The “Wash Sale” Rule: Don’t Let Losses Circle the Drain
Stock, mutual fund and ETF prices have bounced around lately. If you make what turns out to be an ill-fated investment in a taxable brokerage firm account, the good [...]
Explore SEP and SIMPLE retirement plans for your small business
Suppose you’re thinking about setting up a retirement plan for yourself and your employees. However, you’re concerned about the financial commitment and administrative burdens involved. There are a couple [...]
An HSA Can Help Fund Your Retirement
The Health Savings Account (HSA) was designed to help taxpayers with high-deductible health insurance save for medical expenses, but it can also be a powerful retirement planning tool. With [...]
Red Flags That Could Trigger an IRS Audit
Keeping up with ever-evolving tax laws can be challenging for individuals and small business owners. Because the IRS continuously refines its systems for detecting errors and inconsistencies, it's important [...]
What tax documents can you safely shred? And which ones should you keep?
Once your 2024 tax return is in the hands of the IRS, you may be tempted to clear out file cabinets and delete digital folders. But before reaching for [...]
Do You Qualify for “Head of Household” Tax Filing Status
When we prepare your tax return, we’ll check one of the following filing statuses: single, married filing jointly, married filing separately, head of household or qualifying widow(er). Only some [...]
401 (k) Plan Catch-Up Contributions
How big is your retirement nest egg? Too often, people sacrifice retirement savings to afford a bigger home, cover emergency expenses or pay for their children's education. But time [...]
Deduct a Loss From Making a Personal Loan to a Relative or Friend
Suppose your adult child or friend needs to borrow money. Maybe it’s to buy a first home or address a cash flow problem. You may want to help by [...]
Riding the Tax Break Train: Maximizing Employee Transportation Fringe Benefits
There are some nice tax breaks for transportation-related employee fringe benefits. If your employer offers these tax-favored fringes, you should probably take advantage of them by signing up. Here’s [...]
Dispelling 10 Federal Tax Myths and Misconceptions
In the complex world of federal taxes, myths and misconceptions can lead to costly mistakes and missed opportunities — especially for business owners and high-net-worth individuals. Here's a look [...]
Excess Business Loss
If an individual taxpayer has substantial business losses, unfavorable federal income tax rules can potentially come into play. Here’s what you need to know as you assess your 2024 [...]
How to Trim Your 2024 Taxes by Contributing to a Retirement Plan in 2025
Many types of retirement plans allow contributions to be made after year end. And last-minute retirement contributions can be a powerful strategy: You can lower your 2024 taxes while [...]
Can I Itemize Deductions On My Tax Return?
You may wonder if you can claim itemized deductions on your tax return. Perhaps you made charitable contributions and were told in the past they couldn’t be claimed because [...]
Reporting Digital Assets on Your 2024 Tax Return
A current IRS hot button is federal income tax reporting of digital-asset transactions. The government is concerned that some taxpayers fail to report the results of digital-asset transactions on their federal [...]
Do You Know the Tax Consequences of Gambling
Gambling can be a fun pastime or a serious professional endeavor. Either way, winnings are taxable income. Yet, as recently reported by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA), [...]