Blogging Beyond the Numbers

Commercial buildings and improvements are generally depreciated over 39 years.  Depreciation means that you can deduct a portion of the building and improvement cost every year over the building’s depreciation period (1/39 every year).   That may seem like a long time but there are special tax breaks that allow depreciation deductions to be taken more quickly for certain real estate investments. Some ...

So you’re in charge or your company’s retirement plan… what does this mean for you? The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) protects your plan’s assets by subjecting those in charge of the plan with fiduciary responsibilities. Plan fiduciaries may include plan trustees, plan administrators, and members of a plan’s investment committee. Your primary responsibility as the fiduciary i...

Even though the government is currently shut down, that won’t stop the upcoming 2018 income tax filing season.  Business owners may, therefore, want to shift their focus to assessing whether they’ll likely owe taxes or get a refund when they file their returns this spring. With the biggest tax law change since 1986 —the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) — generally going into effect beginning in 2018, m...

On Friday, December 14, Governor Scott Walker signed legislation that allows S corporations to elect to be taxed at the entity level for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2018, and partnerships and LLCs elected to be treated as partnerships to elect to be taxed at the entity level for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2019.  These entities are commonly referred to as pass-through ...

Are you a US citizen or resident and have a relationship (either as a shareholder, officer or director) or own 10% or more in a foreign corporation?  If yes, then you might be obligated to file Form 5471 along with your tax return.  Form 5471 is annual informational form that generally does not result in any tax due for the taxpayer. If you are a partner in a foreign partnership, you would file a Form 886...

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) has enhanced two depreciation-related breaks that are popular year-end tax planning tools for businesses. To take advantage of these breaks, you must purchase qualifying assets and place them in service by the end of the tax year. That means there’s still time to reduce your 2018 tax liability with these breaks, but you need to act soon. Section 179 expensing Sec. 179 ex...

The legal battle is over for the parties in South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc.  The Supreme Court’s decision that South Dakota was correct in requiring remote sellers to collect South Dakota sales taxes was decided June 21, 2018.  However, the Justices decided that the lower court handle the specific settlement terms. The November 1, 2018 Wayfair settlement agreement terms are as follows: Removes the i...

It’s been a big year for tax changes. The United States Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (“Tax Reform”) has taken front seat and grabbed much attention. However, an equally big tax change occurred this year in the sales & use tax world with the Supreme Court decision South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of South Dakota’s authority to require out of state sellers without physi...

Is your accounting department prepared for the recent changes to meals and entertainment deductions?  Have they been trained to code invoices and track expense reports according to the new rules?  Are you looking for a better understanding of the new rules? The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 made significant changes to the meals and entertainment rules that most have grown accustom to.  To date, the IR...

If you own an interest in a family-owned or other closely held business, a buy-sell agreement is a valuable document to have in place. These agreements specify whether — and under what circumstances — owners’ interests may be transferred. Buy-sell agreements should be planned and drafted carefully to ensure that they meet your expectations and don’t trigger unwanted tax consequences or conflicts wit...