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This section is a compilation of our client information brochures. These brochures cover frequently encountered tax and financial issues. There are many topics to choose from, and you will find valuable and useful information for under each one. Whether you're looking for tax planning tips, planning out your child's education, or in the process of selling your home, you can find all the answers here.

Keep Your Small Business AdvantageWhile your know-how is certain to make an important difference in your business' success, you're no doubt well aware that producing a winning combination for a smooth-running operation depends on many other factors as well. High on the list of considerations for your business should be creating the ability to meet criteria imposed by Uncle Sam and the Internal Revenue Service. To help you avoid headaches that can go with trying to meet tax law requirements, ...

When it comes to your taxes, good records are the best protection you can have if the government decides to audit your returns. But just as important as your effective recordkeeping are the measures you take to make certain that your records are kept safe. While it may cause a chuckle to picture a mythical taxpayer confessing to an IRS auditor that tax records were destroyed by the family pet, it probably wouldn’t be nearly as funny to give a similar response in a real audit of your own.The A...

Homeowners Receive Big Tax BreaksHome ownership can provide you with several important tax benefits… Deductions for real estate taxes and home mortgage interest, and Gain exclusion if you meet certain occupancy and holding period requirements. In fact, tax breaks are probably one of the biggest reasons you decided to buy your home in the first place. Unfortunately, some homeowners lose getting the most from their home’s tax advantages because they aren’t aware that certain limits appl...

Employment Tax Responsibilities for Employers of Household Workers Household employees are workers you hire for “ domestic services,” i.e., those services performed in and about your home. Duties of cooks, butlers, housekeepers, governesses, maids, valets, babysitters, caretakers, gardeners, janitors, or personal chauffeurs all can qualify as “domestic services.” Not everyone you hire for work at your home is considered a household employee, though. For example, a self-employed gardener may ...

Your Charitable Gifts Make a Difference for Others and for Your TaxesWhen you give away cash or goods to qualified nonprofit organizations, you will probably be able to take a tax deduction as partial reward for your generosity. However, the IRS rules for deducting charitable contributions aren’t as simple as many people might think. For example, deduction limits can apply, and certain gifts require timely written acknowledgment from the recipient organizations. Qualified Charitable Org...

Saving Money to Ensure Your FutureThe Smiths are college graduates with two healthy children, good jobs, a home worth about $160,000 and two relatively new cars. To the casual observer, they’re doing well. Yet anyone taking a close-up view would find a few flaws in their situation, especially when it comes to their finances . . . You see, the Smiths have: Virtually no savings; Retirement plans available through employers but with contributions at a bare minimum; A portfolio of sev...

Planning Ahead for Your FinancesWith the number of savings strategies being publicized these days, you’d think that planning ahead for retirement would be a fairly simple job. To the contrary; many investors are finding themselves uncertain that they will be able to find a strategy that will allow them to build a retirement nest egg adequately to meet long-term financial goals.In the “good old days” the picture seemed simpler - people ended their 30-year career with assuranc...

Your IRA Contribution OptionsFor over 35 years, individuals have been able to set up personal retirement plans called individual retirement accounts (IRAs). Nearly everyone who receives “compensation,” either as an employee or as a self-employed individual, can contribute to an IRA. You can choose from a variety of different types; some give you a tax deduction,while others don’t. This brochure highlights in general terms the IRA options available under current law and point...

Over the years, Congress has continued to enhance tax breaks for students and their parents.  These tax benefits provide taxpayers with a large number of options for tax-favored financing of their education and the education of their family members.  This brochure highlights the various education benefits included within the U.S. income tax system. Coverdell Education Savings Account Qualified State Tuition Program American Opportunity Credit Lifetime Learning Credit Penalty-Free IRA W...

Overview Section 529 Plans (named after the section of the IRS Code that created them) are plans established to help families save and pay for college in a tax-advantaged way and are available to everyone, regardless of income. These state-sponsored plans allow you to gift large sums of money for a family member ’s college education, while you maintain control of the funds. The earnings from these accounts grow tax-deferred and are tax-free if used to pay for qualified higher education expens...

Federal tax laws allow each individual taxpayer to exclude up to $250,000 of gain from the sale of his/her main home, if he/she meets certain ownership and occupancy requirements. (A married couple that meets the qualifications can exclude up to $500,000.) If an individual/ couple is unable to exclude all or part of the gain, then the gain is taxable as a capital gain in the year of sale.Exclusion QualificationsUnless they meet the reduced exclusion qualifications,taxpayers must meet the owne...

An individual’s home is one of his/her most valuable assets, if not the most valuable. Over time, the home’s mortgage will be paid down and the home will increase in value, providing a substantial amount of equity.Homeowners frequently look to the equity in their home as a source of ready cash to use for other purposes, such as purchasing vehicles, funding college educations, paying off credit card debts, etc. This may provide a tax benefit, because unlike a car loan, credit card ...

Overview The most recent IRS regulations substantially simplify rules for required minimum distributions (RMD) from IRAs. There are life expectancy tables that allow smaller distributions to be taken over a longer period. The calculation of the RMD has been simplified by eliminating certain variables. Rules regarding separate accounts with different beneficiaries have been clarified. Some flexibility is now available to change beneficiaries and split accounts, allowing the heirs to reta...

Why Pay Estimates? The tax system is intended to be a “pay-as-you-go” system, and the only way to prepay taxes is through withholding and estimated taxes. Generally, payroll comes to mind when we think about withholding, but withholding is also available through a variety of other means, including pension income and Social Security payments. However, there are a multitude of income sources that generally do not have withholding, such as self-employment income, interest, dividends,...

Deadline for Filing Your ReturnGenerally, individual tax returns are due on the 15th day of the fourth month after the close of your tax year. Since virtually all individual taxpayers file on a calendar year, the due date for most individual taxpayers is April 15. That is the due date for both filing your return and paying any balance-due taxes. If the April 15 due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, the due date is delayed until the next business day. Most states have the same...

Basics of E-filingWhen e-filing (electronic filing) was first introduced, only the less complicated tax returns qualified. This led to the general public’s perception that e-filing was for short forms with refunds. Since then, e-filing has matured to the point that even the most complicated returns can be electronically filed. It also offers the following advantages to taxpayers: A refund can be received much faster. The risk of a check being lost or stolen is minimized. The IRS (...

A disaster loss is actually a casualty loss that occurs in a geographic area that the President of the United States declares eligible for Federal disaster assistance. Disaster losses are also eligible for special tax benefits, which are discussed in this brochure. What is a Casualty Loss?A casualty loss occurs when there is property damage from a sudden, unanticipated event. Some examples of qualifying events are: hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, floods, storms, fire and volcanic eruption...

A popular form of long-term investment is real estate rentals. Rentals can fall into several varieties, of which real estate rentals is the most common. This material will explain some of the tax ramifications of renting real estate, both residential and commercial.One of the biggest benefits of owning rental property is that the tenants, over time, buy the property for you. In addition, if structured properly, the allowable depreciation deduction will shelter the rental income. Another histo...

The Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) is a tax that was originally intended to ensure that wealthier taxpayers with large write-offs and tax-sheltered investments pay at least a minimum tax. To accomplish this, Congress created a second (alternative) tax computation that adds back to income certain tax preferences and eliminates some deductions. Taxpayers then compute their tax both ways and pay the higher of the two taxes. When it originated back in the '70s, the AMT impacted just a few, very we...

If you’re like most taxpayers, you find yourself with an ominous stack of “homework” around TAX TIME! Unfortunately, the job of pulling together the records for your tax appointment is never easy, but the effort usually pays off when it comes to the extra tax you save! When you arrive at your appointment and are fully prepared, you’ll have more time to: Consider every possible legal deduction; Better evaluate your options for reporting income and deductions to cho...

Overview of Coverdell Education Savings AccountsThese accounts, originally referred to as Education IRAs, became available in 1998 and subsequent years. These accounts are nondeductible education savings accounts. The investment earnings from a Coverdell account accrue and are withdrawn tax-free, provided the proceeds are used to pay qualified education expenses of the account beneficiary.Annual ContributionsWhen these accounts first became available, the nondeductible contributions were limi...

Traditional IRAs are familiar to most taxpayers, providing a relatively simple method of saving for retirement AND deferring taxes in the process. But one drawback of the Traditional IRA is that once withdrawals from them begin, distributed earnings and contributions that were tax-deductible get taxed. In contrast, a Roth IRA allows no tax deduction of contributions. However, it does allow tax-free accumulation on the account so that at retirement ALL distributions from a Roth IRA are tax-fre...

If you’re retired or near retirement, you’ve probably already done the homework to ensure you’re ready financially. But hopefully your research has not left out the tax ramifications that the transition to retirement usually brings. Every retiree needs an awareness of the possible tax traps they may encounter as their income shifts from reliance on wages or self-employment income to retirement-based pensions, investment income, etc. Lifestyle changes can also pose tax questi...