Accounting 364

04/13/2024

Folks, just because the brother of your neighbor's ex said something is deductible doesn't make it so. If you have a question, ask a tax professional. Even though most "mistakes" won't put you in jail, it can be very costly. So let's not stray across the line.

04/17/2022

Always late posting this but you have until Monday to do this. Great return on investment (assuming they haven't changed the program.) Certainly worth checking out if you can afford to set a little money aside for your retirement.

Clark Howard and Clark.com shows you practical ways to save more, spend less and avoid getting ripped off.

04/16/2022

This is true even for shell companies.

12/29/2021

As you probably know, I don't do taxes but do try to share relevant tax information when appropriate. This is for all those who stole money or goods during the year, including those involved in smash and grabs in 2021. If you decide you don't want to report the value of those goods as income on April 15 (or March 15 if you consider it a business) you can return it to the rightful owner by Friday to relieve yourself of that obligation.

You are welcome.

https://www.irs.gov/publications/p17

11/17/2020

This topic is way out of my lane but one thing is certain. Anybody who is using Flash in-house is in for a rude awakening on new year's day when whatever they are using it in is likely to crash. IT folks can expect phone calls as they celebrate the new year (or more accurately, the exiting of the old) if they don't address this.

Flash has been a security nightmare for years and it is scheduled to meet its end on December 31. Most outward facing sites have already abandoned it, but what if some programmer used it for an in-house program years ago and it has just been passed over all these years? Has your company looked there?

I can't vouch for any of the advice in this article (As I said, this is out of my lane.) but it is certainly worth investigating to avoid some very desperate phone calls in the early morning hours of New Year's Day.

The end of Adobe Flash Player can disrupt business in the coming weeks and months so it is time to get a plan together

09/30/2020

WARNING: If you are a non-filer and you have not received the $500 catch-up payment for qualifying child(ren), today, September 30, is the deadline for filing. You can do it online and it should be pretty quick to see if you qualify and to apply for it.

If you are going to file a return, even if you don't have to, you have until October 15 to do so. Confused yet?

But if you are not going to file, enter information by TODAY fo qualifying children.

https://www.irs.gov/coronavirus/non-filers-enter-payment-info-here

https://www.irs.gov/coronavirus/economic-impact-payment-information-center

Answers to frequently asked questions about Economic Impact Payments (coronavirus stimulus checks). These questions and answers will be updated periodically.

08/23/2020

As good an explanation as some things I have heard.

04/17/2020

For low(er) income people this is an outstanding opportunity to put some money into an IRA account with Uncle Sam covering up to half of your contribution. (Put in $2K, get up to a $1K credit from the IRS.) Basically, you can double your money painlessly.

WARNING: Normally the contribution deadline is April 15. But because the tax filing deadline was extended, this credit might also be extended. Do NOT attempt this for 2019 unless you have confirmed the deadline has been extended. However, you can probably do it for 2020. And given the stock market is down, you can get more bang for you buck!

Share this with your friends.

https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-prior/f8880--2019.pdf

Don't earn a lot of money? The government will match your retirement savings, if you have eligible income.

01/01/2020

A hack for 2020. When you get in your car, take a pic of the odometer. You will thank me when you go to your tax guy (gal?) and you are asked, "What was your odometer reading at year end?"

11/25/2019

A reminder what you can do to provide additional support for small businesses. And that would include avoiding using Amex to pay for your purchase. You may get nice rewards but the businesses pay a huge cost for those purchases to be processed. Go with cash, check or debit card to help them out.

07/27/2019

"If you do nothing - - If you were impacted by the breach and opt do nothing, according to the settlement’s terms, you will not be eligible for any of the aforementioned benefits. Moreover, it means you will forfeit your right to sue Equifax for harm caused by the breach or continuing pursue separate claims you’ve filed."

Yes, if you just ignore this you will get nothing except a ban from ever pursuing Equifax no matter your damages. But if you accept the settlement, there is actually no guarantee you will get the headline $125 benefit. And your personal information will still be out on the internet. Forever.

There’s a good chance you won’t actually get the full $125. Here's why.