The straight line

Maximize Write-Offs for Business Interest Expense

When you take out personal loans to buy a business, you want to maximize the tax write-offs for the resulting interest expense. The tax law in this area is tricky. But if you play your cards right, you can get the best possible outcome. First, you need to trace your interest expense outlays. Under tax law,...

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Remember the New FBAR Filing Deadline

Do you have an interest in — or authority over — a foreign financial account? If so, the IRS wants you to provide information about the account by filing a form called the “Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts” (FBAR). The annual deadline for filing FBARs has been changed. It now coincides with the tax...

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Executive Terminations: Sever Ties Carefully

Firing someone in a big corporation is hard enough. In a smaller company, it can be a very personal issue. And if you do a bad job handling the firing of an executive in a close-knit company, the results can be disastrous. It’s difficult to get rid of a longtime — but no longer effective —...

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Self-Employment Tax Reduction Strategies for Spouse-Owned Businesses

If you own a profitable, unincorporated business with your spouse, you’re probably fed up with high self-employment (SE) tax bills. An unincorporated business in which both spouses are active is typically treated as a partnership that’s owned 50/50 by the spouses — or a limited liability company (LLC) that’s treated as a partnership for tax...

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A Direct Way to Save Time and Money

When you hear the term “direct deposit,” you may think about payroll but that is not the only way businesses can use this time and money-saving service. What about the checks you write for expense reimbursements or commissions? If you operate a corporation, how about depositing the dividend checks of shareholders into the bank accounts of...

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