Tax

Upon close inspection, you will notice a familiar theme throughout many of these cases: If you can’t substantiate a deduction, you lose it! Alimony and separate maintenance payments Not a divorce or separation agreement: Taxpayer and ex-spouse signed an agreement just between them to modify their divorce agreement. The Tax Court concluded that the taxpayers’ agreement…

Just because you are retired doesn’t mean you don’t have to pay taxes. Perhaps much to your dismay, even your social security payments may be partially taxable. I have provided the following tips and information to help you lessen the tax bite from your “Golden Years”. Some of the following tips are for Retirees and…

Do you have a large potential gain in a business or investment real estate holding you would like to sell? Are you also planning on purchasing additional real estate? Then a like-kind exchange under IRC Section 1031 may be for you!  A 1031 exchange allows you to postpone paying tax on the gain if you…

I was talking to a new client earlier this week about getting her tax information to me, so I could prepare her last three years of tax returns. (Stop snickering!) My client told me that her prior “CPA” had her records but that she had disappeared. Her “CPA” left the office space she was in without…

THE GOOD. Minority interest in surgery center: The court allowed the taxpayer to report income earned through his minority interest in a surgery center as passive income not subject to the self-employment tax. Acting on his CPA‘s advice, the surgeon reported his income from the surgery center as passive income. This allowed the doctor to offset his surgery…

Three issues to consider: Let these three suggestions help you avoid mistakes that can cost you thousands of dollars. Your tax professional is in a unique position to steer you clear of potential tax pitfalls. Abide by these suggestions to avoid expensive mistakes. 1. What you should you do with a Qualified Domestic Relations Order, or…

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act enacted in late 2017 was more than 500 pages long, with detailed changes affecting everything from the taxation of trusts to the treatment of life insurance policy acquisition costs. But for most taxpayers, the biggest changes have to do with the new income tax rates, a higher standard deduction,…

Here is a quick overview of the changes and details on how they may affect your taxes. Standard versus itemized deductions A major change is the large increase in the standard deduction. For tax years 2018 through 2025, the standard deduction will be $12,000 for single filers and $24,000 for married couples filing jointly. That’s…

How does the new tax law affect your taxes? Since everyone’s circumstances are different please contact us to get the details specific to your situation. The following is an example of how it affects one taxpayer. Meet Donald Swartz. Don is a sixty-three-year-old retiree, with two grown kids that live on their own. He owns…