News

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act has resulted in questions from taxpayers about many tax provisions including whether interest paid on home equity loans is still deductible. The good news is that despite newly-enacted restrictions on home mortgages, taxpayers can often still deduct interest on a home equity loan,...

In most cases, taxpayers who turned 70 1/2 during 2018 must start receiving required minimum distributions (RMDs) from Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) and workplace retirement plans by Monday, April 1, 2019. The April 1 deadline applies to owners of traditional (including SEP and SIMPLE) IRAs but not Roth IRAs....

All of the names on a taxpayer’s tax return must match Social Security Administration records because a name mismatch can delay a tax refund. Here’s what you should do if anyone listed on their tax return changed their name: 1. Reporting Taxpayer’s Name Change. Taxpayers who should notify the SSA...

All income is taxable unless the law specifically excludes it, but as you might have guessed, there’s more to it than that. With that in mind, let’s take a closer look at taxable vs. nontaxable income. Taxable Income Taxable income includes any money you receive, such as wages and...

Obtaining a 6-month extension to file is relatively easy and there are legitimate reasons for doing so; however, there are also a few downsides. If you need more time to file your tax return this year, here’s what you need to know about filing an extension. What is an...

Social Security benefits include monthly retirement, survivor, and disability benefits; they do not include Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments, which are not taxable. Generally, you pay federal income taxes on your Social Security benefits only if you have other substantial income in addition to your benefits such as wages,...

If you’re a small business owner with fewer than 25 full-time equivalent employees you may be eligible for the small business health care credit. What is the Small Business Health Care Credit? The small business health care tax credit, part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act enacted...

Tax reform eliminated a number of deductions that many taxpayers counted on to reduce their taxable income. Here are four that could affect you. 1. Personal Exemptions Personal exemptions enabled individual taxpayers to reduce taxable their income in addition to the standard deduction, but were repealed for tax years...

March 1 Farmers and Fishermen – File your 2018 income tax return (Form 1040) and pay any tax due. However, you have until April 15 (April 17 if you live in Maine or Massachusetts) to file if you paid your 2018 estimated tax by January 15, 2019. March 11 Employees...

There are myriad ways to bring in customer payments faster and improve your cash flow. You can: Get a merchant account and let customers pay you electronically Offer a discount for early payments Shorten the payment due cycle (21 days instead of 30 days, for example) Be more aggressive...

The estimated tax penalty has been waived for many taxpayers whose 2018 federal income tax withholding and estimated tax payments fell short of their total tax liability for the year; however, there is a catch: the penalty is only waived for taxpayers who paid at least 85 percent of...

Providing tax benefits to investors who invest eligible capital into distressed communities throughout the U.S. and its possessions, Qualified Opportunity Zones (QOZs) were created under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 to spur economic development and job creation. If you’re considering investing in a QOZ, here are...