Mike's weekly post usually concentrated on tax saving strategies.
There are many tax benefits within the tax code to help pay for college expenses. Two of the most popular are the Lifetime Learning Credit (LLC) and the American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC). Not sure which is best? Here are some key differences:
Details matter in divorce negotiations
Divorce can be an emotionally draining process. If you are in the middle of one, you probably just want it to be over. But be careful. Divorce has serious tax implications, and the choices you make now may affect you for many years. Consider the following:
Consider a buy-sell agreement for your business
Marriages end, and so do business ventures. If your business is owned by two or more persons, a buy-sell agreement is one of the most important legal documents your business can have. This document provides for the "buyout" of an owner's interest when that owner leaves. These are the areas that a buy-sell agreement should typically address.
Social security benefits may be taxable...
Did you sign up for social security benefits last year? If so, you may have questions about how those payments are taxed on your federal income tax return.
The real cost of not paying your taxes until October 15!
This time of year we often see taxpayer's looking to extend the time to pay their taxes due and asking, "what are the penalties if I do not pay my taxes due by April 15." Here I will address how to estimate the cost of not paying timely - the penalties assessed by the IRS.
You may be approaching an important deadline if you have retirement accounts and you turned 70½ last year. Generally, you must begin withdrawing money from tax-favored retirement plans in the year you turn 70½. However, you may postpone your first withdrawal until April 1 of the year after you turn 70½. That means you have until April 1, 2015, to complete your required 2014 distribution.
Each year the IRS announces a dozen tax scams they call the “dirty dozen”. One of them - telephone scams - is on a huge upswing RIGHT NOW. Here is what you need to know.
No paperwork means no deduction
Did you give contributions to qualified charities during 2014? Be sure to get a receipt.
March Tips...
TIPS for the Month
If you paid a household worker $1,900 or more in 2014, you may have payroll tax obligations.
The IRS is again warning taxpayers not to fall for tax scams which proliferate during tax season.
Reverse mortgages - Answers to some Questions
A reverse mortgage is a loan against your property. But, instead of you making payments to the lender as you do on a regular mortgage, the lender is paying you. The repayment of this mortgage takes place after you no longer live in your home. Here are some answers to common questions about reverse mortgages.
1. How can a reverse mortgage benefit me?
Alert. 800,000 Form 1095-A's have Errors
Last week the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services announced that approximately 800,000 Form 1095-A’s were issued with errors on them. The error could cause you to file an incorrect tax return that claims a higher Premium Tax Credit than you have a right to collect.
Since 2006 there has been a provision in the tax code to incent taxpayers to purchase and install property that make their home more energy efficient. This part of the code does not tend to be in the press much because the Nonbusiness Energy Property Credit has a lifetime limit of $500.
New for tax year 2014 is the requirement to have health insurance. If you do not have qualified health insurance coverage AND you do not fit into one of the limited exemptions you will need to pay a fine, tax, or as the government calls it, an “individual shared responsibility” payment. So how do you prove you have the required health insurance? It is not a simple thing.
[block border="5px solid #aacb24" padding="10px 15px"]Sticking to budgets and diets[/block]
Budgets, like diets, are short lived for most of us. You do a proper job of planning by looking over the past and determining where you need to make changes to meet your goals. And, you live by your plan for a few days, maybe even a few weeks. But, then all the detail of keeping track of what comes and goes gets to be more than you are willing to put up with.
[block type="rounded" color="#FFF" background="#000000"]Going into business with a franchise[/block]
Have you ever wanted to be your own boss, but didn't want to start a business from scratch? If so, buying a franchise might be the right choice for you.
When you purchase a successful franchise,
The IRS has reacted to the complaints of the small business community and today issued Revenue Procedure 2015-20 outlining a simplified procedure for small businesses to comply with the final tangible property regulations. The simplified procedure is available beginning with the 2014 return taxpayers are filling out this tax season.
Elect S corporation status by March 16
If you own a small business, you have until March 16, 2015, to choose S corporation status for this year. In order to become an S corporation, you'll need the unanimous approval of all shareholders.
Unless you have spent the last twelve months in a bubble,
Warning: Watch out for aggressive phone scams again this tax season
The Treasury Inspector General for Taxpayer Administration (TIGTA) is warning taxpayers about one particular category of tax scams that has proven to be very widespread, very aggressive, and very relentless.
