This question comes up again and again: value pricing or hourly billing in a CPA practice. Here is an article comparing the two by Lisa Tierney and posted by Terri Eyden in AccountingWeb: http://www.accountingweb.com/article/value-based-pricing-good-idea-professional-services-firms/222837 I have pretty much decided on a combination of fixed fee billing for tax return preparation and a form of value billing for most other services (such as meetings and other consulting services). Everyone has to look to themselves to determine what is right for their practice, but remember there are only so many hours in a day and and hourly billing puts a limit on your total earning power. For financial, accounting and tax musings, You can count on us to count for you! Email: bstonercpa@sbcglobal.net Phone: 818-317-6035 Website: www.briantstonercpa.com Has been Featured On https://twitter.com/bstonercpa
Tax Musings of a Burbank CPA: Here is How You Can Take Your IRA Before 59 1/2 Penalty Free!
Normally if you are not age 59 1/2 yet and need to take withdrawals from your IRA (Individual Retirement Account), you are subject to a 10% early withdrawal penalty on what you take. But under section 72(t)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code, if you take Substantially Equal Periodic Payments (SEPP) of your IRA, you can escape this penalty. To qualify for this method, you have to do the following: 1. You have to maintain the calculated distribution for at least five years or until you reach 59 1/2, whichever is greater. 2. The distribution has be calculated based on one of the following tables provided by the IRS: the uniform life table in Appendix A of Rev. Rul. 2002-62, the single life expectancy table in I.T. Regulations §1.401(a)(9)-9, Q&A-1, or the joint life and last survivor table in I.T. Regulations §1.401(a)(9)-9, Q&A-3. 3. You have to use one of the three methods in Revenue Ruling 2002-62 to determine what are SEPP payments: the required minimum distribution method, the amortization method, or the annuitization method. 4. You have to calculate interest using any interest rate that is not more than 120% of the federal mid-term rate published in IRS revenue rulings for either of the two [...]
Tax Musings of a Los Angeles CPA: You Can Take 401K Distributions at Age 55!
Did you know that if you want to retire from work at 55, there are ways to start taking your 401K and other similar retirement plan proceeds without the early withdrawal penalty? There is a provision in the Internal Revenue Code – §72(t)(2)(A)(v) that allows you to avoid the 10% penalty on retirement plan distributions before age 59 1/2. There are certain rules to qualify: 1. The plan must be an ERISA-qualified, employer-established defined contribution plan, including 401(k)s, 403(b)s, 501(a)s, federal TSP Plans and some other qualified plans. 2. You must leave employment at your company (ether termination, retirement or resignation) during the year you turn 55 or the year after to qualify for the penalty-free distribution. 3. If you have at least twenty years of service as a police officer, firefighter or medic, you can take the penalty-free distributions starting at age 50. If you have at least twenty-five years of service in these professions, you can take the distributions penalty-free at any age. Now remember that IRAs do not qualify for this special treatment. For an IRA, you have to use another area of §72(t) to set up a series of equal periodic payments (SEPP), which is a [...]