Month: April 2020

Florida bookkeeping firm for small businesses: There’s no question that a bookkeeping service saves your business both time and money, but the processes and consistency introduced by one can increase the longevity and efficiency of your business, making you more profitable for decades to come. Hiring a bookkeeping service is about more than just finding someone who can use a calculator and understand QuickBooks. You want a full-fledged team that has the professional background, training and experience to really benefit your business. People whose expertise you can rely on. Ideally, you want to focus on those who have QuickBooks Pro Advisors certification, additional professional certifications in specific accounting software or and those that employ AIPB Certified bookkeepers.

File Early: There are three good reasons to complete your filing as early as possible: Information Is Readily Available. Employers, vendors, and financial institutions are legally obligated to mail the required W-2s and 1099-Rs by Jan. 31. Complete your taxes as soon as you have all the necessary information to prevent confusion, tension, and misplacing documents. Filing Is Inevitable. Filing your taxes is something you must do every year, so why procrastinate? Getting it behind you gives you time to focus on other things. You Can Invest Your Refund as Soon as Possible. Your money won’t earn interest in the government’s till. File your return now and invest the refund to get the most out of your money. The one reason to delay filing until April 15 is because you owe taxes. If you have tax liabilities, the best approach is to complete the calculations and fill out all of the required forms but delay the actual filing until April 15. You won’t be charged any penalty or interest if you file and remit any unpaid balance at that time.

Avoid Taxes on an RMD with a Charitable Donation: Seniors who have a traditional 401(k) or IRA must take a required minimum distribution each year once they reach age 70 1/2. Those who don’t need this money for living expenses may want to consider having it sent directly to a charity as a qualified charitable distribution. “It’s basically a check issued from the IRA and made out to the charity,” Zollars says. This prevents the money from becoming taxable income and could help reduce the amount of Social Security retirement benefits that are deemed taxable, too.

Set up your system: There’s more than one way to organize your tax records, but having some kind of filing system will help you keep everything in one place. Don’t wait until January to start organizing important documents. While many important tax documents will arrive in the beginning of the year, some — such as receipts for deductible expenses — will crop up throughout the year. Save documentation for deductible items: If you own a business or plan to itemize your deductions, you should hold onto your receipts and other documents for eligible expenses. You won’t need to submit your receipts with your tax return, but you may need to substantiate your expenses if the IRS audits your return. Do the same for home improvements, especially if you’re planning to sell your home. The amount you spent on home improvements increases your adjusted basis on your home, which is what the IRS uses to determine how much tax you owe when you sell it. Read extra information at South Florida Bookkeeping by Accountants.

For most garnishments including child support, creditor garnishments, and student loans, Title III of the federal Consumer Credit Protection Act (CCPA) requires that the amount of pay garnished should be based on an employee’s “disposable earnings,” meaning the amount remaining after legally mandated deductions. Broadly speaking, disposable income is the employee’s total compensation, less mandatory deductions including federal, state, and local taxes; state unemployment insurance contributions; and Social Security taxes. This includes salaries, bonuses, and sales commissions, as well as earnings derived from retirement plans and pensions. Tips aren’t usually regarded as earnings for garnishment, but service charges are considered earnings.

State tax you paid last spring: Did you owe taxes when you filed your 2018 state tax return in 2019? Then remember to include that amount with your state tax itemized deduction on your 2019 return, along with state income taxes withheld from your paychecks or paid via quarterly estimated payments. Beginning in 2018, the deduction for state and local taxes is limited to $10,000 per year. When you buy a house, you often get to deduct points paid to obtain your mortgage all at one time. When you refinance a mortgage, however, you have to deduct the points over the life of the loan. That means you can deduct 1/30th of the points a year if it’s a 30-year mortgage—that’s $33 a year for each $1,000 of points you paid. Doesn’t seem like much, but why throw it away? Also, in the year you pay off the loan—because you sell the house or refinance again—you get to deduct all the points not yet deducted, unless you refinance with the same lender.

Learning QuickBooks fundamentals can be very challenging and requires training since it contains thousands of features to handle all types of industries and businesses. In order to fully comprehend the features, it would be advised that one not only understood the technical basics but had some experience in accounting and bookkeeping. Our accounting and bookkeeping firm has been using Quickbooks for clients for over 20 years. QuickBooks is one of the most comprehensive and widely used premier accounting software for small businesses. One of the most widely used versions of QuickBooks is QuickBooks Online which provides access for the accountant and the client at the same time. See additional info on https://bookkeepinghelpcoralsprings.com/.