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NEUHAUS CPAS MAY 2022 NEWSLETTER Neuhaus CPAs 311 Blvd of the Americas Suite 303 Lakewood, NJ 08701 (732) 886-5430 Email Us Visit our website FOLLOW US:   Unsubscribe Your Privacy Disclaimer of Liability © 2022, Powered by Thomson Reuters Checkpoint Work or Pleasure: The Tax Rules for Hybrid Travel Many business owners like to add on a few extra days of leisure to their business trips, whether it's to relax by the beach or visit family members who live in a different city. With proper planning and documentation, you may be able to deduct some costs — such as transportation, lodging and meals — as legitimate business expenses. Here's a refresher on the tax rules for business vs. personal travel. Full Article Landlords May Be Legally Liable for Tenant Injuries Accidents happen, and if you own the property where your tenant or a visitor gets hurt, you could be held legally responsible. This article defines [...]

NEUHAUS CPAS APRIL 2022 NEWSLETTER Neuhaus CPAs 311 Blvd of the Americas Suite 303 Lakewood, NJ 08701 (732) 886-5430 Email Us Visit our website FOLLOW US:   Unsubscribe Your Privacy Disclaimer of Liability © 2022, Powered by Thomson Reuters Checkpoint Spring Cleaning Your Personal Tax Files After you file your tax return, you're probably left with a stack of financial paperwork, including receipts, bank and investment account statements, K-1s, W-2s and 1099s. What do you need to keep and what can you shred? Although it might be tempting to throw out everything, you should first review some tried-and-true guidelines for record retention. Failure to keep a paper trail for the information provided on your returns could lead to problems if you're audited. Full Article Personal Finance Quiz: Test Whether Your College Grad Is Ready for the Real World With a diploma in hand, your new graduate might seem ready to conquer the world. But college [...]

NEUHAUS CPAS MARCH 2022 NEWSLETTER Neuhaus CPAs 311 Blvd of the Americas Suite 303 Lakewood, NJ 08701 (732) 886-5430 Email Firm Website link1 Unsubscribe Your Privacy Disclaimer of Liability © 2022, Powered by Thomson Reuters Checkpoint 5 Categories of Interest Expense: What's Deductible? The average U.S. household owed $155,622 in 2021, up 6.2% from the previous year. This includes debt from credit cards, mortgages, home equity lines of credit, auto loans, student loans and other household obligations. A heavy debt load can cause you to incur significant interest. Here's a discussion of the different types of interest expense and rules for deducting eligible expenses under current tax law. Full Article Section 1031 Exchanges for Real Estate Are More Attractive than Ever Do you want to sell commercial or investment real estate that has appreciated significantly? One way to defer a tax bill on the gain is with a "like-kind" exchange. With this tax strategy, you [...]

Upcoming dates: January 18 - 4th quarter installment of 2021 estimated income tax is due for individuals, calendar-year corporations and calendar-year trusts & estates The new year is upon us and so is another tax filing season. With all the late breaking tax law changes, advance payments of the child tax credit, and several stimulus payments, this year's tax return may be a bit chaotic. But your situation does not have to be. Included in this month's newsletter are some tips to help your tax journey be a smooth one. Also included are some timely updates to retirement plan contribution limits for 2022 and a great list of ideas to help your small business prepare for the upcoming tax season. Plan Your Retirement Savings Goals for 2022 There's good news for your retirement accounts in 2022! The IRS recently announced that you can contribute more pre-tax money to several retirement plans in 2022. [...]

Upcoming dates: January 18 - 4th Quarter Estimated Payments Due Take final year-end actions - Deductible gifts - Capital gains/losses - Charitable giving - Dividend income - BAIT Election Court Is In Session - Notable Tax Court Cases Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, political unrest and severe weather events, the Tax Court has continued to churn out decisions affecting individual and business taxpayers. Here’s a brief sampling of several cases that may be of particular interest. Coming Up Aces.(Coleman, TC Memo 146, 10/22/20) You can generally deduct gambling losses up to the amount of your winnings from gambling activities if you can provide proper documentation. Now the Tax Court has allowed one taxpayer to estimate his expenses absent proper documentation.Facts: A compulsive gambler was able to show that he likely spent the money from a $150,000 personal injury settlement in local casinos. The gambler, however, didn’t have the usual records to substantiate his claims. [...]

Reminder - Conduct year-end tax and financial planning This month’s newsletter features several tax moves to consider making by December 31st to lessen the amount of money you owe the IRS as well as some recent changes to the Social Security benefits.. Please call if you would like to discuss how this information could impact your situation. If you know someone who could benefit from this newsletter, feel free to send it to them. Tax Moves to Make Before Year-End There are always moves you can make to reduce your taxable income. Some of these tax-saving moves, however, must be completed by December 31. Here are several to consider: Tax loss harvesting. If you own stock in a taxable account that is not in a tax-deferred retirement plan, you can sell your underperforming stocks by December 31 and use these losses to reduce any taxable capital gains. If your net capital losses exceed [...]

Upcoming dates: October 15 - Filing deadline for extended 2020 individual and C corporation tax returns IRS Backlog of Historical Proportions What you need to know if one of your tax returns is stuck The IRS is coping with a backlog of historical proportions and it is impacting millions of taxpayers. According to IRS sources, as of July 31, there are still over 13 million tax returns that are to be processed. The nearly unprecedented delay is being attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic, under staffing at the IRS, and a slew of recent tax law changes. The challenge is how to navigate the IRS notices if you are caught up in this mess. Complicating your tax life You’ve filed for an extension via mail, but the IRS says you haven’t filed your return yet and issues notices and penalties. You keep getting letters from the IRS after responding to initial inquiries. You filed [...]

Upcoming dates: September 15 - Filing deadline for extended 2020 calendar-year S corporation and partnership tax returns - 3rd quarter installment of 2021 estimated income tax is due for individuals, calendar-year corporations and calendar-year trusts & estates October 15 - Filing deadline for extended 2020 individual and C corporation tax returns Give Your Business an End-of-Summer Check-up As summer winds down, your business’s financial statements may be due for a quick check-up. Here are several review suggestions to help determine the health of your business prior to year-end. Balance sheet reconciliations. Reconcile each asset and liability account every quarter. A well-supported balance sheet can guide decisions about cash reserves, debt financing, inventory management, receivables, payables, and property. Regular monitoring can highlight vulnerabilities, providing time for corrective action. Debt service coverage. Do you have enough cash to adequately handle principal and interest payments? Calculate your cash flow to ensure you can handle both current [...]

Upcoming dates: September 6 - Labor Day September 15 - Filing deadline for 2020 calendar-year S corporation and partnership tax returns on extension - 3rd quarter installment of 2021 estimated income tax is due for individuals, calendar-year corporations and calendar-year trusts & estates Summertime means the 2020 tax filing season is firmly in the rearview mirror for millions of Americans! This year, summer also means more money for you thanks to the child tax credit advance payments. Find out what you need to know about these payments in this month’s newsletter. Also read about how to maximize your vehicle expense deduction if you’re a business owner, several things to consider when looking for your next banking relationship, and how to protect your privacy from companies trying to pry into your online life. Please call if you would like to discuss how this information could impact your situation. If you know someone who could [...]

Small Business IRS Audit Mistakes In late 2020, the IRS announced that it will increase tax audits of small businesses by 50 percent in 2021. Here are several mistakes to avoid if you do get audited by Uncle Sam. Mistake: Missing income. A long history of investigating has led IRS auditors to focus on under-reported income. If you’re a business that handles cash, expect greater scrutiny from the IRS. The same is true if you generate miscellaneous income that’s reported to the IRS on 1099 forms. Be proactive by tracking and documenting all income from whatever source. Invoices, sales receipts, profit and loss statements, bank records—all can be used to substantiate income amounts. Mistake: Higher than normal business losses. Some small businesses struggle in the early years before becoming profitable. If your company’s bottom line never improves, the IRS may view your enterprise as a hobby and subsequently disallow certain deductions. As a [...]