Entries by Mike

Will You Get a Refund or Owe for 2018?

As a result of tax reform, most taxpayers will be paying less tax for 2018 than they did in 2017. But that may not translate into a larger refund. Your refund is the amount that your pre-payments (withheld income tax, estimated tax payments, and certain credits) exceed your tax liability, and if the pre-payment also […]

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November 2018 Individual Due Dates

November 13 – Report Tips to Employer If you are an employee who works for tips and received more than $20 in tips during October, you are required to report them to your employer on IRS Form 4070 no later than November 13. Your employer is required to withhold FICA taxes and income tax withholding […]

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Three Common Family Tax Mistakes

When it comes to transactions between family members, the tax laws are frequently overlooked, if not outright trampled upon. The following are three commonly encountered situations and the tax ramifications associated with each. Renting to a Relative – When a taxpayer rents a home to a relative for long-term use as a principal residence, the […]

Understanding Tax-Deferred Investing

When you are attempting to save money for your children’s future education or your retirement, you may do so in a number of ways, including investing in the stock market, buying real estate for income and appreciation, or simply putting money away in education savings accounts or retirement plans. Knowing how these various savings vehicles […]

Not Using QuickBooks Online? What You’re Missing Out On

How long would it take you to determine: What your total expenses for this quarter are? Whether or not your business is profitable as of today? How much you’ve sold every month this year? Which invoices are overdue? If you’re using QuickBooks Online, you can get answers to all those questions—and more—in the time it […]

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Hardship Exemption Rules for Not Having Health Insurance Eased

The Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) included a “shared responsibility payment,” which in reality is a penalty for not having health insurance. Along with this penalty came a whole slew of exemptions from the penalty, including some that were designated as “hardship” exemptions. However, the hardship relief from the penalty required pre-approval from the government health […]