With the dramatic increase in identity theft, what can be done to protect your Social Security number (SSN) from these would-be thieves? Here are some ideas. Do not carry your Social Security card with you. Your parents were encouraged to do this, but times have changed. You...
Your tax bill is now due and you may be considering paying the bill with your credit card. Is this a good idea? How does it work? Here is what you need to know The IRS has contracted with a few credit card merchants to offer credit...
If you have not already done so, now is the time to review your tax situation and make an estimated quarterly tax payment using Form 1040-ES. The 2018 fourth-quarter due date is now here. Normal due date: Tuesday, January 15, 2019 Remember you are required to withhold...
The time to organize your tax records is now. Waiting until the end of the year or, even worse, waiting until you are audited can lead to headaches. Here are some tips to get on top of your tax records. Storage Hints Organize your records by tax...
The IRS is more strictly enforcing rules that determine whether a worker is actually your employee, rather than an independent contractor. Beware: you have many extra tax responsibilities and expenses if you are an employer in the eyes of the IRS. So, be careful if you...
Suppose you take your best client out to dinner to celebrate your business relationship. If you own a business, are self-employed or run a side business, can you deduct any of the cost? The answer is not so clear after the passage of the Tax Cuts...
One of the things that’s going away under the new tax reform laws implemented this year is an employee’s ability to deduct unreimbursed expenses related to their job. Farewell to miscellaneous itemized deductions The deduction for unreimbursed employee expenses was among the qualified 2-percent miscellaneous itemized deductions...
If you have not already done so, now is the time to review your tax situation and make an estimated quarterly tax payment using Form 1040-ES. The fourth-quarter due date is now here. Normal due date: Tuesday, January 16, 2018 Remember you are required to withhold at...
There are a lot of positive things about getting married, but the IRS' marriage penalty isn't one of them. The marriage penalty occurs when you pay more tax as a married couple than you would as two single filers making the same amount of money. It...
If you rent rather than own a home, you could be missing out on tax benefits that favor home ownership. The current low interest rates make the cost of getting a mortgage relatively inexpensive, despite U.S. house prices at record highs. Whether you decide to wait...
