August 24, 2023 / by Brett Hess / Tax
“Thousands of people have lost millions of dollars and their personal information to tax scams,” according to the IRS. The scams may come in through email, text messages, telephone calls or regular mail. Criminals regularly target both individuals and businesses and often prey on the elderly. Important: The IRS will never contact you by email, […]
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Investment swings: What’s the tax impact?
September 25, 2023 / by Brett Hess / Newsletter
If your investments have fluctuated wildly this year, you may have already recognized some significant gains and losses. But nothing is decided tax-wise until year end when the final results of your trades will reveal your 2023 tax situation. Here’s what you need to know to avoid tax surprises. Tax-favored retirement accounts and taxable accounts […]
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Plan now for year-end gifts with the gift tax annual exclusion
September 21, 2023 / by Brett Hess / Uncategorized
Now that Labor Day has passed, the holidays are just around the corner. Many people may want to make gifts of cash or stock to their loved ones. By properly using the annual exclusion, gifts to family members and loved ones can reduce the size of your taxable estate, within generous limits, without triggering any […]
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Selling your home for a big profit? Here are the tax rules
September 18, 2023 / by Brett Hess / Tax
Selling your home for a big profit? Here are the tax rules Many homeowners across the country have seen their home values increase in recent years. According to the National Association of Realtors, the median price of existing homes sold in July of 2023 rose 1.9% over July of 2022 after a couple years of much […]
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Guaranteeing a loan to your corporation? There may be tax implications
September 14, 2023 / by Brett Hess / Newsletter
Let’s say you decide to, or are asked to, guarantee a loan to your corporation. Before agreeing to act as a guarantor, endorser or indemnitor of a debt obligation of your closely held corporation, be aware of the possible tax implications. If your corporation defaults on the loan and you’re required to pay principal or […]
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Can you deduct student loan interest on your tax return?
September 11, 2023 / by Brett Hess / Uncategorized
The federal student loan “pause” is coming to an end on August 31 after more than three years. If you have student loan debt, you may wonder whether you can deduct the interest you pay on your tax return. The answer may be yes, subject to certain limits. The deduction is phased out if your […]
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Pocket a tax break for making energy-efficient home improvements
September 8, 2023 / by Brett Hess / Uncategorized
An estimated 190 million Americans have recently been under heat advisory alerts, according to the National Weather Service. That may have spurred you to think about making your home more energy efficient — and there’s a cool tax break that may apply. Thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, you may be able to […]
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Retirement account catch-up contributions can add up
September 5, 2023 / by Brett Hess / Newsletter
If you’re age 50 or older, you can probably make extra “catch-up” contributions to your tax-favored retirement account(s). It is worth the trouble? Yes! Here are the rules of the road. The deal with IRAs Eligible taxpayers can make extra catch-up contributions of up to $1,000 annually to a traditional or Roth IRA. If you’ll […]
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Inheriting stock or other assets? You’ll receive a favorable “stepped-up basis”
August 28, 2023 / by Brett Hess / Newsletter
If you’re planning your estate, or you’ve recently inherited assets, you may be unsure of the “cost” (or “basis”) for tax purposes. How do the rules work? Under the current fair market value basis rules (also known as the “step-up and step-down” rules), an heir receives a basis in inherited property equal to its date-of-death […]
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That email or text from the IRS: It’s a scam!
August 24, 2023 / by Brett Hess / Tax
“Thousands of people have lost millions of dollars and their personal information to tax scams,” according to the IRS. The scams may come in through email, text messages, telephone calls or regular mail. Criminals regularly target both individuals and businesses and often prey on the elderly. Important: The IRS will never contact you by email, […]
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Keeping meticulous records is the key to tax deductions and painless IRS audits
February 3, 2022 / by Brett Hess / Newsletter, Small Business
If you operate a business, or you’re starting a new one, you know you need to keep records of your income and expenses. Specifically, you should carefully record your expenses in order to claim all of the tax deductions to which you’re entitled. And you want to make sure you can defend the amounts reported […]
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