Tips to Help Small Business Stay on Top of their Finances

Tips to Help Small Business Stay on Top of their Finances

A recent survey by Intuit revealed that 65% of Americans have no idea how much they spend. If you’re not watching your finances with an eagle’s eye, your business is going to suffer — which makes it even harder to safeguard your business’s financial future. Finance tracking is essential to growing your business because it allows you to keep tabs on finances and build your business around your spending power.

Here are some helpful strategies that will help you stay on top of your financial goals. 

Pay Yourself First

Most business owners are so caught up in the daily grind that they fail to look ahead. While it can be tempting to put all your funding towards day-to-day operations, remember that you need to compensate yourself too. You’re likely putting in long hours and toiling away for that perfect product and marketing strategy — and you need to be compensated accordingly. Set yourself a monthly salary or revenue share, and pay yourself just like any other employee.

To successfully manage accounting and payroll, invest in integrated bookkeeping software that will provide you with a strong business foundation. Look for features such as invoice generation, timesheet management, automatic payroll scheduling, accurate calculations, tax filing, and benefits management. 

There are additional ways to increase your take home income to safeguard against lower producing months. Automating some of these rolls, like payroll scheduling, can reduce your need for additional employees, which can lower financial strain during lean months. You can also look into refinancing your home which may allow you to lower your monthly mortgage payment significantly, and provide you with a little extra cash each month. There is also the option to pull out some money from your equity if there is a specific project you need funded. It’s important to look at all of your options before you make a decision, so you know it is the best choice for you at that moment.

Make Spreadsheets (Lots of Them)

Spreadsheets are your new best friend. Keep track of orders by entering in the date, category, vendor, cost, and other expenses, so you’re aware of money going out. Categorize your expenses by sections such as marketing, mortgage, travel expenses, and more so you know which sector of business is sucking up the most money. Full transparency over the kinds of costs you have will allow for minor tweaks and changes that can go a long way in saving you billable expenses.

Set up a Billing System

Just as you track money going out, you need to be on top of money coming in. Many clients will look for any excuse possible to make late payments or renege on bills altogether. This can seriously impact your cash flow and daily operations. To avoid this, ensure you have a standard billing plan that’s preferably automated. For example, invoices go out every month with scheduled follow-up emails and calls depending on days past the due date. You can also set up late payment fees to incentivize clients or early payment discounts to keep them loyal and engaged.

Rethink Your Business Structure

Whether you own a small startup or an established corporation, there are different options for minimizing your tax liability. One such option is choosing between S corp vs C corp. An S corp can be advantageous in certain situations, as it allows owners to pay themselves while still taking advantage of certain tax breaks. On the other hand, a C corp offers more flexibility in terms of attracting investors and raising capital, making it preferable in certain circumstances. Ultimately, the right option for your business will depend on many factors, including the scale and structure of your operations, as well as your overall tax goals.

Invest, Invest, Invest

Small business owners make the biggest mistake when they fail to invest (both in assets and themselves). Investing in growth is your key — do this through educational seminars or formal business degree programs to learn more, technology that will automate your processes for efficiency, and employees who will make your job easier.

In addition, investing in assets like stocks, bonds, and mutual funds is an absolute must, especially if you’re planning long-term slow growth. By setting yourself up with future capital, you’re believing in your business potential and playing it forward. Be sure to keep up to date with the stock market and finance news so that you’re making prudent decisions about your investments. We suggest a low-risk, buy and hold strategy for companies who plan to be around for the long haul.

Education and organization are the two most essential skills in ensuring your business is financially healthy. Monitoring and keeping track of expenses, overheads, and wages can help define successful business strategies. You’ll be aware of the money coming in and going out, and therefore identify the best path to entrepreneurial success. It’s also crucial to reconsider your business structure to determine whether tax savings are available. 

Hoffman & Associates Tax Preparation can maximize your business’s deductions while ensuring you stay compliant. Call us today at (858) 576-1122!

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2021 Tax Preparation Guide For The Self

Working as a freelancer can be a dream for those who don’t like to punch a time clock. There’s no one to answer to and it’s a schedule where a person can set their own hours. Truly, being a freelancer has a lot of benefits, but it also entails a few responsibilities that you won’t be doing when you are a traditional employee.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) considers self-employment as:

  • Business owners (sole proprietors)
  • Independent contractors that work directly with a client

As a freelancer, you are your own boss, thus you are a business owner. If you think you will be exempted from the many deductions a plain employee is charged thus receiving a meager “net” pay, filing your tax as a freelancer is a little bit complicated.  On the lighter side, you can add deductions based on your report to the IRS.

The glitz and glamor of being a business owner goes away when it comes to the yearly tax report. Regardless of whether the taxes are self-prepared or done by an accountant, it is still important to know the deductions a business qualifies for so that proper measures can be taken throughout the year.

Though your main goal of filing your taxes as a freelancer is to reduce your taxable income, and that you have more business expenses to count for compared to a regular employee, you are only allowed by the IRS to report deductions as necessary for your business operations. Anything lavish is a red flag.

Schedule C

To avoid paying a ton to Uncle Sam, most people use a Form 1040 and use a Schedule C. One of the biggest goals of the self-employed is to write off as much as possible. The form starts allowing deductions on Line 8. Here, a write off for advertising is allocated. This will include anything that is done to promote the business. It can be business cards, printed brochures, and even a sponsorship to local community events. Anything used to promote the business should be listed here.

Car Expenses

Car and truck expenses are often a big write-off, and the filer has two basic options. On line 9 of the schedule C, the number of miles driven for business can be entered. The IRS will times those miles by 57.5 cents and in 2021 it’s .54 cents In addition, any money paid for parking fees and other toll fees can be added too. This amount goes on line 9. In section B of form 4562, the other option is to itemize expenses versus mileage. This would be the costs of gas, insurance, repairs, and other car-related costs. It is usually much more advantageous to the bottom line to claim the mileage over actual expenses.

Employees/Contract Labor

As a self-employed business professional, it is often necessary to hire other freelancers to help out. It could be a college student who is helping to do some filing or computer work. Hiring contractors goes line 11 or employees line 26 of the Schedule C and is known as Contract Labor. Any labor that the freelancer paid for but didn’t treat as a regular employee would go on this line. Don’t include fees for accountants and lawyers on this line, those must go on Line 17. Repairs for business equipment would go on Line 21, so it too doesn’t go in this lot. It is reserved for just the people paid to do a job for the business. See the IRS guidelines for more information in Independent Contractors.

Depreciation

If a business has any sort of equipment, then depreciation is going to play a big role in reducing the amount owed. This could be computers, cameras, machinery, and anything else that the company bought to utilize. The IRS allows you to claim the item’s depreciation over five years. There is an exception that will allow a business to write off the total amount up front, or they can split it up over the next five years. Line 13 is pretty self-explanatory.

Insurance

As a freelance business, it is important to have insurance. All sorts of insurance premiums from auto to malpractice can be written off on Line 15. If the company pays for workers’ compensation, storm, accident, and even office insurance, write it off here.

Interest Expense

Any loans that were taken out for the business can be reported on Line 16. If there was any interest paid in the loans, it’s also recorded here. This can be for credit card debt or mortgage interest used if taking the home office deduction. Only a small percentage of mortgage interest will apply to this deduction for home offices.

Professional Services

On Line 17, any legal or professional services can be written off. If there was a lawyer that did some work for the company or an accountant; their fees would be included here. It can be hard sometimes to determine between contract labor and professional services. Typically, anything other than legal or accounting goes under contract labor.

Office Expenses

One of the ways to get some money back is office supplies. Every pen, paper-clip, stamp, and other professional tools can be written off on Line 18. Keep all those recipes from the year, as it can really add up to a great deal. Ink for the printer and printer paper are big expenses. Be sure to tally all that up and include it here.

Professional Equipment/Business Property

If the company leases any gear, like cars or professional equipment, then they can write it off on Line 20a. If a property is being rented for the business, then it can go under 20b, which is for other business property.

Repairs/Maintenance

This is not typically a huge category for the freelancer. Line 21 is for those who pay for equipment to be repaired, or something of that nature. If the computer broke down and an IT professional had to come and fix it, then it would be categorized here. If something needs to be repaired in the home office, it should also go here. This category is not a big deduction area for the self-employed of a small home-based business.

Supplies for Physical Products

If a freelance business produces things to sell, then they can write off the supplies on Line 22. This can be copy paper, leather, or whatever else is needed to make the goods sold. The cost of the inventory shouldn’t go here. Just what had to be purchased within the last calendar year should be included.

Real Estate Taxes/Licenses

Any real estate taxes or federal unemployment taxes can be reported on Line 23. A home office allows a person to put a percentage of the real estate taxes on here too, but a calculation has to be done from Line 30 to see how much to claim.

Travel

Those who travel for the business purposes can enter the costs on Line 24a. Remember to only include meals, gas, mileage, and other expenses that were for actual business and not pleasure parts of the trip. Only reasonable meals count. Anything extravagant will be frowned on from the IRS.

Utilities

If the office is not in the home, then a person can deduct 100 percent of the utilities. A home office goes according to a calculation from Line 30. Phone, gas, Internet service, and electric bills are categorized as utilities. This goes on line 28.

Home Office

The biggest and most complex deduction is often the home office. For this to count on the freelancer taxes, it must be the location where most of the business work is done. The space must be only for business and nothing else. The freelancer must meet clients there regularly, do work there, or use it as a place to store or showcase inventory. The home and office must be measured and the calculations entered online. It is important that you have pictures of the office space and a copy of receipts associated with any claim to ensure that you won’t be triggering red flags to the IRS with your outlandish claims.

The Essence of Professional Help

Assuming the preparation and filing of tax as a freelancer can be quite tedious. It is better to have an accountant look over things so that there is some level of protection in the event of an audit. Especially that the recent COVID-19 pandemic had been an unimaginable adversary.

Understandably, preparing your tax and filing them is one of the constant hurdles in life that seems not to go down in terms of how much you will be taxed. The calculation is only an icing on the cake, but dealing with the ever-changing tax rate yearly is the main challenge.

Obviously all you ever wanted is to lower your self-employment tax. One thing to do is meet all the explanation of your expenses above. Any business-related expenses can reduce your tax but will also reduce your net income. Sounds fair and easy. Yet, if you look at it closely, you need someone more knowledgeable to handle your tax preparation. There are professionals who specialize in 1099 contractors. Through their help, you can lower your tax bill.

Let’s say that your income status doesn’t change drastically every year, but surprises are always there. Like the recent pandemic, not only regular employees lost their jobs, businesses too, and freelancers are no exemptions. Some of them, even working remotely or in the comfort of their home office, lose clients who also shut down their businesses. And if you are one of them, this will have a negative impact on your finances.

For this year, if your net worth amounts to $142,800, it will slash off a 15.3% self-employment tax rate, a little higher than $137,700 in 2020. This rate sums up Social Security and Medicare with 12.4% and 2.9%, respectively. You have to shoulder all of it because you are both responsible for the employer and employee’s portions.

When your financial situation becomes a mess, then it is better to have someone handle your problem. And also being aware that tax laws are constantly changing, that someone, a professional or an accountant, will guide you through.

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Find Us on Facebook!

San Diego’s trusted source for tax preparation, bookkeeping and payroll is on Facebook too!  Hoffman & Associates will be posting helpful tips and tricks to help individuals and business with their financial planning.  Like us on Facebook to stay connect and also keep up to date on changes the tax code that are important to your bottom line!

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4 Critical Bookkeeping Tips

There are many reasons to keep watch on your books. Knowing your income, your outgoings, and having control over your finances helps your business and personal life. When you have a complete handle on all of your finances you will actually feel safer and more comfortable with your life. If you are not a numbers person or the idea of keeping track of your finances terrifies you, then you need to hire a bookkeeper to manage it for you.

Actually Do It The first and most important bookkeeping tip is to actually do it. If you can’t or won’t do it, then you will need to hire someone. Keeping your books is a legal requirement. If you have them you will be spared fines.

You will have more control of your business when you know your finances are well accounted for through bookkeeping. Without a system in place, such as bookkeeping, it is near to impossible whether you are earning or losing, what bills need to be settled, to whom you are indebted or who owes you back. Keeping your own books will lower the fees your accountant charges you to manage your accounts. And if you ever want to sell your business or get financing, you will need to present your books.

Track it All Start by tracking all of your expenses. Doing this may end you up paying for things that you don’t know about or building up fees that you are blissfully unaware of. Tracking your expenses is the first and most important way to keep track of your finances. Start by noting down everything you buy, ever! If you purchase a coffee, keep the receipt and track it. You need to know how much you pay for coffee every week, month, and year. The coffee is just one example; you must track all of your expenses from petrol money to house bills.

Set Aside Money For Taxes Every time you get paid you should put aside the right amount for taxes. You don’t want tax time to come around just to find out you have spent the money. The IRS can incur penalties for you not filing out your tax returns on time, and you could find the situation getting worse. Take note of the tax deadlines on your calendar to keep you updated on your tax dues. It is smarter if you set aside money throughout the year so you are always prepared.

Use A System to track it A system can be as simple as a diary or file that contains all your incomings, outgoings, taxes, and all other finances. You can also get a system like Simplex to help track your books and accounts in a simple fashion. There are other systems like Everite and Collins that you can use or outsource to manage your accounts and keep your books. There is a wide variety of computerized systems, and if you are running a small to large business you will want to consider using one of these systems. You can use Sage, MYOB, or search in Google for bookkeeping systems. There are many bookkeeping apps to choose from. The bottom line is that you must use a system. You can use a notebook or filing system to keep track of everything, and organize it so that you can see incomings and outgoings.

Simple Rules For Keeping Books When you are writing in your files, make sure to use a pen instead of a pencil. If the IRS or the tax office should inspect you, they like to see that you are using a pen. Figures written with a pencil may appear suspicious because these can easily be erased. Never use correction fluid as the checker of your book may think that the data are doubtful.

Keep your books updated. If you wait around for months before organizing and managing your books then it will get too overwhelming, and you will end up messing up or leaving it too long. Make the updates daily or at the very least, weekly. This will save you from piled up work and help you to have these books manageable at all times. When you are paid, or you spend or any financial transaction takes place, it should be recorded in your books. If money is going in or out of your pocket then it needs to be in the book. If you use online banking then print out your bank statements whenever you get them. If you get bank statements in the post then keep them all filed so you have all the information needed whenever you are organizing or sorting out your books.  

More About Your Bank Statements Every month you should go through all your bank statements and confirm that they fit with the details in your books. Anything that you have missed or that isn’t covered you need to track it properly in your books. Go through each entry, and as you match the entries from your books and your statements you should tick them off. This is an easy way to make sure everything is kept up to date. When you go through the statements make sure you notice any standing orders, interests or charges, and confirm that they are all in your books properly documented. When you have gone through everything, calculate the final balance and write it down so you have it recorded for that month. Compile all your total sales figures and expenses for every month, and when you have all the data you will be able to properly calculate your profit and loss. You should record all of this in a spreadsheet or notebook at the very least. There are many softwares and services that you can use to make this much easier.

A Friendly Reminder If this sounds a little overwhelming, you know exactly why there are bookkeepers. Hiring a professional, someone who knows how to do bookkeeping and master it especially when dealing with numbers and figures, will give you an ample peace of mind. Bookkeepers can manage several accounts so you won’t need someone full time, and you can usually get the service of someone for a fairly low fee to manage everything for you. Regardless of whether you hire a bookkeeper, you will still need to track your income and expenses by saving receipts, invoices, bank statements, and any other financial transactions.

Claim Business Expenses This is extremely important if you are not doing it already. You can claim for any cost that is made exclusively for the business. You should save all of your receipts, especially those for the business because when you add up those costs you can claim for these. If you have stationary that you use in the office you can claim for that. If you take a trip to the bank in order to have a business meeting then you can claim for the cost of petrol.  If you have an office at home you can claim a portion back from your electricity and maintenance bills including telephone and Internet. If you are having trouble deciding whether something is exclusively being used for the business then you can talk to an accountant.

Get some further training The HMRC gives away some free training including some workshops, which you can go on to learn more about this. You can go to a free workshop to learn about setting up a company, managing your VAT, running a payroll, and many other financial lessons. It’s important to take an interest in learning how to manage your finances because if you can get on top of it your business will grow and your finances will improve. You will also gain incredible peace of mind knowing that you are on top of everything yourself and you don’t need to hire someone, although you still can if you want.

Conclusion There is a lot to think about when dealing with your taxes, books, and finances. This is why you may want to consider hiring an accountant or bookkeeper to start the process of managing your books and keep your finances in check. It’s a legal requirement, and it gives you an opportunity to have complete control over your financial life. You can start anytime you want but the best time is now.

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S-Corporation Reasonable Compensation

You talked to your accountant or attorney about changing from a sole proprietor ( Sch-C ) or a Partnership to a S-corporation because you heard you could save on Fica and Medicare Tax. Hopefully the professionals you talked to told you taking a Salary from the Scorporation is necessary so IRS won’t be knocking

You talked to your accountant or attorney about changing from a sole proprietor ( Sch-C ) or a Partnership to a S-corporation because you heard you could save on Fica and Medicare Tax. Hopefully the professionals you talked to told you taking a Salary from the Scorporation is necessary so IRS won’t be knocking on your door. IRS is currently very active in small business examinations on this issue. When IRS comes asking for payroll for your S-Corp and you have not put yourself on payroll there can be penalties for not filing and failure to deposit plus interest on the amount that my be do on the payroll taxes.

You need to address the services you are performing for your company and make sure your compensation is reasonable. Also have you adequately documented loans so that IRS would not recharacterize the loans as capitol contributions and determine the repayments to be wages?
With IRS focusing more it resources in the next 3 years on examinations of S corporations, take a look at your company and see if you are paying yourself a reasonable compensation.

IRS is currently very active in small business examinations on this issue. When IRS comes asking for payroll for your S-Corp and you have not put yourself on payroll there can be penalties for not filing and failure to deposit plus interest on the amount that my be do on the payroll taxes. You need to address the services you are performing for your company and make sure your compensation is reasonable. Also have you adequately documented loans so that IRS would not recharacterize the loans as capitol contributions and determine the repayments to be wages?

With IRS focusing more it resources in the next 3 years on examinations of S corporations, take a look at your company and see if you are paying yourself a reasonable compensation.

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Got it All? The Tax Preparation List of frequently missed items

Got it All? Tax Preparations

Here’s a list of items frequently missed. Check it against your list to make sure your ready for tax preparation.

  • Refinances. I need to see the settlement statement. Maybe it’s best to bring in all the paperwork.
  • Child Care Expenses. Have the full name, address, telephone and I.D. number of care providers
  • Estimated Tax Payments. Find date and amount for payments. Look near April 15th.

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Combine my business and personal trips?

A great question that I get from my bookkeeping and payroll savvy clients in San Diego is how to combine business and personal vacations you always wanted to take.  It has big tax implications and is important to have a financial guide like Hoffman and Associates walk you through the process. While it’s possible to pull this off there are some very important factors to consider.  Careful planning and preparation can help you save on your trip by allowing you to write off a significant portion of the cost of the overall vacation.

To start with the primary purpose needs to be a business trip and your simply integrating your personal one too.  Doing it the other way around can cause more trouble than it’s worth.  Keep that in mind!  If you’re traveling in the United States, and the primary reason is business then your good so far.

Next you should be prepared to keep record of every transaction that occurs for the trip.  It can be burdensome for many, but good recordkeeping pays off!  Keep in mind this just applies to business travel domestically. Here are the four details that you will want to have a paper trail for.

1. Destination

2. The dates of the trip

3. Reason for travel and what is to be gained from it

4. Costs of travel, meals and lodging.

When it comes to planning the trip there is nothing wrong with you staying the weekend and enjoying the area.  You use that long weekend and enjoy a theme park or go camping.   If done this way your airfare is fully tax deductible and mileage becomes deductable at 55.5c per mile.  The benefit to using mileage is it allows you to take more people with you at no additional cost.  Flying would incur another expense that can’t be used as a deduction! So you can see the clear benefit of driving if the family is coming too.

Another way to have a business and personal trip together is to plan it around some continued learning program.  If its educational then it is a legitimate business expense.  Even if a conference is held in a resort area it doesn’t matter because the purpose is business.  You are free to work all day and play that evening!

I hope this helps you understand how to integrate business and personal trips, it’s all about how you do it.

For small businesses in San Diego that need this kind of insight in their bookkeeping and payroll simply give Hoffman & Associates a call!

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Planning Ahead: 5 Ways To Reduce Your Tax Burden

Tax season is over! Now it’s time to start planning for the next year taxes. To many this might seem premature but planning ahead pays! Therefore many people are in a search for the ways of reducing the tax burden and the tax experts have pointed out many strategies that can be followed to save a considerable amount of cash from taxes. Here we discuss 5 ways to save money on taxes and if you really need to reduce your tax burden, the time you spend here is really worth it!

First and foremost, what you can do to start protecting your profits is put some in a qualified retirement plan. If you have a retirement plan, then you’ll be able to reduce your tax amount as the Self-employed business owners can contribute up to 20% of the total earnings to the retirement plan, but limited to $50,000. When it comes to the corporations, this amount has been lifted up to $250,000 as 25% of the total earnings. This particular amount will be deducted from your total earnings, so you’ll be able to reduce your tax burden by a large amount. Also you’ll be able to get a tax credit up to $500 to cover administration costs for the first three years by adding your employees to a qualified plan.

Employee health plans are the next position where you can have a tax deduction. This is one of the most overlooked tax credits. If you afford to pay an amount equal to 50% of your employees’ healthcare premiums, you will be qualified for a credit up to 35% of your taxes. According to the tax experts, this strategy may not suit for the business owners who are not paying for their staff’s healthcare premiums, but this is most suitable for the business owners who pay 25%-40% of their employees’ healthcare premiums.

Spending a money on your marketing campaigns can also be a good solution to decrease you tax amount while increasing your business revenues.  The key is to make sure you track the ROI (return on investment) to ensure to is an effective marketing program.  Therefore most of the Small-business owners that are smart in this process of pouring cash into their marketing budgets can have the tax amount deducted quite considerably coupled with effective marketing strategies.

In the previous years, there was a 100% bonus depreciation which facilitated the business owners to cover their all costs related with their businesses without additionally spending even a dollar and now it has been downgraded to 50%. If you are confused about the depreciation of the bonuses for your small business, now you don’t need to be worried about it. This is because according to the experts, the bonus depreciation which was downgraded to 50% will come back to 100% in near future. So it is better to keep all the records and documents of the equipment purchases while keeping eye on the latest business news updates and for sure, you’ll be able to have a big tax deduction.

Many entrepreneurs neglect calculating their small expenses and eventually without knowing, they miss the chance of deducting their taxes. Banking fees such as online transaction fees and checking account fees or other charges like PayPal fees that seem small at the time add up! All these small expenses must be included in your yearend budget if you want to keep your money. Another important thing that you should follow is tracking the mileage and calculating the cost according to the IRS standard mileage rate. You can use the Smartphone applications like MileBug, Trip Cubby to calculate the mileage and it would be better if you can add all driving costs with including parking fees to account. If you calculate all these expenses simply, you’ll be able to have the yearend budget with the accurate income. Therefore your tax burden also will be significantly deducted.

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Tax Savings Tactics for Small Business Owners

It’s a common situation that as soon as the tax time approaches, small business owners start losing their sleep over tax payments. If you are a small business owner, you may relate to this. That’s why, it’s always better to prepare well in advance, in order to face this crucial time of the year with courage. The key factor that differentiates a visionary business owner from the crowd is his ability to think ahead. To encourage this type of mentality and the spirit of thinking ahead, we have compiled a list of tax saving tactics. We are sure that these tactics would not only help you in saving a considerable amount of taxes but also make you a smart financial manager at the end of the day. The strategies are especially beneficial for end of the year taxes and Q4 tax payments.

In order to take full advantage of the tax savings; the most important thing that you should do is to keep track of the tax opportunities. There are several methods that you can employ to accomplish this. For instance; a tax diary, a tax diary is a wonderful way to keep you updated, about all the tax saving schemes and opportunities out there. Another important tool that should be in your arsenal is rock-solid tax organizer. As a business owner, you must already be aware of the importance of saving and keeping safe all your receipts and documents. Another thing is the knowledge and education of tax policies and deductions.  These may not provide you the overnight results, but can be a great asset in the long run. Above all, who can underestimate the importance of a good tax advisor? A good tax advisor is the person who is always willing to listen to your side of the story, your views and your plans, in addition to offer his suggestions. There is nothing better than having a Hoffman and Associates to handle and mange your income tax process. It’s always recommended to communicate regularly with your financial advisor or bookkeeping service. Prepare a checklist of the things with their help that you may need at the time of tax payment. This strategy will be very helpful in preventing the chaos and confusion that may arise during the eleventh hour of tax payment.

To prepare you well for the tax payments, it’s often recommended to get enrolled in one or more benefit plans. These plans can save you a significant amount of tax breaks. Contributing in a defined benefit plan is always a better idea than to contribute in a contribution plan, especially if you are a small business owner and you are over 50 years of age.  The reason is that you can contribute more in defined benefit plan. More contributions effectively means more tax savings.

Another income tax aspect that can cost you heavily is your purchasing decisions. Although in most of the tax plans, making purchases for your business is considered as a tax saving tactic. However, it is highly recommended to take the recommendations of a professional tax advisor before making any big purchases. Lastly, in case of 1099 employees, it’s recommended to set up your quarterly payment estimates; if you haven’t already done so. This will effectively help you in sorting out your cash flow, which in turn can prove to be beneficial for substantial income tax savings.

For general tax deductions, experts are of the opinion that you should enroll in a simplified employee pension plan (SEP). This approach plays a very important role in tax saving benefits for your contribution. Most importantly, a small business owner should be smart enough to take advantage of minor tax saving opportunities that come his way, such as incurring costs in dry cleaning or certain educational events for the employees, mileage deductions for driving etc. These minor opportunities would add up eventually to make a substantial difference.

As far as the yearend tax payments are concerned, remembering little things can make all the difference. For those, who have received salaries this year; tax relief act of the previous year would be applied. While in 2011 there was 100% depreciation bonus on any purchase for the new equipments and machinery for the business. That’s why it was considered to be the best time for making big purchases. But you don’t need to worry if you haven’t done so. In 2012 the depreciation bonus may fall down to 50%, but according to experts, it can again go back to 100%. That’s why it’s not recommended to repeat the mistake of the previous year.  Make a list of equipment  and machinery that you think would be beneficial for your company and keep your eyes and ears open for the announcement for depreciation bonus.

This is only a preview of the ways, in which you can save substantial amount of tax. In depth study and implementation of these techniques can effectively maximize your tax savings.

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Retirement Planning for Entrepreneurs

Retirement Planning Options for Entrepreneurs

Retirement is an inevitable event, whether you are an employee or a business owner. Therefore, a visionary individual is the one who prepare well in advance to tackle this inevitable end. While for employees the process is often not complicated because their retirement schemes are often taken care of by the company management, where they work. All they need to do is enroll for a retirement pension program such as 401(k) and the mentioned amount of money would be automatically cut from their paycheck, for the deposit. The system works so efficiently that most of the times the employees don’t even know about the deductions.

Having said that making retirement decisions can be really hard if you are a business owner or self employed. Part of the reason lies in the fact that, as a business owner you’re always occupied with so many other important tasks that planning for the retirement often takes a backseat. However, for a business owner, the responsibility to do so is much greater more than that in the case of employees. Investing your time and money in retirement pension plans can make a lot of sense for a business owner, because usually these plans come with an added advantage of tax exemption.  In the beginning the choices and options may appear overwhelming to you, but once you get familiar with all the different plans and policies, you will be happy that you spent the time to make the right decision.

Let’s have a look at the various options that are available in the market for retirement income plans. The first option among them is simple IRA plans. This is the best option if you are a small business owner and have less than hundred employees, this plan can save you up to $11,500 annually. The best approach that most of the business owners take to get the maximum tax benefits is by enrolling their employees also in this plan as well. However on the downside; you may not avail the benefits of additional plans for retirement. SEP IRA is another retirement option for the business owners as well as their employees. In this plan the contribution amount is up to 25% of the compensation. However, to qualify for 25% contribution, the total amount should be under $ 49000.

Another excellent option for retirement planning is Simple (401 k). Although the plan is quite similar to Simple IRA there is an added advantage of taking loan. The loan can be taken against the balance in the account. This type of provision is not present in simple IRA plans. If you happen to be self employed and you don’t have any employees working for you then single participant (401 k) will be the best option for you. The plan is much better than simple IRA in terms of higher limit for your savings. The limit is up to 16500 annually. To save even more tax in this plan you can opt for making contributions as much as 25% of the compensation, and of course the maximum amount must be less than $49000 to avail 25% contribution.

If the above mentioned plans appear too complicated and inundating to you. You can always take consult a professional tax advisor or an accountant. In fact, it’s always recommended to take the help of a professional to handle these affairs for you.

Believe it or not, your business itself can prove to be the biggest asset for you, for all your retirement needs. The first option that you have is; you can sell your business itself to fund your retirement years. However, if you think that would be a heart wrenching decision for you then try to appoint a competent manger to run the business for you. So that you can sit back and relax in your retirement home while still getting paid from your business. If you are thinking of these options, it’s still wise to invest in one or more retirement investment options mentioned above. This is essential to provide you the security and the insurance that you would need, once the retirement time finally arrives.

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