August 2011
Nine Tips for Charitable Taxpayers
Fri, 08/26/2011 - 11:08 | by Brent A. Hoffman CPAIf you make a donation to a charity this year, you may be able to take a deduction for it on your 2011 tax return. Here are the top nine things the IRS wants every taxpayer to know before deducting charitable donations.
1. Make sure the organization qualifies Charitable contributions must be made to qualified organizations to be deductible. You can ask any organization whether it is a qualified organization or check IRS Publication 78, Cumulative List of Organizations. It is available at www.IRS.gov.
Eight Tips for Taxpayers Who Receive an IRS Notice
Thu, 08/25/2011 - 09:30 | by Brent A. Hoffman CPAEvery year the Internal Revenue Service sends millions of letters and notices to taxpayers, but that doesn’t mean you need to worry. Here are eight things every taxpayer should know about IRS notices – just in case one shows up in your mailbox.
1. Don’t panic. Many of these letters can be dealt with simply and painlessly.
How to Get Your Prior-Year Tax Information from the IRS
Fri, 08/19/2011 - 09:22 | by Brent A. Hoffman CPATaxpayers sometimes need tax returns from previous years for loan applications, to estimate tax withholding, for legal reasons or because records were destroyed in a natural disaster or fire. If your original tax returns were lost or destroyed, you can obtain copies or transcripts from the IRS. Here are 10 things to know if you need federal tax return information from a previously filed tax return.
1. There are three options for obtaining free copies of your federal tax return information – on the web, by phone or by mail.
The Tax Effects of Gold
Mon, 08/15/2011 - 10:50 | by Bob Parks CPASince the investment of choice today seems to be gold, we wanted to share with you some of the tax implications of buying and selling gold, but first, a short introduction to the gold market. Since the dollar was taken off the gold standard in the 1970’s, gold had many bull and bear markets. The lowest price for an ounce of gold was about $ 252.00 in June of 1999. The highest price before the recent surge was $ 850.00 in January of 1980. These extremes in prices tie into investor sentiment of the times, not to the cost or supply of gold being changed at those times.
FUTA Changes Effective July 1, 2011
Wed, 08/03/2011 - 14:00 | by Brent A. Hoffman CPACongress has announced that the 0.2% FUTA surcharge will not be extended before June 30, 2011. Employers have been required to pay a flat rate of 6.2% on the first $7,000.00 of each employee’s annual wages for FUTA. The 6.2% FUTA rate included a temporary 0.2% surcharge that was first added in the 1970’s. The FUTA rate will be reduced from 6.2% to 6.0% effective July 1, 2011. Employers will still receive the 5.4% credit for paying state unemployment on time, reducing the FUTA rate to .6% on wages paid up to the annual FUTA limit of $7,000.00.
