Here is an article to help people get going on Linkedin beyond setting up an account and connecting with your friends. See this in Forbes by Joshua Steimle:http://www.forbes.com/sites/joshsteimle/2013/08/07/top-3-tips-from-a-linkedin-expert/This looks like a awesome way to get yourself started in this great business social media platform.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 Follow me on Twitter! @bstonercpa
Taxes from A to Z: U Is For Unreasonable Compensation
This posting by Kelly Phillips Erb as a contributor for Forbes does a nice job of spelling out the S Corporation reasonable compensation issues with the IRS and the recent CPA S Corporation court case that raised Watson’s payroll from $24000 per year to $91000 (but on income averaging $180000 to $200000 for two years, or less than 50% a year on average): http://www.forbes.com/sites/kellyphillipserb/2012/03/25/taxes-from-a-to-z-u-is-for-unreasonable-compensation/Here is a link to the Watson case that is also in the article:http://www.scribd.com/doc/86679355/Watson-v-USI think one of the really great points this article makes is to come up with a documented calculation of how the compensation was arrived at and why it is reasonable. Just saying ‘it seemed about right’ just will not cut it in an IRS comp audit and there are going to be more of these in the future as ways to balance out social security and medicare are looked at. I know I have been beating this issue to death but if you have a small S Corp in the future this may really affect you and you need to do some planning with your tax professional to keep out of the woods on this. For financial, accounting and tax musings,You can [...]
Five Cash Leaks to Avoid
Cash flow improvement is a hot issue for small businesses; in many businesses, it seems like there is never enough cash when you need it. The last thing a business owner wants is to reduce their cash balance unnecessarily. To help you preserve or increase your cash, here are five cash management leaks to avoid. 1. Bloated Bank Fees Some banks are more business-friendly than others. We recommend you assess the fees you are currently being charged to see if you can discontinue any unnecessary services. Could you maintain a cash balance to avoid monthly fees? Are you being charged online banking fees and bill pay fees, and are these still necessary? Are you being charged for a high volume of transactions or cash drawer services, and are these competitive with other banks? Banks, including national brands, that have not kept up with technology and have not automated a significant amount of their transactions are inefficient and must charge higher fees to cover their processing costs. If your accounts are located at one of these costlier banks, you do have a choice. 2. Overtaxed Are you sure that you are paying the lowest amount of taxes you legally owe? There [...]