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Do you have a beach or mountain home that you rent out? If the average period of rental is less than 30 days, you likely have a choice—either claim the income and expenses on Schedule C, or claim the income and expenses on Schedule E. When Is Schedule C...

Imagine this: your Schedule C business buys a home at the beach, uses it solely as an entertainment facility for business, pays off the mortgage, and deducts all the expenses.  Now say, 10 years later, without any tax consequence to you, you start using the beach home as your...

These days, some IRA owners and investors may be worried about being overexposed to equities. That could be you.  But the safest fixed income investments (CDs, Treasuries, and money-market funds) are still paying microscopic interest rates. For example, when this was written, the 10-year Treasury was yielding about 1.92...

Working at a tender age is an American tradition. What isn’t so traditional is the notion of kids contributing to their own IRA, especially a Roth IRA. But it should be a tradition, because it’s a really good idea.  Here’s what you need to know about IRAs for kids....

Do you own or lease non-residential (think commercial) real property for your business or rent non-residential real property to others?  If so, interior improvements you make to the property may be fully deductible in a single year instead of over multiple years.  But to be deducted instantly, the improvements...

The strategy behind creating an S corporation and then selling your home to that S corporation comes into play when you want to convert your home to a rental property and take advantage of the exclusions, or you need more time to sell the home to realize the benefits...

As a business owner, you are obligated to collect and remit payroll taxes for your employees. But you are not required to collect and remit payroll taxes for independent contractors. That’s why it’s important to correctly classify workers as either employees or independent contractors.  But here’s the problem: the...

If you do some work at home, you’re probably using your home internet connection. Are your monthly internet expenses deductible? Maybe. The deduction rules depend on your choice of business entity (proprietorship, corporation, or partnership). Deduction on Schedule C If you operate your business as a sole proprietorship or...

Taxable income has consequences. It causes income taxes.  And it causes you to pay either more or less for Medicare.  It boils down to this: there’s always a need to reduce your taxable income. The monthly premium for the current year depends on your modified adjusted gross income (MAGI)...

When you think of the reverse mortgage, you may not think of using it as a tax planning tool.  If you are house rich but cash poor, the reverse mortgage can  give you the cash you desire, and save you a boatload of both income and estate taxes when...

Here’s a client story that I believe you will find of interest. Facts Henry and Heide own an S corporation 50-50. For more than five years, the corporation has operated a successful $10 million-a-year restaurant.  Henry, Heide, and Harry formed a new S corporation that started a new restaurant...

When you use a home for both rental and personal use, regardless of that home’s location at the beach or in the city, you run into the tax code’s vacation home rules that make that home either a residence or a rental property.  It’s a residence when you rent...