A 401(k) plan can be a win-win situation for employees and employers. Just take a quick look at the payoff. *For employees: You can defer up to $18,000 of salary to your account in 2017 ($24,000 if you are age 50 or older), before any employer-matched contributions. Contributions may grow without any tax erosion until [...]
Tax Window, You See What I Did There? Perhaps you own a vacation home that you and your family use personally. Key tax break: There is a unique tax window of opportunity for short-term rentals. If the rental for the year lasts 14 days or less (this is the key amount of time), [...]
By: Jennifer Stripling, Tax Manager Jennifer is a tax manager, a member of the JMF Tax Department and in an integral part of the JMF State and Local Tax (SALT) group. With over 11 years of experience, she assists clients with corporate, partnership, and individual income tax reporting as well as complex multi-state income and sales [...]
The IRS recently released its annual list of "Dirty Dozen” tax scams to watch out for in 2017. Here is a rundown gleaned from the IRS’ summary. 1. Phishing: Be on guard against fake e-mails or websites looking to steal personal information. Do not click on e-mails claiming to come from the IRS. 2. Telephone scams: [...]
Reap tax rewards for travel and entertainment What are your plans for the summer? If you have a business trip scheduled for a place you would like to visit personally, you might decide to combine a little pleasure with your business. Similarly, you may invite some of your best clients to your home for a [...]
How to maximize the tax benefits The summer rental season is about to kick off. If you own a vacation home in a resort area that you rent out while your family is not using it, you may be in line for valuable tax deductions. In fact, you might even qualify for a tax loss [...]
Are you pulling your hair out right now trying to figure out a tax deduction from a credit? Or worse, do I need file a separate business tax form for your new LLC? According to a recent NerdWallet survey, you are not alone. Out of eight questions about IRS rules for common deductions, retirement, and [...]
The IRS, the nation’s tax collection agency, has identified a select group of four private contractors that will begin collecting federal tax debts during the 2016 tax return filing season. Background: Under the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act of 2015, a highway spending measure, the IRS can assign private companies to collect taxes on [...]
The IRS pays close attention to deductions claimed for business travel expenses. Both employers and employees must meet strict recordkeeping requirements or face the consequences. Fortunately, you can obtain some relief by using IRS-approved per diem allowances in lieu of accounting for every expense. Now the IRS has updated its per diem rates for [...]
It is now 2017. Do you know where your business budget is? This is the traditional time to draw up a budget for the coming year. Perhaps the way you previously developed the budget for your business has not been overly successful. Or maybe you have found as the year goes along that certain key [...]