Limited liability companies (LLCs) are a popular choice of entity for small businesses and investment activities.  LLC owners are called members. Single-member LLCs have one owner, although spouses who jointly own an LLC in a community property state can elect treatment as a single member LLC for federal income tax purposes. We will call LLCs with two or more members multimember LLCs. Key point: LLCs are not corporations. But LLCs can offer similar legal protection to their...

Now that most everyone has filed their tax returns, one of the biggest questions we get in the office is “How long do I need to keep these?” The reality is that since more and more records are stored “in the cloud” our reliance on paper is not as extreme as it once was.  The IRS, though, changes slowly, and so does our banking system, so while you might be able to have virtual copies of all your data, having paper copies for a certain length of time is still a great rule to follow.   I’ve...

One thing is for sure about 2020 – it’s going to change a lot of things permanently.  For many years, society has set strange precedents based on inclusion and exception, and now, those chickens are coming home to roost.  You’ve seen these sort of posts on Social Media, perhaps even commented on them before… The Colorado bakery owners who refused to bake a wedding cake based on religious beliefs (which later went to the Supreme Court) versus “today’s” world, where owners are either...

Tax law definitions do not apply to much of the Payroll Protection Program (PPP), making it new ground for owners of S corporations. Here are answers to four questions of concern to many S corporation owners. 1. Spouse Owns S Corporation Question. My wife owns 100 percent of the S corporation. She has a full-time job and does no work for the S corporation. I am the sole worker in the S corporation. Am I treated as  a “non-owner employee” of the S corporation or an “owner-employee”...

With the COVID-19 experience, you and your partners may be doing a lot of work from home or even working from home primarily. Is the home-office deduction in the mix? If you operate your business as a partnership, you have two ways to correctly deduct your home-office expenses. If you have a tax-deductible home office and operate as a partner in a partnership, you have two ways to get a tax benefit from the home office: Deduct the cost as an unreimbursed partner expense (UPE), orGet...

I’ll admit, this one caught me off-guard the first time I heard it – and the second, third, and fourth!  This seems strange, but, admittedly, there has been so much poor or questionable information shared by respectable sources, some employers might not require masks.  It’s unlikely, given the environment today, any employer would require an employee to NOT wear a mask, but if so, the first place to start is in a private conversation with your boss to discuss your point of view.  In all likelihood,...

It’s been a very interesting year for so many reasons besides the pandemic and the ensuing civil unrest.  From the point of view of a business owner, though, this might be some of the best times we’ll ever see. Why would I say that?  Simple:  Old systems aren’t working, and even those of us who are set in our ways (And almost EVERY CPA I know is like that) are being forced to rethink strategies.  Some of those strategies might have been in place a little too long, too.   Now,...

As you read this, it’s likely that your lawmakers are working on the next Payroll Protection Program (PPP) package.  And hopefully, in this next package, they will include a provision that allows you to deduct business expenses that you pay with your PPP money. Let’s explain. In the CARES Act, Congress said: For purposes of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, any amount which (but for this subsection) would be includible in gross income of the eligible recipient by reason of forgiveness...

As we write this, current law says the Payroll Protection Program (PPP) cash infusion is going to expire on August 8, 2020. If you have not yet applied for your PPP cash infusion, you likely need to get your completed application to an approved SBA lender on or before August 6, 2020. Why? Because the SBA needs to approve your loan on or before August 8, 2020. Approval takes time. For example, when June 30, 2020, was the deadline, lenders stopped taking applications on or before June 28...

No matter how you’re weathering the pandemic, the truth is, most of us are still looking to keep our cash reserves as high as possible.  Whether it’s a rainy day fund we’ve let get low or we’re just needing to pay off some debt that has crept up, the team and I have some ideas to generate a little “extra” for you… Sell some old electronics.  Old phones, old gaming consoles, even “vintage” electronics from your parent’s time all seem to be in demand on many online auction sites like...