Tom Wheelwright's Articles - RightBiz Information Portal

RightBiz.com Article Directory & Info Portal
Home Business & Internet Marketing Resources

Blog Article Directory Newsletter MyNewsGroups Product Reviews Text Formatter

Free Content Syndication

Tom Wheelwright's Articles

Display Category\|Title\|Newest\|Oldest
How Your Bookkeeping Can Boost Your Tax Deductions One of the keys to bringing your tax strategy full circle is your bookkeeping. It's one thing to know what's deductible and how to maximize your business deductions, but unless that gets reflected in your bookkeeping, it's as if the tax planning never happened at all. Use this checklist! Standard Mileage Rates Are Increasing: Find Out How Your Home Office Can Help You Deduct Even More With gas prices on the rise, the IRS has announced an increase in standard mileage rates effective July 1st. For business miles, the rate is increasing from 50.5 cents per mile to 58.5 cents per mile. 3 Rules to Simplify Your Recordkeeping for Business Travel Summer is here and for many of us that means summer business trips. I love traveling for business. But, my least favorite part about business trips is keeping track of all of my receipts. Meals & Entertainment: What Is Deductible and What Is Not? Probably the most common business deductions are meals and entertainment. However, people are often confused about whether the expenses are fully deductible, partially deductible or not deductible at all. How to Deduct Your Travel Expenses Travel expenses are a favorite deduction of many clients, because they love to travel and especially enjoy it when the IRS is subsidizing part of the expense. In order to deduct travel expenses, however, you must show that the expense has a business purpose and is ordinary and necessary to the business. Are Your Meals 50% Deductible or 100% Deductible? There are several specific rules to determine if a meal is a legitimate business expense. These specific rules include meeting the business purpose requirement and the ordinary and necessary requirement. In this article, it's assumed that the meal has met these requirements and is indeed a business expense. A Checklist to Properly Document Your Meals and Entertainment Expenses One thing you can always count on during an audit is a request for documentation supporting meals and entertainment expenses. The IRS has found that these expenses are heavily abused and are an easy way to generate additional tax revenue, not to mention additional revenue from penalties and interest. Entity Formation Fundamentals One of the most important steps in any tax strategy is determining what entity should be formed to hold your businesses and investments. For legal purposes, there are four basic types of entities: sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation and limited liability company. The entity you choose should take into account both the tax effects of the entity and the legal aspects of the entity. Is Your LLC a Sole Proprietorship, a Partnership, a C Corporation or an S Corporation? Understanding the fundamentals of entities, particularly LLCs, is a key part of building a wildly successful tax strategy. How Can You Take Advantage of the 0% Capital Gains Rate? The capital gains rate for certain taxpayers will drop to 0% for tax years 2008 through 2010. How can you take advantage of this 0% capital gains rate? First, let's review the capital gains rate in general. Inside Secrets of Failed Tax Strategies I have seen the inner workings of hundreds of tax strategies. I recently did a study of tax strategies to reveal the inside secrets of failed tax strategies. I was searching for common causes of the failures. The most common causes all centered around cost, but not in a way you may expect. Stock Options One strategy companies have used in recent years is to reward employees with options to purchase a certain amount of the company's stock for a fixed price after a defined period of time. The employee is not required to exercise the option. A stock option is a contract which allows the holder to purchase stock at a fixed price. Business Strategy Fundamentals Over the years, I have met and worked with literally hundreds of business owners. At one time or another, many of them have written a business plan. But very few of them have a working business strategy. A business plan and a business strategy are two very different tools. Is Legally Lowering Your Taxes Ethical? When the income tax was first introduced in the early 20th century, it was a flat rate on high-income taxpayers. As the Government needed more money, the rate increased and the tax base broadened to include more and more people. John McCain's New Tax Plan Recently John McCain announced his idea for how to simplify the tax filings for mllions of people. Finally, a workable idea!!! His idea is quite simple and would solve many problems. For those of you who didn't hear about it, here it is in a nutshell. Entity Formation Fundamentals One of the most important steps in any tax strategy is determining what entity should be formed to hold your businesses and investments. For legal purposes, there are four basic types of entities: sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation and limited liability company. What constitutes as "Travel Away From Home"? When it comes to business travel, expenses, and deductions, I am frequently asked "What constitutes travel away from home and why is it important?" How Do I Find the Right Tax Advisor? This is the time of year when all Americans think about their tax situation and what they might do differently to reduce their heavy tax burden. There is a record of an ancient civilization that was required to pay 50% of their earnings to their captors. Who Wants to Take a Home Office Deduction? The home office deduction allows individuals to deduct expenses that are not otherwise deductible such as utilities and homeowners insurance. There are certain requirements you must meet to have a home office. The Three (3) Pillars of Financial Health This is all about the foundation of financial success: wealth strategy. My key purpose here is to draw a clear, unmistakable distinction between wealth strategy and what usually passes for "financial planning." Two (2) Ways to Take Your Rental Real Estate Losses Even if you have strong positive cash flow from your rental real estate, chances are you still have a loss for tax purposes due to the depreciation deduction. This is a great tax strategy because your positive cash flow is sheltered from tax. How Should Your LLC be Taxed? Understanding the fundamentals of entities, particularly LLCs, is a key part of building a wildly successful tax strategy. Do you know how your LLC will be taxed? Three (3) Things You Can Do To Be Prepared For An Audit The number of IRS audits increased in 2007. What is causing this increase and who is targeted? What can you do to be prepared? The number of IRS audits increased in 2007. Remember, the IRS can audit a return 3 years after it has been filed (and 6 years if the tax return filed was considerably incorrect). IRS Ramps Up Audits The IRS is under great pressure from Congress to show results in closing the $300 billion tax gap, the difference between what taxpayers owe and what they pay. Remember, the IRS can audit a return 3 years after it has been filed (and 6 years if the tax return filed was considerably incorrect). Secrets to a Successful Tax Return Having the right team of advisors is critical to achieving your financial goals faster than you ever thought possible. For most people, taxes are the SINGLE BIGGEST expense. This makes finding the right tax preparer for your team extremely important.
[1] [2]