Category: Taxes
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Income tax preparation fees in 2015
The average income tax preparation fee in the mid-Atlantic region was $314 this year; an increase of about 4% over last year. That average rate is calculated as a benchmark for a tax return with a Schedule A for itemized deductions and on state income tax return. Average fees for other tax schedules are listed…
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Variance in taxes is part of the game
I have little patience lately for tax accountants who assert that their approach is “correct” and that all other results are “errors”. This is like having the sideline judge disagreeing with the referee on the field that called the play. We understand the mentality that the law is meant to be precise and therefore the results…
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Tax accounting for hobby income and expenses
If you have an active hobby then you might find that you make some money at it. But it is important to recognize that the IRS makes a distinction between businesses run for profit and those that are hobbies without a profit motive. This post summarizes the four key differences in tax accounting between the two.…
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Why middle-income tax planning is dead
Bloomberg and Wall Street Journal ran articles this week that compile and analyze federal income tax data. These articles were meant for use as an exposé of policy tax policy. I skipped the social policy discussion entirely and I looked at the data from the perspective of a small solo CPA’s income tax service. It is interesting…
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Financial Planning Considerations When Your Business is Losing Money
This post was inspired by the stories of some of my neighbors and clients in southern New Jersey. Most were struggling with a weak economy before super storm Sandy hit in late 2012. Those that re-opened over the next few years face continued business losses and the prospect of continued weakening of the local economy…
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Tax deduction for contributed time or services
I’ve often had the opportunity to work as the volunteer accountant, trustee or adviser for some great charitable organizations. In the course of this work, I meet plenty of other like-minded generous people. One amazingly common misperception that many of these people share is a misunderstanding of the tax treatment of donated time or services.…
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The trouble with solar energy
Clean, renewable, sustainable: what’s not to love? Solar power in the U.S. has grown primarily trough the use of tax subsidy programs. Yet even after decades of these socially expensive tax credits solar power amounts to only about 1% of the energy we use today. Over the next ten years solar power is expected to grow by…
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More on disappearance of book-to-tax accounting feature
I’ve been involved in some online discussions as to why Intuit apparently introduced this book-to-tax feature after I completed my tax filing last year but then removed the feature when I needed it this year! Intuit gave no explanation either online or when I called except to sat that it will be re-introduced after the…