{"id":3566,"date":"2020-09-01T15:58:04","date_gmt":"2020-09-01T19:58:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.neuhauscpas.com\/?post_type=avada_portfolio&#038;p=3566"},"modified":"2020-09-01T15:58:04","modified_gmt":"2020-09-01T19:58:04","slug":"september-2020","status":"publish","type":"avada_portfolio","link":"https:\/\/www.neuhauscpas.com\/portfolio-items\/september-2020\/","title":{"rendered":"September 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"fusion-fullwidth fullwidth-box fusion-builder-row-1 nonhundred-percent-fullwidth non-hundred-percent-height-scrolling\" style=\"--awb-border-radius-top-left:0px;--awb-border-radius-top-right:0px;--awb-border-radius-bottom-right:0px;--awb-border-radius-bottom-left:0px;--awb-background-color:#ffffff;--awb-flex-wrap:wrap;\" ><div class=\"fusion-builder-row fusion-row\"><div class=\"fusion-layout-column fusion_builder_column fusion-builder-column-0 fusion_builder_column_1_1 1_1 fusion-one-full fusion-column-first fusion-column-last padding-newsletter\" style=\"--awb-padding-top:50px;--awb-padding-bottom:50px;--awb-bg-size:cover;--awb-margin-bottom:0px;\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper fusion-flex-column-wrapper-legacy\"><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-1\"><p><strong>This Month:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>September 15<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Extension deadline for 2019 S corporation and partnership tax returns<\/li>\n<li>3rd quarter 2020 estimated income tax is due (individuals, corporations, trusts &amp; estates)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Fall is right around the corner! As summer is winding down, the IRS wants you to be aware of common scams being encountered during the pandemic. Also included are tips to improve your credit score.<\/p>\n<p>Please call if you would like to discuss how this information could impact your situation.<\/p>\n<p><strong>IRS Announces Common Tax Scams<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The IRS recently announced its 2020 edition of its annual <em>Dirty Dozen<\/em> list of tax scams with a special emphasis on aggressive and evolving schemes related to COVID-19 tax relief, including Economic Impact Payments. Here are six of the more common scams.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Phishing.<\/strong> Phishing refers to potential fake emails or websites looking to steal your personal information. Remember the IRS will never initiate contact with you via email about an outstanding tax bill, refund or Economic Impact Payment.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>What you can do.<\/em><\/strong><em> If you receive any suspicious phishing emails, forward them to phishing@irs.gov.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Fake charities.<\/strong> Criminals frequently exploit natural disasters and other crisis situations such as this year\u2019s pandemic by setting up fake charities to steal donations. Fraudulent schemes normally start with unsolicited contact by telephone, text, social media, e-mail or even in person.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>What you can do.<\/em><\/strong><em> Verify the charity\u2019s existence by searching for it using the <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.irs.gov\/charities-non-profits\/tax-exempt-organization-search\">IRS\u2019s search tool.<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Threatening phone calls from IRS impersonators.<\/strong> IRS impersonation scams include phone calls threatening arrest, deportation or license revocation if you don\u2019t pay a bogus tax bill. The IRS will never demand immediate payment or ask for financial information over the phone.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>What you can do.<\/em><\/strong><em> If you received a phone call, contact your local IRS office to verify whether you owe any taxes.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Social media scams.<\/strong> A scammer will use social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter to obtain personal information from you, then use that information to trick you into providing them with confidential information. For example, the scammer could impersonate a family member, friend or co-worker in an attempt to obtain financial information.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>What you can do.<\/em><\/strong><em> Be careful of publishing confidential information on social media. Verify the identity of any person or organization that asks you for confidential information.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Economic impact payment or tax refund theft.<\/strong> Criminals file false tax returns or supply other bogus information to the IRS to divert refunds or Economic Impact Payments to wrong addresses or bank accounts.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>What you can do.<\/em><\/strong><em> Contact a qualified professional to help walk you through how to report identity theft to the IRS.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Senior fraud.<\/strong> Senior citizens have become more comfortable with various technologies such as social media. This has opened the door for scammers to take advantage of senior citizens by using fake emails, text messages and fake websites to steal personal information.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>What you can do.<\/em><\/strong><em> Be the eyes and ears for the senior citizens you come in contact with. According to the IRS, anecdotal evidence indicates that senior fraud decreases substantially when a trusted friend or family member takes an interest in the senior\u2019s affairs.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Great Tips to Improve Your Credit Score<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>You\u2019re ready to take out a loan to buy a house, a car or get a credit card. You fill out the application and wait to hear back from your bank on its decision whether to loan you the money.<\/p>\n<p>And then you get the dreaded phone call. Your credit score wasn\u2019t high enough to approve the loan! Was there anything you could have done to get a higher credit score?<\/p>\n<p>Getting and maintaining a high credit score is just like playing a game. But just like any game, you first need to understand the rules so you can create a winning game plan. Here are the rules of the credit score game you need to understand so you can get the highest score possible.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Rule 1 \u2013 Pay your bills on time (Comprises 35% of your credit score equation).<\/strong> Payment history is the most important component of your credit score and is pretty straightforward \u2013 it\u2019s a record of whether or not you\u2019ve paid your bills on time.<br \/>\n<strong><em>Action: <\/em><\/strong><em>Don&#8217;t be late paying your bills! A one-time late payment may not affect your score, but multiple late payments will drag down your score. Even better, understand what vendors report your payment history and which ones do not.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><strong>Rule 2 \u2013 Refrain from maxing out your credit (30%).<\/strong> Just because you have a $10,000 credit limit doesn\u2019t mean you should use it all. Using close to or all of your credit limit signals to lenders that you may be a high-risk borrower. Insurance companies also love to use high-limit spending as a reason to increase your home and auto insurance, so be forewarned!<br \/>\n<strong><em>Action:<\/em><\/strong><em> Don\u2019t use more than 25% of your available revolving credit, and pay the outstanding credit card balance in full each month.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><strong>Rule 3 \u2013 Build a long history of using credit responsibly (15%).<\/strong> Lenders want to see a track record that you can handle being entrusted with a credit limit. If you have old credit accounts that are still open and in good standing, that signals your trustworthiness, which is reflected in a higher credit score.<br \/>\n<strong><em>Action:<\/em><\/strong><em> When you open a credit account, keep it active for as long as possible. If you stop using an account, consider leaving that account open, but only if it will help your score and not hurt you in obtaining new credit.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><strong>Rule 4 \u2013 Use multiple types of credit (10%).<\/strong> Lenders like to see you with both revolving debt (credit cards) and installment debt (car and house loans).<br \/>\n<strong><em>Action:<\/em><\/strong><em> If you have a low credit limit, request a limit increase. Many banks will honor the request, especially if you\u2019ve had a history of making on-time payments. If you don\u2019t have a history of using installment loans, consider making a small purchase (such as an appliance or electronic device) using an installment loan.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><strong>Rule 5 \u2013 Avoid too many credit inquiries (10%).<\/strong> Applying for many loans or credit cards in a short period of time tells lenders you may be attempting to acquire more credit than you can handle.<br \/>\n<strong><em>Action:<\/em><\/strong><em> Apply for only one type of credit at a time. Multiple inquiries for the same type of credit, for example a mortgage loan, within a short period of time will only count as one inquiry.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>You can improve your credit score by understanding these rules and putting them into practice.<\/p>\n<p><strong>IRS Rolls Out Quicker Fix for Missing, Incorrect Stimulus Payments<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Are you still waiting for your Economic Impact Payment? Did you get your payment but it was for the wrong amount?<\/p>\n<p>The IRS initially said you needed to wait until filing your 2020 tax return to resolve any issues with missing or incorrect Economic Impact Payments. Thanks to the prodding of the Taxpayer Advocate Service, the IRS has established procedures to help correct payment issues in the following scenarios:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Missing dependent payment.<\/strong> The IRS will issue supplemental payments in the coming weeks to eligible individuals who normally do not have to file a tax return and claimed at least one qualifying child but did not receive the qualifying child portion of the payment.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Injured spouse.<\/strong> Eligible individuals who filed for or can file for Injured Spouse Allocation (Form 8379) and did not receive their Economic Impact Payment will receive their payment in the coming weeks.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Math error.<\/strong> Eligible individuals whose payment was based on a 2018 or 2019 tax return where the IRS adjusted the return for a math error that negatively impacted the original amount of the payment will now receive a payment for an approved adjusted amount. The IRS will work with the taxpayer to resolve the math error and, if appropriate, issue a payment for the additional amount.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Victims of identity theft.<\/strong> Eligible individuals who were victims of identity theft have often not received a payment or the amount received is incorrect. The IRS will adjust the payment amount once the identity theft issue is resolved.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Deceased or incarcerated spouse.<\/strong> Eligible individuals often have not received an Economic Impact Payment because they filed a joint return with a deceased or incarcerated spouse. The IRS will recalculate the payment and issue it only to the non-deceased\/non-incarcerated spouse.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>What you need to do<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>Contact the Taxpayer Advocate Service to determine if your Economic Impact Payment will either be corrected now or in 2021 when you file your tax return. The Advocate Service will be providing more details in the coming weeks about how to reach out to them for assistance. <\/em><\/p>\n<p>As always, should you have any questions or concerns regarding your tax situation please feel free to call.<\/p>\n<\/div><div class=\"fusion-clearfix\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1087,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"portfolio_category":[],"portfolio_skills":[],"portfolio_tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>September 2020 - Neuhaus CPAs<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.neuhauscpas.com\/portfolio-items\/september-2020\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"September 2020 - 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