Category: Tax Planning
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Revised ‘Best Practices’ in accounting services engagement agreement
I revised the Best Practices section (the wordy section) of my engagement agreements effective September 1, 2021 with a number of small changes but the major change is meant to accommodate the growing portion of clients who prefer an ongoing service agreement rather than repeatedly starting and ending shorter duration services. As before, a sample…
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What’s the difference between a tax preparer and a tax adviser?
A tax preparer looks at the facts and tries to determine the appropriate reporting usually at the time of rushing through the tax season preparing multiple client tax returns. A tax adviser looks at the tax theory that most benefits the client and then looks at the facts, regulation and case law history for evidence…
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Tax strategies for high income individuals
Of all the services I offer to high income clients, no other has such a rate of return on investment of time and money as income tax planning. Applied consistently year after year as part of an overall financial plan, it can easily add hundreds of thousands of wealth that would otherwise be paid as…
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Pros and cons of an S-corporation vs. a single member LLC
An S-corporation and a single member LLC taxed as a “disregarded entity” share many things in common. The post focuses on some of the differences. What’s the best reason to consider S-corporation over single person LLC? Liability: Many people would say that it limits the owner’s legal liability. But that’s not supported by actual case…
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Overview of American Rescue Plan Act of 2021
Background In February 2021 the U.S. Senate, The House of Representatives and the Executive Branch led by the White House took a series of actions designed to address the pandemic recession by allowing a huge proposed economic stimulus bill to move through to approval without relying on Republican party votes. The Democratic Party members of…
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Tax planning for teachers
This post is inspired by a social media post I read this morning by a person purporting to be searching Facebook for tax saving vehicles for teachers. The topic of tax planning for teachers is not within my target business marketing strategy but I’m writing this short blog post to illustrate a point; how the…
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The 2021 investment shakeup
After more than a decade of one-way intense focus in the stock market, investors are now changing strategies. We see more wisdom and opportunities in the broad investment asset reallocation than ever before. A number of clients are diversifying into asset these classes for the first time. These decisions have significant long term consequences on…
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Updated 2020 Tax Planning Checklist for Small Business Owners
Begin by forecasting 2020 taxes based on 2019 results – easy with today’s professional tax software Maximize tax-free pandemic relief payments Use a Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA) for tax-free payments Qualified Small Employer Health Reimbursement Arrangement (QSEHRA) for insurance assistance Add a Health Savings Account (HSA) for long term health security Adapt an employer-sponsored Education…
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Preserving right of claim for 2016 tax returns
The hottest topic in tax planning right now is the protection of right to claim a refund for 2016. It’s likely a hot of hot air about nothing. Beginning on 2016 wealthy people paid additional taxes mandated by the Affordable Care Act. If the Affordable Care Act is deemed unconstitutional, then theoretically the taxes it…
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Average New Jersey tax preparation fees in 2020
THIS PAGE IS OUTDATED. FEES ARE SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER NOW. SEE SOUTHJERSEY.CPA/PRICING FOR CURRENT PRICING These are the most recent published average industry prices for tax preparation services in the state of New Jersey as of the date of this blog post. These are not my rates, although I do pay attention to this type of…