Despite Michael Scott’s assertion that paper will be around for forever, it’s becoming less and less meaningful in terms of both day-to-day life and in terms of record keeping. Many individuals and businesses are shifting their record keeping over to a digital platform instead of shoving as many papers as possible into a storage box. Regardless of your record keeping process, both “old school” and “new school” record keepers can learn something from this blog. You should try to keep every tax document you receive. With regards to income, try to keep all W2s, 1099s, bank statements, official statements detailing retirement benefits, or any other documentation that can be used to show how much

Since the dawn of the digital age, imposters have been trying to find fraudulent ways to gain access to your personal information. Whether it’s a “long-lost relative”, foreign diplomat, or a bank you’ve never heard of; the person on the other end of the screen is only out to get your money. Unfortunately, the same can be said for people posing to be the Internal Revenue Service. Last Friday, the IRS released a statement warning taxpayers of a new scam. The scam involves a message sent via e-mail that is purported to be in regards to an “Automatic Income Tax Reminder” or “Electronic Tax Return Reminder” but the subject line can vary. The body of the e-mail directs the recipient to a website

Title – Home-Buying in the Brave New TCJA World You could say, in the corniest sense possible, that buying a home is as American as apple pie. As the TCJA was a landmark alteration of the tax code, it should come as no surprise that there are some tax provisions to take into account if you are considering buying a home in the near future: Mortgage Interest Deduction Cap – While you used to be able to deduct up to $1,000,000 in mortgage expenses on first and second homes, the TCJA has reduced this amount to $750,000. The End of the Moving Expense Deduction – Before the TCJA, moving expenses for new jobs a reasonable distance away could be deducted from that year’s taxes, the rationale being t

You’ve most likely heard of a Value-Added Tax (VAT) at some point. If you’ve ever travelled internationally there’s a good chance you’ve been subject to it, as it is in place in the vast majority of other countries. American politicians from both sides of the aisle occasionally flirt with adding a VAT at the state or federal level, most notably entrepreneur Andrew Yang in the current presidential election cycle and Ted Cruz in the 2016 cycle. Michigan even utilized a form of VAT known as the Single Business Tax (SBT) from 1975 until 2008. With international adoption and domestic advocates attempting to push the VAT into the US tax system, it is important to understand how this tax functions.

On July 31, 2019 the IRS issued a revenue procedure prescribing taxpayer’s the ability to make a late election, or revoke an election made under section 168(k) for certain property acquired subsequent to September 27, 2017 and placed into service during its taxable year. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act made several changes to the rules governing bonus depreciation, including increasing the deductible percentage from 50 to 100 percent in the first year. Additionally, the property eligible for bonus depreciation has expanded to include used depreciable property (if new to the purchaser and put into use that year) and media equipment such as certain equipment used in film, television, or live theatr

When politicians need to generate revenue for new and existing programs, they often suggest increasing or modifying the capital gains tax. Oftentimes this sort of tax hike is advertised as a way of taxing only the wealthy without adversely impacting the majority of Americans. However, while increasing taxes on capital gains is one way policymakers can generate revenue, doing so will also negatively impact the incentive for long-term saving. Today we will be looking at how some suggested methods of modifying the present capital gains tax could adversely affect taxpayers. An important feature of capital gains in the current tax code is the ability to defer them, meaning a tax payer can choose

You’ve fallen on some hard times and you’ve got a bit of tax debt. Fortunately, you’ve got some options before you lose everything to asset seizures. The IRS offers a variety of installment plans to help those encumbered with debt, escape it. Here is an overview of those options in case you ever find yourself in the position where you need to choose which is right for you: 1. Guaranteed Installment Agreement Ideally, you’ll be able to obtain this type of agreement. A Guaranteed Installment Agreement is available if you owe $10,000 or less to the IRS and it’s easy to qualify for the plan. You just need to be sure to meet a few criteria. File all past tax returns. Your previous five years’ ret