Understanding Spousal IRAs: A Smart Retirement Strategy for Couples
Retirement planning is essential for all families, but it can be especially critical for couples where one spouse earns little to no income. In such cases, a spousal IRA [...]
Milestone Moments: How Age Affects Certain Tax Provisions
They say age is just a number — but in the world of tax law, it’s much more than that. As you move through your life, the IRS treats [...]
Shareholders Compensation vs Dividends: An Important Distinction for C Corporations
The IRS and closely held C corporations often disagree about the reasonableness of compensation paid to shareholder-employees. The company wants to classify payments to shareholder-employees as deductible compensation expense. [...]
Is college financial aid taxable? A crash course for families
College can be expensive. According to the College Board, the average sticker price for tuition and fees at private colleges was $43,350 for the 2024–2025 school year. The average [...]
Consider Tax-Saving Sec.1031 Exchange for Appreciated Real Property
Real estate values have surged in many areas. You might be considering selling an appreciated investment or business property that you think has topped out. But an outright sale [...]
Hobby-Related Loss Deductions Are Disallowed, but Don’t Give Up Hope
Let's say you have an unincorporated sideline activity that you think of as a business, including an activity involving horses. If you have a net loss (deductible expenses exceed [...]
Beware: M&A Activity Can Trigger Unexpected Tax Issues
The IRS has an Employee Plans Team Audit (EPTA) program to enforce the tax rules for employee benefit programs in large companies. According to the tax agency, one of [...]
The One, Big, Beautiful Bill could change the deductibility of R&E expenses
The treatment of research and experimental (R&E) expenses is a high-stakes topic for U.S. businesses, especially small to midsize companies focused on innovation. As the tax code currently stands, the [...]
5 Common Business Entities and Their Tax Implications
Choosing the right business entity is one of the most important decisions entrepreneurs make when launching or restructuring a business. The type of entity selected affects how the business [...]
Why Now Might Be a Good Time for a Gift
The current federal gift tax regime is favorable by historical standards. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) significantly increased the unified exemption for 2018 through 2025 with annual inflation [...]
The Advantages of a Living Trust for Your Estate Plan
Do you believe you don’t need to worry about estate planning because of the current federal estate tax exemption ($13.99 million per individual or $27.98 million for married couples in [...]
Digital Assets and Taxes: What You Need to Know
As the use of digital assets like cryptocurrencies continues to grow, so does the IRS’s scrutiny of how taxpayers report these transactions on their federal income tax returns. The [...]
8 Life Events that May Change Your Tax Situation
Life is full of changes, and many significant milestones can affect your tax situation in unforeseen ways. Whether you're getting married, welcoming a new child, starting a new job [...]
Hiring independent contractors? Make sure you’re doing it right
Many businesses turn to independent contractors to help manage costs, especially during times of staffing shortages and inflation. If you’re among them, ensuring these workers are properly classified for [...]
Tax Advice for Recent College Grads
New college graduates will face some of the harsh realities of adulthood, including paying taxes, filing their own tax returns and possibly coordinating with their parents to achieve the [...]