Category: Taxes
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Break down the tax filing process
Any complex task is easier when broken down into small pieces. Tax filing is no different. While there are plenty of different options, we break it down and pull out the best methods. Ways to collect information: BEST: Cell phone scanner with tax organizer OK: Flatbed scanner batch documents ALTERNATE: Photos or papers Ways to…
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Does Pennsylvania sales tax apply?
The best official publication for determining if sales and use tax applies is this “Retailer’s Information” guide from the Commonwealth. For help setting up sales tax in QuickBooks Online, just call for on site or remote setup help or for help setting up desktop version see this article by Charlie Russell.
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Five types of tax shelters
There are five categories of tax shelters that benefit many individual U.S. taxpayers and account for most of the tax savings available to us. Four of those categories of tax shelters are potentially on the chopping block this month with Congressional tax reform discussions. This post is simply a brief overview of the five categories…
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A business cannot deduct personal auto expense
Again today a business owner asked me to deduct his auto mileage expense on his business tax return. That’s not how it works! A partnership, S-Corp or C-Corp generally can not deduct the cost of personal auto expense. There are workarounds but we need to discuss and actually set it up. I covered the topic…
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Getting your taxes filed is as easy as sending a text!
Clients increasingly prefer to contact me and send tax documents via text message. That’s fine. SMS text messages and attachments are considered secure for most purposes. I just want you to know that there is a more secure delivery method available if you prefer. I offer, at no charge, a secure online portal for transmitting and…
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Why are taxpayers so angry this year?
We are exactly one week into the first tax filing season under the new rules of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and I’ve already heard or read more than a hundred complaints from individual taxpayers about their federal income tax results. All but one of my clients so far are frustrated with the amount…
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Should I convert from an S Corp to C corp?
The majority of my business-oriented blog posts here take on a complex topic and re-frame the subject it in more simplistic terms for the purpose of opening a discussion from the perspective of small business management. This is exactly the purpose of this blog post. There is no attempt here to capture or even summarize…
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Four taxpayer reactions as the realities of new tax law hit home
Of the first 5 individual income tax returns that I prepared this week, 4 had unexpected problems and complications. Other tax preparers report unexpected and disturbing taxpayer reactions. Income tax filing season opened four days ago on January 29. Day by day now the real impact of the new federal tax law is hitting home…
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Six basic rules for handling a tax audit
Everyone hopes to avoid a tax audit but sometimes it happens anyway. An audit always starts with a written notification by mail from the IRS, state, or local tax authority. It might just be triggered by a simple computer-generated “mismatch” error or it might be the beginning of one of the more rare types of…
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Five tax deductions you will miss this year
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act eliminated some of the tax deductions that helped some taxpayers reduce their taxable income. These are the five you are most likely to notice when you file your 2018 return: Personal exemptions Employee business expenses Tax preparation fees Investment advisor fees Mortgage interest and property taxes above $10,000 Talk…