Tax time can be one of the most hated times of the year. Just preparing the forms is enough to be an irritant, and if you owe the government money there’s a good chance that you’re downright annoyed. But neither of those things compare to the feeling that accompanies an envelope bearing an IRS return […]
From shutdowns to curfews, capacity restrictions to required outdoor dining, bar and restaurant owners across the nation are jumping through hoops to try to keep their businesses open and viable. The entire service industry has been severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Many bar and restaurant owners have become increasingly frustrated with the back-and-forth actions […]
If you recall, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), effective beginning in 2018, eliminated the business-related deduction for entertainment, amusement or recreation expenses. However, it did retain a deduction for business meals when the expense is ordinary and necessary for carrying on the trade or business and is not lavish or extravagant, along with […]
I was recently speaking with one of the sellers I represented about the sale of his provider agency. I asked him what he thought was my most significant value during his long selling process. Without skipping a beat, he said, “‘The emotional support you provided to me.” He explained that it was helpful to talk […]
Housing is a big expense for everyone. The choice generally involves either renting or purchasing – and financing that purchase with a home loan. As of November 2020, the nationwide average for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was just under 3%, the lowest it has been in the last 50 years or even longer. Many individuals […]
As if 2020 wasn’t challenging enough, this season’s tax-filing is going to be even more complicated than usual. Though the CARES Act and the Paycheck Protection Program were put into place to help small businesses, the old adage about “no such thing as a free lunch” is proving true once again as business owners sit […]
In the past, the IRS has assigned verification numbers to victims of identity theft to file their tax returns, if requested by the victimized individual. These numbers are referred to as identity protection (IP) PINs. The IP PIN is a six-digit code known only to the taxpayer and the IRS. It helps prevent identity thieves […]
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS), each year, computes standard mileage rates for the use of a vehicle for business, medical and moving purposes based on a number of factors, to determine the standard mileage rates for the following year. As it does annually around the end of the year, the IRS has announced the 2021 […]
As a means to stimulate charitable contributions during the COVID crisis, Congress made two notable changes for 2020—one allowing taxpayers that don’t itemize their deductions an above-the-line deduction for cash contributions of up to $300 and another for those itemizing their deductions to increase the maximum deduction for cash contributions to 100% of their adjusted […]
Congress passed, and President Trump signed, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021. Included in its approximately 5,600 pages is a second draw of forgivable Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans. The first round allowed loans to businesses with 500 or fewer employees and to certain businesses with multiple locations, for which each location could not have more […]
President Biden released his “American Rescue Plan” on January 14. It is a wish list of proposals he wants Congress to enact to address the COVID-19 pandemic and associated economic crisis. While some of the proposals are intended to be in effect for just one year, it isn’t too great a stretch of the imagination […]
Texas has been known as a business-friendly state for decades, and many entrepreneurs from Silicon Valley are now choosing to move their startups south to the Lone Star State. With wide open spaces and an absence of personal income and corporate income taxes, Texas has become the latest hot spot for tech companies looking to […]