There have been many changes in the tax laws over the last year, but most of the tax code is the same.
Here are 7 tax advice articles I wrote last year that apply equally to this year:
7 All Time Tax Concepts
S Corporations Wages and Distributions: Basic Tax Planning
Taxes 101: What Filing Status Should You Use?
5 Rules for Keeping Your Tax [...]
Tags: Individual Taxation · Tax Tips · Taxes 101
Tax Preparer and economist Mary O’Keeffe of Bed Buffaloes in Your Tax Code warns tax preparers about the dangers of failing to properly report income shown on Form 1099-Misc:
Most 1099-MISC forms that we see at our VITA site are actually self-employment income that needs to be reported on Schedule C-EZ or Schedule C.
The title of [...]
Tags: Tax Tips
Because of the prolonged recession we expect to see many businesses report losses from their 2009 operations. Losses from S Corporations are deductible on a taxpayer’s Form 1040 only to the extent of the shareholder’s stock plus debt basis.
Tax preparers should maintain the following two worksheets (courtesy Small Business Taxes and Management) for each of their S [...]
Tags: Individual Taxation · S Corporations · Tax Tips
Kathy Kristof of Tribune Media Services offens advide on how to hire a tax preparer:
Check credentials: There are four types of tax preparers — tax attorneys, CPAs, enrolled agents and preparers.
The one designation that’s difficult to check is enrolled agents, who are licensed by the IRS. However, many join professional groups that have lists of members.
Ask questions: [...]
Tags: Tax Tips
Currently unenrolled, soon to be licensed (I ass-u-me), tax preparer Robert Flach in a blog post advising taxpayers on how to choose a tax preparer trots out this old saw:
When you assume you make an ass out of u and me.
He offers two pieces of blanket advice:
Don’t assume that because a person has the initials “CPA” after his [...]
Tags: Individual Taxation · Regulation of Tax Preparers · Tax Tips
The Sun-Herald.com reports that Greatland, one of the country’s leading providers of W-2 and 1099 products for business, has released its top W-2 and 1099 filing “pitfalls” to watch out for this tax season:
Paper filing
While many businesses are electing to e-file their W-2 and 1099 forms with the Social Security Administration (SSA) and / or the [...]
Tags: Employer Issues · Payroll Taxes · Tax Tips
Less than a week left to do year end 2009 tax planning and William Perez gives us a neat list of the traditional year-end moves:
Tax planning at the end of the year involves a few basic ideas:
if you can, defer taxable income to the following year;
if you can, accelerate tax deductions into this year by prepaying; [...]
Tags: Tax Tips
Beause of the housing crisis and the general recession it’s almost impossible to find a real estate investor who actually turned a profit in the last three years. Naturally, these investors are turning to their tax preparers to find ways to get the maximum tax benefit of their losses.
But the IRS is ready says tax [...]
Tags: Deductible Expenses · Tax Tips
“She cried and the Judge wiped her tears with my checkbook.”
- Tommy Manville (married 13 times) -
I represent a taxpayer who entered into a marital settlement with his wife that contained the following provision:
12. Alimony
Husband shall pay to wife a lump-sum alimony of $600,000, payable in 120 equal monthly installments of $5,000 beginning on the first day [...]
Tags: Individual Taxation · Tax Tips
The IRS has issued IR-2009-114, Tips for Year-End Donations, offering advice on the following topics:
Special Charitable Contributions for Certain IRA Owners
Rules for Clothing and Household Items
Guidelines for Monetary Donations
The IRS also reminds taxpayers of the following general rules regarding charitable contribution deductions:
Contributions are deductible in the year made. Thus, donations charged to a credit card [...]
Wall Street Journal – Taxes Blog
