New 1099 trap
Tuesday, January 10th, 2012
Business tax returns for 2011 contain new questions about Form 1099 that may trap you if you overlook issuing 1099s this January. The questions appear on Form 1040 Schedules C (sole proprietorships), E (rental), and F (farms). They also appear on partnership (1065) and corporate (1120 and 1120S) returns. The questions: Did you make any […]
Read More »2012 standard mileage rates
Thursday, December 22nd, 2011
The IRS has announced standard mileage rates for 2012. Beginning on Jan. 1, 2012, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be: 55.5 cents per mile for business miles driven 23 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes 14 cents per mile driven […]
Read More »6 Year-end tax reduction tips
Wednesday, December 21st, 2011
Use these six tax reduction tips to reduce your 2011 tax bill, but act before December 31, 2011. Make charitable contributions by December 31. Keep a canceled check, a bank statement, credit card statement or a written statement from the charity, showing the name of the charity and the date and amount of the contribution […]
Read More »Preserve estate tax portability
Monday, October 24th, 2011
To preserve estate tax portability, executors must file Form 706 Estate Tax Return for decedents dying in 2011 and later. The nine month filing deadline may be extended an additional six months. This election is not available for decedents dying before 2011. In the law reinstating the estate tax in 2010, Congress established an exclusion […]
Read More »Bathroom as home office?
Thursday, August 18th, 2011
The Tax Court ruled that a taxpayer cannot claim his bathroom as a home office in Bulas v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2011-201 (Aug. 17, 2011). (Insert your own joke or mental image here….) The taxpayer had a home-based business, a tax practice for which he used one bedroom of his home as an office. He […]
Read More »Plan now to save taxes
Tuesday, August 9th, 2011
Summer is a good time to talk with us about planning to save taxes next year. We have more time to help you take stock of the first half of the year and explore options before it’s too late in the year for them to make a difference. Among those options: Consider equipment purchases, to […]
Read More »Standard mileage rates change
Friday, July 1st, 2011
The IRS has adjusted the standard mileage rates beginning July 1, 2011, in response to higher gasoline prices. The new standard mileage rates will apply through the end of 2011. Mileage Rate Changes Purpose Rates 1/1 through 6/30/11 Rates 7/1 through 12/31/11 Business 51 55.5 Medical/Moving 19 23.5 Charitable 14 14 You have the option […]
Read More »Chevy Volt tax credit may not be yours
Monday, June 6th, 2011
The Chevy Volt, General Motors’ electric car, may bring a $7500 tax credit to the original purchaser of the car. But is that you or the dealership? Stories are surfacing that dealers are using the common practice of dealer trades to get the cars titled, claim the tax credits for themselves, and then sell the […]
Read More »Filed an extension – now what?
Thursday, April 28th, 2011
You pulled your records together and worked on your tax return, maybe using an “easy-to navigate” software program. But you were left with a nagging feeling that there may be something you missed, so you filed an extension. Now what? We’ve received calls from several people in this situation, asking us if we would take […]
Read More »Paperwork cloud lifts
Wednesday, April 27th, 2011
A paperwork cloud has hung over business owners and landlords for much of the last year. A clause in the health care reform law (Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act) required businesses to report payments of more than $600 to corporations (not required under prior law) on Form 1099. It also added reporting of payments […]
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