IRS sends notice CP05 when they are reviewing a tax return to verify: The income reported The income tax withholding amounts The claims for tax credits The withholding claimed…
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Sad goodbye to neighbor in the NJ Blue Acres program
The individual stories of my neighbors involved in the Blue Acres buyout program are heartbreaking. I’m not blaming the state for the program. These are voluntary purchases; no one is forced to sell. But facing building code fines and violations after Sandy, many see this as their best option. Yet I don’t see how the state’s…
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Greenspan’s latest economic warning
Yesterday Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan made some sharp comments in an interview on Fox News. I got the feeling this interview was meant as a sort of ‘final words of advice’ from perhaps the most influential economic leader of our era. Two points from the interview jump out at me. First, he says…
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Trump Accounting: cooking the books at the expense of the rest of us
Details are slowly emerging about Trump’s methods of accounting that place vastly different values on assets depending on the purpose of the report. One example cited by the Washington Post is the Trump National Golf Club in In Ossining, New York: The municipal tax assessor values the golf club at roughly $15 million. Trump’s attorneys…
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The worst mistake a business owner can make
The worst mistake a small business owner can make is to pay employee wage taxes that were withheld from employee salary. The second worst mistake, in my observation, is to try to handle the problem yourself. I see cases where the business owners or managers are damaged for more than a decade as a result of mishandling…
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Impact of Mexican/South American work force on New Jersey
I am reposting these comments arising from a Facebook conversation about Mexican and South American workers at our New Jersey shore communities that I think deserves more exposure. I have used the term “Mexican workers” without knowing for sure the origin of most of my neighbors. The language barrier and good reasons to hide the…