Is It Time for a Payroll Tax Checkup?
Article Highlights: Tax Reform Underpayment Penalties W-4 Modifications for 2020 Withholding Estimator Penalty Abatement Was your 2018 federal tax refund less than normal, or – worse yet – did you actually owe tax despite usually getting a refund? If so, this was primarily due to the last-minute passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act […]
Watch Out for Those Fake IRS Letters
Article Highlights: Matching Season IRS Letters Fake Letters Demand for Immediate Payment Every year, the vast majority of taxpayers file their returns with the IRS between the end of January and the April due date. However, the IRS does not just take taxpayers’ word regarding the information on their returns. For this reason, tax season […]
September 2019 Individual Due Dates
September 1 – 2019 Fall and 2020 Tax Planning Contact this office to schedule a consultation appointment. September 10 – Report Tips to Employer If you are an employee who works for tips and received more than $20 in tips during August, you are required to report them to your employer on IRS Form 4070 […]
What Are the Tax Advantages of Homeownership?
Article Highlights: Purchase Costs Points Mortgage Payments Property Taxes Inflation Gain Exclusion Renting Versus Owning Housing is a big expense for everyone. The choice generally involves either renting or purchasing – and financing that purchase with a home loan. This article explores the tax benefits and drawbacks that individuals should consider when deciding whether to […]
Disaster-Related Tax Losses May Be Less Than Expected
Article Highlights: Limitation to Losses within Disaster Areas Cost versus Market Value Home Tax Losses Home Tax Gains Replacement Properties Home Gain Exclusion The late-2017 tax-reform package changed the rules for personal casualty losses, which now are only deductible if they occur in a federally declared disaster area. As a result, if a home is […]
Employee Stock Options Can be Taxing
Article Highlights: Employee Stock Options Stock Option Terminology Incentive Stock Options Non-qualified Stock Options Tax Strategies If you are an employee of a corporation, as an incentive to continue employment, the company may offer you the option to purchase shares of the corporation at a fixed price at some future date so that you can […]
Tax Issues Related to Hobbies
Article Highlights: Hobby Losses Not-for-Profit Rules Determining Factors Trade or Business Presumption Hobby Tax Reporting Self-Employment Tax Generally, when individuals have a hobby, they have it because they enjoy it and are not involved in their hobby with the goal of making money. In fact, most hobbies never make money or don’t even create any […]
Earned Income Tax Credit: Used, Abused and Altered
Article Highlights: Purpose of the Earned Income Tax Credit Qualifications Earned Income Qualified Child Credit Phaseout Computing the Credit Investment Income Limit Combat Pay Election Fraud Safeguards Any discussion of the earned income tax credit (EITC) needs to begin with a discussion of why Congress created it in the first place. It has a twofold […]
Crowdfunding Can Have Unexpected Consequences
Article Highlights: Crowdfunding Sites Gifts Charitable Gifts Business Ventures SEC Registration Raising money through Internet crowdfunding sites prompts questions about the taxability of the money raised. A number of sites host money-raising projects for fees ranging from 5 to 9%, including GoFundMe, Kickstarter, and Indiegogo. Each site specifies its own charges, limitations, and withdrawal processes. […]
Are Solar-Powered Batteries the Answer to Power Outages?
Article Highlights: Wildfires Planned Power Outages Solar Batteries Solar Tax Credit Over the past few years, several wildfires have been blamed on power lines downed during periods of low humidity and gusty winds, which typically occur in the fall. The 2018 Camp fire, sparked by downed power lines, was the deadliest in California history, claiming […]