Archives for Newsletter and Updates

Is there frustration building in your organization due to clashing generations about work? If so, you are not alone. The good news is it doesn’t need to trigger an explosion. In many workplaces, Baby Boomer and Gen X supervisors are exasperated with younger workers — typically those in the Millennial generation, who were born between 1981 and 2000. Some older supervisors have trouble managing the younger workers. By the same token, Millennial generation employees often are demoralized by an environment they do not find conducive to doing their best work. Be Proactive If you are facing these issues, don’t wait
Read More

When someone dies owning real estate, problems may occur — especially if the individual doesn’t have a will. This article addresses some of the issues that could arise so that you can plan ahead to make the process go smoothly for your heirs. A person can leave real property specifically to someone in a will or trust. For example, a father can leave a residence or vacation home to one of his three adult children by simply listing it in his will. Real estate can also be left to heirs as part of an individual’s net estate or residuary estate.
Read More

In one U.S. Tax Court decision involving several consolidated cases, the court concluded that gains from a partnership’s land sales were high-taxed ordinary income rather lower-taxed long-term capital gains. We’ll explain the decision, but first let’s cover some background information. Capital Gains Tax Basics Long-term gains recognized by individual taxpayers from the sale of capital gain assets are taxed at lower federal rates than ordinary income. Currently, 20% is the maximum federal income tax rate on net long-term capital gains from most capital assets held for more than one year. That ignores the possibility that the 3.8% Medicare surtax on net
Read More

The IRS issued a two-part warning concerning certain real estate transactions. The warning focuses on the tax law provisions for sales of U.S. properties that involve ownership by foreign individuals and entities. Specifically, the affected transactions involve: The disposition by a foreign person of an option or contract to acquire a U.S. real property interest. According to the IRS, a U.S. real property interest includes options or contracts to acquire land or land improvements and leaseholds of land or land improvements. The disposition by a foreign corporation of a U.S. real property interest by way of a transfer to a
Read More

Every year, the dollar amounts allowed for various federal tax benefits are subject to change based on inflation adjustments and legislation. Here are some important tax figures for 2017, compared with 2016, including the estate tax exemption, Social Security wage base, qualified retirement plan and IRA contribution limits, driving deductions, allowable business write-off amounts and more.     The following table provides some important federal tax information for 2017, as compared with 2016. Many of the dollar amounts are unchanged or have changed only slightly due to low inflation. Other amounts are changing due to legislation.   Social Security/ Medicare
Read More

Have you taken time recently to think over the issues involved in your estate? One consideration is whether or not you want your estate to go through probate. If you want your heirs to avoid it, there are some steps you can take. This article explains the basics of probate and provides six ways your heirs may be able to skip it. Life is busy. If you’re like most people, you have a long list of things to do. However, it’s critical to make time regularly to consider whether you’ve set up your estate in a way that will result
Read More

The IRS takes a strict position on travel and entertainment deductions. If you don’t follow recordkeeping requirements, the tax agency may disallow the sought-after deductions. This article explains the basic rules, lays down some guidelines for providing proper receipts, and delves into a few additional points that both employers and employees will find helpful. If you’re reporting travel and entertainment (T&E) expenses on your tax return and you’re audited, there’s a good chance an agent will take a hard look at those items. Often the challenge won’t be whether the expense was appropriate for the business, but whether your records
Read More

Are you an employee, a partner, a partner who doesn’t know it — or a combination of these classifications? The answer can have serious tax implications. If you participate in a business that’s operated as a partnership or a limited liability company, here are some recent developments that you need to know. IRS Position on Dual Status Longstanding IRS guidance in Revenue Ruling 69-184 states that a partner can’t also be an employee of the same partnership. However, this policy has recently come into question. Some tax experts have been prodding the IRS to allow dual employee/partner status in certain
Read More

The holidays can be a joyous — but hectic — time of year. While you’re juggling shopping for gifts, decorating your home and planning get-togethers with friends and family, it’s easy to forget to spend any remaining funds in your Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) before New Year’s Day. However, if you fail to observe the “use-it-or-lose-it rule,” you could forfeit any money left over in your accounts, unless a special provision applies. In addition to spending what’s left of last year’s FSA balance, November is the time of year when you need to decide on the types of spending/savings accounts
Read More

The IRS announced that it is extending one of the deadlines for providing 2016 Affordable Care Act (ACA) information statements to recipients. Specifically, the due date for furnishing to individuals the 2016 Form 1095-B (Health Coverage) and the 2016 Form 1095-C, (Employer-Provided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage) is extended from January 31, 2017, to March 2, 2017. Q&As about the Process and Extended Due Date What about filing these statements with the IRS? Is there an extension? No. The deadline for filing the forms with the IRS is not being extended. The IRS has determined that there’s no similar need
Read More