2018 Income Tax Withholdings: Too Much, Too Little or Just Right?
Did you withhold enough money from your regular paychecks in 2018? If you withheld too little — or, didn't pay enough estimated taxes if you're self-employed — you could have [...]
Why You Shouldn’t Wait to File Your 2018 Income Tax Return
The IRS opened the 2018 income tax return filing season on January 28. Even if you typically don’t file until much closer to the April 15 deadline, this year consider [...]
Stop Wasting Money
Benjamin Franklin once said, "a penny saved is a penny earned."¹ The modern upgrade to that observation might be that $100 not spent is more like $143.² One way to [...]
Depreciation-related Breaks on Business Real Estate: What You Need to Know When You File Your 2018 Return
Commercial buildings and improvements generally are depreciated over 39 years, which essentially means you can deduct a portion of the cost every year over the depreciation period. (Land isn’t depreciable.) [...]
What Will Your Marginal Income Tax Rate Be?
While the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) generally reduced individual tax rates for 2018 through 2025, some taxpayers could see their taxes go up due to reductions or eliminations [...]
There’s Still Time to Get Substantiation for 2018 Donations
If you’re like many Americans, letters from your favorite charities have been appearing in your mailbox in recent weeks acknowledging your 2018 year-end donations. But what happens if you haven’t [...]
What’s Happened to My Tax-Free Transportation Fringe Benefits?
Over the years, Congress has established some nice tax breaks for transportation-related employee fringe benefits to encourage taxpayers to be more ecology-minded when commuting to work. But, the Tax Cuts [...]
2 Major Tax Law Changes for Individuals in 2019
While most provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) went into effect in 2018 and either apply through 2025 or are permanent, there are two major changes under [...]
A Refresher on Major Tax Law Changes for Small-Business Owners
The dawning of 2019 means the 2018 income tax filing season will soon be upon us. After year end, it’s generally too late to take action to reduce 2018 taxes. [...]
Many Taxpayers Will Pay No Long-Term Gains and Dividends
Do you have long-term capital gains or qualified dividends? If so, there's good news: After the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), you might still qualify for the 0% federal [...]
Limitations Based on W-2 wages and the Basis of Qualified Assets
Limitations on the deduction for qualified business income (QBI) begin to phase in when an individual's taxable income (calculated before any QBI deduction) exceeds the threshold of $157,500 or $315,000 [...]
What Are the Rules for Business Gifts to Customers?
If your business gives gifts to customers, clients or other contacts during the holiday season, you may be able to deduct all or part of the cost. But there are [...]
Get Up and Running After a Disaster
If your business is hit by a hurricane, windstorm, blizzard, or other natural disaster, or if it falls victim to arson or terrorism, you might have to close up shop [...]
Deducting Charitable Contributions
Individuals are allowed to claim itemized deductions for charitable contributions to qualified organizations. Giving money to an individual or a foreign organization generally isn't deductible, except for donations made to [...]