In general, real property and improvements to real property are depreciated over either 27.5 years (residential property) or 39 years (commercial property). In the past, major improvements such as HVAC replacements and roofs were caught by this rule. However, the tax law that went into effect in 2018 expanded the depreciation rules for non [...]
Form W-4, Employee's Withholding Certificate, has been redesigned for 2020. Previously, income tax withholding was based on an employee's marital status and withholding allowances or tied to the value of the personal exemption. With the revised Form W-4, however, income tax withholding is generally based on the worker's expected filing status and standard deduction for [...]
A popular estate planning strategy has died a quick death at the hands of Congress. Yes, the stretch IRA is dead. It has been replaced by a 10-year post-death payout rule, but how does that work? Who is subject to it? When does it start, and when does it end? Until 2020, designated IRA [...]
A common question that clients ask us is this: "May my business claim a deduction when a customer fails to pay us?" The answer is, "It depends." Every business must adopt a "method of accounting" in its first tax year. This is the method by which it reports its income and expenses on its [...]
QuickBooks is a great bookkeeping tool for small and mid-sized businesses. If you have made the decision to use it, an important initial question you face is whether to adopt the desktop version or instead to use QuickBooks Online. In the past, this choice was relatively easy. QuickBooks Online was crippled and not very [...]
The IRS has recently issued final regulations regarding details about investment in qualified opportunity zones (QOZ). The regulations modified and finalized proposed regulations for QOZ businesses that IRS previously issued. The final regulations provide additional guidance for taxpayers who are eligible to make an election to temporarily defer the inclusion in gross income of [...]
We have received several questions from South Carolina clients about whether they may claim a deduction for personal losses attributable to Hurricane Dorian in 2019. The short answer is no. For tax year 2019, personal casualty losses (for example: losses due to damage from a hurricane) are deductible only if attributable to a federally-declared [...]
The optional standard mileage rates for business use of a vehicle will decrease slightly in 2020, the IRS announced (Notice 2020-05). For business use of a car, van, pickup truck, or panel truck, the rate for 2020 will be 57.5 cents per mile in 2020, down from 58 cents per mile last year after [...]
