Marietta Financial Services | CPA Indianapolis

Hire a worker who has been unemployed for at least 60 days before year end if you are thinking of adding to payroll soon. Your business will be exempt from paying the employer’s 6.2% share of the Social Security payroll tax on the formerly unemployed new-hire for the remainder of 2010. Plus, if you keep that formerly unemployed new-hire on the payroll for a continuous 52 weeks, your business will be eligible for a nonrefundable tax credit of up-to-$1,000 after the 52-week threshold is reached. This credit will be taken on the business’s 2011 tax return. In order to be eligible, the formerly unemployed new-hire’s pay in the second 26-week period must be at least 80% of the pay in the first 26-week period.  Contact our office for more information on how this tax savings could benefit your company.

Tags: Business Hiring, indianapolis tax planning, Tax Consultants Indianapolis

Thinking of buying new office equipment? Put new business equipment and machinery in service before year-end to qualify for 50% bonus first-year depreciation allowance. Unless Congress acts, this bonus depreciation allowance won’t be available for property placed in service after 2010.  Contact your CPA for more information.

© 2010 Thomson Reuters/RIA. All rights reserved

Tags: business equipment depreciation, indianapolis tax planning, tax planning

To help reduce your tax liability, you can make expenses qualifying for the $500,000 business property expensing option. The maximum amount you can expense for a tax year beginning in 2010 is $500,000 of the cost of qualifying property placed in service for that tax year. The $500,000 amount is reduced by the amount by which the cost of qualifying property placed in service during 2010 exceeds $2 million. Also, within the overall $500,000 expensing limit, you can expense up to $250,000 of qualified real property (certain qualifying leasehold improvements, restaurant property, and retail improvements). Note that at tax return time, you can choose not to use expensing (or bonus depreciation) for 2010 assets. This is something to consider if tax rates go up for 2011 and future years, and you’d rather have more deductions after 2010 than for 2010.  Our office can help you work through this decision-making process.

© 2010 Thomson Reuters/RIA. All rights reserved

New classifications for business property and limitations of reporting penalties can simplify and encourage record keeping.

Cell phones no longer listed property. This means that cell phones can be deducted or depreciated like other business property, without onerous record keeping requirements. ( This information provided by: © 2010 Thomson Reuters/RIA. All rights reserved.)

Limitation on penalty for failure to disclose certain reportable transactions. The Small Business Jobs Act generally limits the penalty to 75% of the decrease in tax resulting from the transaction, retroactively to penalties assessed after Dec. 31, 2006. Minimum and maximum penalties apply. ( This information provided by: © 2010 Thomson Reuters/RIA. All rights reserved.)

If you have any questions on what you can disclose as reportable transactions or how to depreciate business property, contact your CPA.

© 2010 Thomson Reuters/RIA. All rights reserved

Tags: business property, cell phone, Reportable Transactions, tax penalty, tax planning, Tax Preparation

A great way to help ease your tax burden is to set up a self-employed retirement plan if you are self-employed and haven’t done so yet.  Our CPAs would be happy to assist you.

As the year is winding down, it is time to start doing a bit of tax planning .  Small business owners who spend a little time on tax planning now, may see significant savings when tax preparation time rolls around in January.

In this podcast interview with Roundpeg owner, Lorraine Ball,  I share a few of these simple tax tips.

Tags: small business, tax planning, tax planning tips, Tax Preparation

When starting a business or changing your business structure, a key aspect to consider is the Small Business Job Act and how it shortens the holding period of assets.

S corporation holding period for appreciated assets shortened to five years. Generally, a C corporation converting to an S corporation must hold onto any appreciated assets for 10 years or face a built-in gain tax at the highest corporate rate of 35%. The 2010 Small Business Jobs Act temporarily shortens the holding period of assets subject to the built-in gains tax to 5 years if the 5th tax year in the holding period precedes the tax year beginning in 2011. ( This information provided by: © 2010 Thomson Reuters/RIA. All rights reserved.)

If you are starting a corporation or changing your business structure the similarities and differences are changing and you should consult your CPA on such a decision.

Tags: appreciated assets, C Corporation, S corporation, Small Business Jobs Act, tax planning, Tax Preparation

The Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 has created new tax breaks, but at a cost.

New tax break for long-term contract accounting. The Small Business Jobs Act provides that in determining the percentage of completion under the percentage of completion method of accounting, bonus depreciation in 2010 is not taken into account as a cost. This prevents the bonus depreciation from having the effect of accelerating income. ( This information provided by: © 2010 Thomson Reuters/RIA. All rights reserved.)

Revenue raisers. These tax breaks come at a cost. To mention a few of these unfavorable provisions, information reporting will generally be required for rental property expense payments made after Dec. 31, 2010, and increased information return penalties will be imposed. ( This information provided by: © 2010 Thomson Reuters/RIA. All rights reserved.)

Contact your CPA if you have questions about these new accounting practices.

Tags: Indianapolis, Small business accounting, Small Business Jobs Act, Tax break, tax planning, Tax Preparation

Business owners can now deduct the cost of health insurance for yourself and your family.

Deductibility of health insurance for the purpose of calculating self-employment tax. The Small Business Jobs Act allows business owners to deduct the cost of health insurance incurred in 2010 for themselves and their family members in calculating their 2010 self-employment tax. ( This information provided by: © 2010 Thomson Reuters/RIA. All rights reserved.)

Have you ever looked at the deductions when calculating self-employment taxes? With new legislation, there are cost savings deductions in health insurance that can save you money. Speak to your CPA about how to maximize your deductions.

Tags: Health Insurance, Indianapolis, Marietta, self-employment tax, Small business accounting, tax planning, Tax Preparation

The Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 made beneficial changes to the application of general business credits toward tax and AMT liability offsets. (P.L. 111-240)

General business credits of eligible small businesses not subject to AMT for 2010. Under the AMT, taxpayers can generally only claim allowable general business credits against their regular tax liability, and only to the extent that their regular tax liability exceeds their AMT liability. A few credits, such as the credit for small business employee health insurance expenses, can be used to offset AMT liability. The Small Business Jobs Act allows eligible small businesses to use all types of general business credits to offset their AMT in tax years beginning in 2010. (Source for this information: © 2010 Thomson Reuters/RIA. All rights reserved.)

If you are unsure of how your general business credits can be used to offset your tax or AMT liability, contact your CPA.

Tags: AMT, Indianapolis, small business, Small Business Jobs Act, tax planning, Tax Preparation, tax provisions