02nd August 2009
Many business owners and investors get reports that they don't understand - and it's not their fault! Most reports are either too technical or are missing information to give the reader the information they want.
It's always amazing to me the number o...
31st July 2009
Recent IRS statistics say that S corporations represent the most popular form of small business corporation. That's understandable. S corporations provide some powerful tax savings benefits for small business owners and investors.
Unfortunately, the S ...
31st July 2009
It's time to start thinking about getting those taxes done. Maybe you're in a panic. Not to worry. Just follow Tom's 15 steps to getting your taxes done, and you'll be much happier. Ready? Here they are:
-Get serious
Unless you're focused, you're goin...
30th July 2009
I've heard from many of you asking for more information on the AMT because some of you are in it and others fear they will be in it soon. This is not a surprise to me because I have found 2 things to be true in recent years about the AMT:
First, more ...
27th July 2009
State taxes usually come in three forms:
Property tax, Sales tax and Income tax.
Many business owners and real estate investors get into trouble by not even realizing they aren't complying with the state tax laws.
The First Step to turning your s...
26th July 2009
The hot topic on everyone's mind right now, including radio, television and print media is how to cope with the current recession. A lot of the analysts and talking heads are recommending that businesses and investors pull back, reduce their expenditures...
25th July 2009
The choice of investment is a very important decision. After all, you will be spending years devoting yourself to this specific type of investing.
How Did You Decide on Your Current Type of Investing?
I find that the responses I get put people into ...
20th July 2009
A like-kind exchange, also referred to as a 1031 or Starker exchange, allows a taxpayer to defer paying tax on the sale of a property. Like-kind exchanges are wonderful and powerful tools to use in tax and wealth strategies, but ONLY when used correctly....
18th July 2009
There has been a lot of talk recently about itemized deductions. Itemized deductions are the deductions you can claim for certain personal expenses, such as, taxes, interest, charitable donations and investment expenses.
The big discussion right now c...
02nd July 2009
Here are 3 questions to help you evaluate your internal control system.
Question #1: Who opens the bank statement? The monthly bank statement for your business and investments is a great tool to reduce the opportunity for embezzlement.
Think about t...
30th June 2009
I find that most people have a good grasp of the basics when it comes to entities, but are often missing the little things that can have a huge impact (good and bad) on tax savings. I have a real-life story that captures this well.
Pierre is starting ...
26th June 2009
Are tax returns really the commodity that they are often perceived to be? Is a tax return prepared by the tax service in the mall of the same quality as that prepared by a major CPA firm?
What does it mean to have a "quality" tax return? In fact, can ...
18th June 2009
Studies show that most of us live our entire adult life based upon the things we learned and especially experienced while we were young. Whether it is our eating habits, exercise or how we relate to others, most of our adult behavior stems from our experi...
10th June 2009
There are so many examples to share here, but I'll focus on one that really seems to shake people up. When I share this one, people actually get mad! I've even had someone walk out of the room - and that was a person I knew! Why? Because it goes against ...
07th June 2009
What is a Personal Tax Strategy? Let's break this term down and start with strategy. A strategy is a systematic plan of action intended to accomplish a specific goal or purpose.
The formula looks like this:
"Personal Tax" + "Strategy" = a plan of a...
