BHT&D Certified Public Accountants Blog

Virtual Currency and Crowdfunding: How Do They Affect Your Income Tax Filing?

Posted by Joe Turnes on Sat, Apr 02, 2022 @ 07:00 AM

The 2021 1040 tax return includes a question regarding virtual currency transactions during the calendar year. This question must be answered either yes or no. If the return is filed leaving the box blank, the return will be rejected and a new one must be filed.

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Tags: Individual Tax Return, Tax Planning, Small Business, Crowdfunding, VirtualCurrency

IRS Focuses On Internet Small Business And Side Hustle Income

Posted by BHT&D CPAs on Mon, Mar 14, 2022 @ 06:00 AM

In an effort to capture unreported income flowing through third-party settlement organizations (TPSOs) such as Amazon, PayPal/Venmo, card payment processors and other marketplaces, the IRS requires these organizations to report payments made to sellers through their platforms on Form 1099-K.

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Tags: Tax Planning, Small Business, Form 1099-K, Income Tax

Section 139 Qualified Disaster Relief Payments Excludable From Gross Income

Posted by Lori Shepard on Thu, Dec 03, 2020 @ 07:00 AM

Section 139 of the Internal Revenue Code excludes from a taxpayer’s gross income certain payment to individuals to reimburse or pay for expenses related to a “qualified disaster”.  Covid-19 is a federally declared disaster.

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Tags: Tax Planning, Small Business, Individual Tax, COVID-19, Work From Home

New IRS Form 941: Employment Tax Credits And Other Tax Relief

Posted by Karly Morris on Thu, Jul 02, 2020 @ 12:00 PM

On June 19th, 2020 the IRS published the final revised Form 941 that will be used for the remainder of 2020. The purpose of filing this quarterly form is to report to the IRS the wages subject to social security, Medicare and federal income tax withholding. This new revised form takes into account changes made by the Families First Act and the CARES Act that provided various types of payroll tax relief for employers.

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Tags: Small Business, Employment Tax, Family First Legislation, CARES ACT

CARES Act Employee Retention Credit: An Alternative For Employers To The Paycheck Protection Program

Posted by Karly Morris on Wed, Apr 22, 2020 @ 01:00 PM

The CARES ACT provides employers an alternative to the Paycheck Protection Program under the Employee Retention Credit. You can only take advantage of one or the other, but not both.  

The goal of the Employee Retention Credit is to encourage employers to keep employees on payroll by offering a credit up to $5,000 per employee.

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Tags: Small Business, CARES ACT, Employee Retention Credit, Taxes

2020 CARES Act Small Business And Self Employed Provisions

Posted by Chuk Gottschall on Mon, Apr 13, 2020 @ 12:00 PM

A summary of major provisions of the 2020 Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act affecting small businesses and self-employed taxpayers:

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Tags: Small Business, CARES ACT, Pay Check Protection, Self Employed

10 Vital Questions To Consider Before Starting A Business

Posted by Joe Turnes on Fri, Jun 28, 2019 @ 06:00 AM

Starting a small business can be one of the most exciting and rewarding events in someone’s life. But it can also be extremely stressful. If you’re thinking about becoming an entrepreneur, you might have more questions swirling around in your mind right now than you can count. Don’t despair. This is completely normal. After all, it shows you’re serious about your business venture and care enough to want to do things the right way. Before moving forward with a new business idea, ensuring you know the answers to the following vital questions is crucial. 

1. Does your startup idea meet a need? 
Before starting a small business, you need to know if your product or service will meet a need those in your target market have. It doesn’t matter how special your potential product or service offerings are to you. If you can’t convince others to care about them, your small business won’t be a success. 

2. Is your plan feasible?
Learning things on the fly isn’t smart in the business world. Rather than taking a blind leap of faith, determine if your plan is actually feasible before moving forward. For instance, will you be able to afford to put your plan into action? Will your loved ones commit to the ways this venture might affect them? Starting a small business isn’t for the faint of heart. Do you have the ambition and determination to see your vision through? 

3. How much financing do you need? 
Not adequately estimating financing needs is a common mistake of entrepreneurs. To avoid this pitfall, strive to perform an accurate cost analysis. Approximate both foreseen and unexpected expenses for the first year. Also, determine how long it will take you to become profitable. When creating a cost analysis, be realistic. Don’t count on things going perfectly. Despite your best efforts, they most certainly won’t. 

4. Where will your company be located? 
The type of small business you want to start will largely determine where it should be located. For example, you wouldn’t attempt to open a ski lodge in sunny, balmy Florida. Generally, you’ll want to find a location with lots of foot traffic. If you’re a new entrepreneur looking to break into an already crowded market, locating your business near your competitors might be a good idea. According to Biz Brain, you’ll already have a built-in market in the location. But if you’re competing in a saturated market with major brand-name competition, locating your business a short distance away from your competitors may be your best bet. 

5. Who will comprise your customer base? 
If you’re thinking about starting a small business, you likely already have a vague idea about who will comprise your customer base. However, delving into the profiles of potential clients of your company is a smart idea. During this research, you can study characteristics such as age, gender, buying triggers and general preferences. This should help you fine-tune your marketing efforts and target your products or services to the people who would most benefit from them. 

6. When can you expect to be profitable? 
The old adage is that you should expect to wait at least a year until your startup becomes profitable. But times are changing. Innovations in technology and communication mean entrepreneurs can start companies with little to no overhead nowadays. This rings especially true for service-oriented companies. Therefore, having an astute business plan is essential. A good business plan will help you predict when you may start turning a profit. 

7. What setbacks can you anticipate? 
The road to small business success can be a bumpy one, so anticipating setbacks is important. One of the most common ones is failing to meet revenue expectations. This can sometimes be blamed on overestimating the amount of business your company will generate in the early days of its existence. A second setback startups can face is losing vital employees. If you plan to start a sole proprietorship, this isn’t an issue. But if you’re launching a business venture with one or more partners, someone might decide to jump ship. To prevent your company from disintegrating into shambles, develop an exit plan that can be utilized if a partner wants to get out. 

8. Do you need solid advisors? 
Starting a small business can be overwhelming. This is especially the case if you try to do everything yourself. Surprisingly, the CountingWorks What Small Business Owners Value Most in 2019 survey reveals that 60% of small business owners handle their budgeting themselves. Unfortunately, the U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy’s 2018 Frequently Asked Questions says only about half of small businesses survive past five years. To boost your chances of long-term success, surround yourself with solid advisors. For instance, experienced financial advisors can help you with accurate budgeting. Legal advisors can assist you with contracts and permits. 

9. How will you lure the best talent to your company? 
Obviously, offering prospective employees a competitive salary can help you lure the best talent to your company. But when you’re just starting a business, this might not be an option. To compensate for this, providing employees with growth bonuses is a good alternative. Offering employees flexible scheduling options and wellness perks such as an onsite gym, a break room stocked with healthy snacks, and standing desks may also attract promising talent to your company. 

10. Should you start more than one company at once? 
Do you have multiple ideas for new small businesses? Perhaps you’re eager to get more than one startup running at the same time. While this might be tempting, starting out with one company is best. You can put all your energy into getting it profitable and stable. This will prevent you from spreading yourself and your resources too thin. You can always branch out later if your first business takes off. 

Starting a business can be quite an undertaking. Therefore, planning correctly and thoroughly is critical. Please feel free to contact one of our CPAs at (616) 642-9467 or request a complimentary accounting consultation.

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Tags: Small Business, Business Entity, Strategic Planning, Tax Liability

Rental Owners! Do You Know If You Qualify For The 20% Pass-Through Deduction?

Posted by Chuk Gottschall on Fri, Feb 22, 2019 @ 06:00 AM

Ever since tax reform was passed, over a year ago, taxpayers have been uncertain whether rental property will be classified as a trade or business for purposes of qualifying for the new IRC Sec 199A 20% pass-through deduction (commonly referred to as the 199A deduction).

Finally, on January 18, 2019, the IRS issued a notice which provided “safe harbor” conditions under which a rental real estate activity will be treated as a trade or business for purposes of the 199A deduction.

It’s important to note that this notice prescribes several conditions that must be met for a rental real estate enterprise (a tax term introduced by the IRS in this notice) to be deemed to be a trade or business and eligible for the section 199A 20% deduction. For purposes of this safe harbor, a rental real estate enterprise is defined as an interest in real property held for the production of rents and may consist of an interest in multiple properties.

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Tags: Tax Deductions, Small Business, Tax Reform, Rental Real Estate

New Tax Law Gives Pass-Through Businesses A Valuable Deduction

Posted by Joe Turnes on Fri, Aug 31, 2018 @ 07:00 AM

Although the drop of the corporate tax rate from a top rate of 35% to a flat rate of 21% may be one of the most talked about provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), C corporations aren’t the only type of entity significantly benefiting from the new law. Owners of non-corporate “pass-through” entities may see some major — albeit temporary — relief in the form of a new deduction for a portion of qualified business income (QBI).

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Tags: Small Business Accounting, Small Business, Individual Tax, TCJA

Find Time For Strategic Planning

Posted by Joe Turnes on Fri, Jul 06, 2018 @ 07:00 AM

As a business owner, you know that it’s easy to spend nearly every working hour on the multitude of day-to-day tasks and crises that never seem to end. It’s essential to your company’s survival, however, to find time for strategic planning.

Business owners put off strategic planning for many reasons. New initiatives, for example, usually don’t begin to show tangible results for some time, which can prove frustrating. But perhaps the most significant hurdle is the view that strategic planning is a time-sucking luxury that takes one’s focus off of the challenges directly in front of you.

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Tags: Small Business, Strategic Planning