This is something that every tax professional knew was going to happen after the IRS announced budget cuts. Where is the first problem going to be – a slow down in customer service. See this article in USAToday by Kevin McCoy that gives details on the total breakdown in IRS phone service for the last tax filing season: http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2015/07/15/irs-taxpayer-service-2015/30181465/?utm_campaign=Daily+Clips&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=20612080&_hsenc=p2ANqtz–wq-9K5PETkUeJhoTFg_z2CPz782Agh4yTB2kHC6C06DfWKNOhiV0PHxfQKG1bDp-nVg9SNDS_UarBjemlFIXEdoCVHQ&_hsmi=20612080 Since my feeling is that you should not depend on IRS telephone advice anyway (you can get 3 different answers to the same question with three different phone calls), it is better to talk to a tax professional for this type of information than a telephone person who is probably being paid close to minimum wage and now is not available most of the time. 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 Android and the IPhone: Has been Featured On https://twitter.com/bstonercpa
Tax Musings of a Burbank CPA: Reporting Gambling Income and Losses on Your Tax Return
If you are someone who likes to gamble, you need to be aware of the IRS requirements of reporting gambling winnings and deducting gambling losses. See this tip from the IRS about gambling winnings, reporting and how to deduct your losses (even if you can): http://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USIRS/bulletins/10d0fd9#.VZrT-j12yRA.twitter … Always keep in mind that all gambling losses can only be deducted as a miscellaneous itemized deduction and only up to your gambling winnings, so if you don’t itemize you may not even be able to deduct your gambling losses. It might be wise to discuss this with your tax preparer (or if you use turbotax hire someone to discuss it with) so you know what deductions you even qualify for. 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 Android and the IPhone: Has been Featured On https://twitter.com/bstonercpa
Musings of a Burbank CPA: How to stretch the 401(k) match
If your company has a 401(k) that has a company match of a certain percentage of what the employee puts into it, the easy road is to contribute enough to get the company match, then stop. See this article in MarketWatch by Richard Mason to see why this road can be a mistake in the long term: www.marketwatch.com/story/how-to-stretch-the-401k-match-2015-06-24 An important item for retirement is to save at least 10% of your income in some retirement vehicle. A good rule of thumb is to put enough into the 401(k) to get the company match, then contribute to a Roth IRA if you qualify because of income, and then contribute the rest of the 10% into the 401(k). Also I would not include the match as part of the 10% (the 10% should be money you contribute, the match I would treat as earnings.) With compounding, you will be amazed at how much money you will have at retirement. 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 Android and the IPhone: Has been Featured On https://twitter.com/bstonercpa