Here is a scenario for you: You planned a personal trip to Los Angeles, arriving on Friday afternoon and leaving on Sunday afternoon. About a week later, you learn that a vendor you need to meet with is going to be in L.A. when you are. You arrange a dinner on Friday night to discuss …
The simple maneuver of converting your personal residence to a rental property brings with it many tax rules, mostly good when you know how they work. The first question that arises when you convert a personal residence into a rental is how to determine the property’s tax basis for depreciation purposes during the rental period …
Converting Your Residence into a Rental Property Read More »
If you filed your business income and expenses as a proprietor in 2017 and reported $100,000 or more in gross receipts, your chances of IRS audit were 2.4 percent (2017 returns are still open for audit, so the percentage could increase). Had you reported this income as an S corporation, your chances of audit were …
How Corporations Reduce IRS Audits of Home-Office Deductions Read More »
Failure to use an accountable plan for your employee expense reimbursements (including yourself if you operate as a corporation) turns those improperly reimbursed expenses into taxable wages. In other words, by failing to comply with the accountable plan rules, you turn the tax-free reimbursement into taxable W-2 wages. That’s about as dreadful as it can …
TCJA Creates New Reasons for Accountable Plan Expense Reimbursements Read More »
Here’s good news for business meals: the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) removed the “directly related and associated with” requirements from business meals. The net effect of this change is to subject business meals once again to the pre-1963 “ordinary and necessary” business expense rules. You are going to like these rules. Restaurants and …
Creating More Business Meal Tax Deductions After the TJCA Read More »
What tax effect would death, retirement, or disability have on you or your business? Here’s an easy example to illustrate. Let’s say that in 2017, you purchased for business use a pickup truck with a gross vehicle weight rating greater than 6,000 pounds. Asserting that you use the pickup 100 percent for business, you expensed …
Impact of Death, Retirement, and Disability on the 179 Deduction Read More »
If you operate your business as a sole proprietorship, there are many strategies to reduce your taxes. Let’s start with the following 10: Use the Section 105 plan to make your health insurance a tax-favored business deduction on your Schedule C. Employ your under-age-18 child to make taxable income disappear. Employ your spouse without paying …
Proven Tax Reduction Strategies for Sole Proprietors Read More »
The IRS considers all ships that sail cruise ships. In 1982, your lawmakers were attempting to give the U.S. cruise ship industry a leg up by outlawing all cruise ship conventions, seminars, and similar meetings other than those that take place on a vessel registered in the United States, and where all ports of call …
How to Deduct Cruise Ship Conventions, Seminars, and Meetings Read More »
Question: Let’s say you are under IRS audit for business mileage. You claimed business miles at the IRS optional rate. The IRS has requested odometer readings for the vehicle. Is this proper? Should you have to provide odometer readings when claiming the business vehicle deductions using the IRS optional mileage rate? Answer: The tax code …
Q&A: Can the IRS Require Odometer Readings with the Mileage Rate? Read More »
Like you, we at Hinrichs+Pesavento don’t like IRS penalties. That’s why we keep you up to date on new ways you can beat the IRS at its penalty game. Section 6751(b) Overview Tax code Section 6751(b) says that the IRS cannot assess a penalty unless an IRS supervisor or higher-level official designated by the Treasury …
Update on New Court-Approved Way to Defeat IRS Penalties Read More »
