tax solutions for realtors: Debbie and Friends do Dallas
- 10/21/13 10:19 PM
Well now that it is Fall Break in Tulsa my wife, Debbie and 7 of her best friends from her Tuesday night tap dancing class are headed to Dallas. She always likes to help out our country during any economic slowdown. The Outlet Mall is high up on everyone’s shopping agenda as well as Nordstrom’s. (Boy, I wish they would open a store here in Tulsa) Meanwhile our Boxers and I are having to “Bachelor” it for a few days. Wow, no rules for the rest of the week. Of course, there are spies out there in the form of 6 … (0 comments)
tax solutions for realtors: Tax Tip for Purchase of Equipment
- 10/21/13 12:40 AM
Do you need the latest iPhone or tablet? Maybe a new laptop or printer is going to be needed next year. Why wait? If you need better equipment to run your business and you are having a great year you should buy the equipment before year end. The opposite holds true if you are expecting a better year next year. Then you should buy the equipment next year when you maybe in a higher tax bracket. Please remember too that you can charge the purchase on a credit card and the date of the charge is when you can deduct the … (0 comments)
tax solutions for realtors: Gift Limit Tax Tip
- 10/21/13 12:24 AM
As we discussed recently, you are limited to $25 for gifts. This limit applies to the husband and wife and not to each person. Of course, the gift of entertainment while limited to 50% of the expense, can allow you to provide a proper way of saying thanks. One item that you should think about is providing a home warranty as a method to help close a contract. These expenses to me are a client expense. Another area is with say, a mortgage company that has gone above and beyond the call of duty. Here instead of giving a tax limited … (0 comments)
tax solutions for realtors: Year End Tax Tip
- 10/11/13 12:58 AM
There are some more tax savings to be had from the purchase of a large SUV this year. The rules for 2013 are the same as last year. If you buy a new or used SUV or Truck that has a Gross Vehicle Weight Rating of over 6,000 lbs you have special rules that apply to deprecation of that vehicle.(Most of the time you can find this GVWR on the door sill of the driver’s side). Typical SUV’s are 2013 and newer Ford Explorers, any year Expeditions, Chevy Tahoes, Jeep Grand Cherokees etc. The special rules allow you to depreciate up … (1 comments)
tax solutions for realtors: IRS has Shut Down
- 10/11/13 12:41 AM
Well don’t expect any favors. The IRS computers are still diligently working away to send out notices of taxes due, liens to file and wages to garnishee. If you are trying to contact the IRS about a notice you will have to send it via fax or I would use certified mail with return receipt. Problem is going to be what the answer is to your inquiry or question. Don’t expect relief from deadlines for filing or paying taxes. Wonder if people that are under audit have had the audit delayed due to the shutdown? Can they use this inability of … (2 comments)
tax solutions for realtors: The Eagle has Landed at the Hotel California!
- 10/09/13 06:50 AM
Tonight’s the night for the Eagles concert!! Debbie and I have been patiently waiting for this for some time now. Seems our youngest daughter won the tickets at her company’s picnic and couldn’t go (boo). So like a good child she passed them on to us (Yeah). We are having dinner at one of the new restaurants in downtown Tulsa and then make our way over to the BOK Center to see one of our favorite bands. While we are using this as a personal expense what could we have done to make this a tax deductible evening? Well, if I … (2 comments)
tax solutions for realtors: Tax Tip for Year End 2013
- 10/09/13 12:41 AM
For the last couple of years there has been something called “Bonus Depreciation” For 2013 this amount has been 50%. So for 2014 it looks like this tool will be going away. Here is an example of how bonus depreciation works. Buy a NEW asset such as a large SUV. This SUV costs $45,000 and you buy it on the last day of 2013. You can take 50% of the cost or $22,500 as Bonus depreciation. My suggestion all ways when looking at a new car, truck or SUV is to answer these questions 1) Do I need a new car? 2) Can I afford a new … (0 comments)
tax solutions for realtors: Try Looking in the Couch Cushions
- 10/08/13 11:22 PM
People lose things all the time. Usually it's no big deal. We misplace our phone, keys, or sunglasses — then they show up an hour or a day later, or we replace them. Sometimes it's more serious. We lose money in a stock or a mutual fund — then we make it back over time. But every so often, someone loses big. We just hope it's not our public officials doing the losing! Last month, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration ("TIGTA"), an IRS watchdog, released a report titled "Affordable Care Act: Tracking of Health Insurance Reform Implementation Fund Costs … (0 comments)
tax solutions for realtors: Big Week in Oklahoma
- 10/07/13 11:36 PM
The Texas State Fair is here for the week. But the big meeting will be Saturday when the Texas Longhorns face off with the Oklahoma Sooners. This is a long storied rivalry that is unique in that there is no home field advantage. The game is at the Cotton Bowl with half the seats sold to each school’s fans. This year is particularly important in that the Texas coach Mack Brown’s job may be on the line. A landslide victory for the Sooners may well get Brown fired. So if you are in Tulsa, for anywhere else in Oklahoma for that … (0 comments)
tax solutions for realtors: Proactive Tax Planning
- 10/07/13 11:10 PM
Since April 15th is long ago behind us it must be time to relax for a change and not worry about those pesky quarterly payments or even think about logs. The only logs you’re thinking about are the fireplace log burning at Christmas. Has your tax prep guy been on the same cruise control too? My Grandfather passed the very first CPA exam in the country back in 1918. His certificate number 23 is up on our wall here. We will soon be practicing for 100 years. So what does this mean? I watched both my Grandfather and Father put all … (0 comments)
tax solutions for realtors: Business Lessons From Sammy Hagar
- 10/07/13 12:42 AM
Let me start by saying right off that I’m not a fan of rocker Sammy Hagar. I didn’t like his solo stuff in the early 1980’s. I hated when he replaced David Lee Roth as frontman for “Van Hagar.” But while I may not like Hagar’s music, I do admire his business sense. Specifically, I’m talking about the philosophy he celebrates in his enduring hit, I Can’t Drive 55. ( his Ferrari’s tag reads “CNTDRV55”) I know, speed is dangerous, speed is foolish, and speed kills. But . . . in today’s economy, speed is essential Someone very smart once told … (2 comments)
tax solutions for realtors: Horsing Around With Tax Preparers
- 10/07/13 12:14 AM
This is a big week for taxes and technology. State "insurance exchanges" are scheduled to open for business under the Affordable Care Act, which lets consumers sign up for tax-subsidized individual health insurance. The White House has already announced that technological glitches will delay online enrollment on the small business ("SHOP") and Spanish-language sites. That's a decidedly 21st-century, "first world" problem. So, why on earth is the IRS lassoing an 1884 law dealing with lost Civil War horses to regulate tax preparers? Right now, there are no industry-wide rules governing tax preparers. So, back in 2011, the IRS announced their new … (0 comments)
tax solutions for realtors: IRS’s Lois Lerner to Take Early Retirement
- 10/06/13 03:06 AM
Lois Lerner is the former director of exempt organizations and is the IRS agent charged with singling out the Tea Party groups. She was originally placed on paid leave. As of September 23rd she has taken early retirement. I’m sure this was done to keep her wonderful retirement benefits. Frankly, the IRS singles out a group of taxpayers all the time. Is this any different then flagging tax returns with high charitable deductions? I see audits caused by high miscellaneous deductions often. One must remember that avoidance of taxes is their God given right but tax evasion is a crime. If … (2 comments)
tax solutions for realtors: Observations from Norman Oklahoma
- 10/06/13 02:53 AM
I was in Norman Oklahoma teaching real estate agents recently about how to reduce their taxes. Many of the agents there were wearing the crimson and cream colors as this is the home of the University of Oklahoma Sooners. That week was significant since the foe is Notre Dame. So I decided to find out what the score was with regard to their efforts to reduce taxes. Score this: IRS 42 Sooners 3. Reducing taxes is financial defense. It keeps one of your higher business expenses under control. Saving taxes is not a passive activityand to help you through the maze … (0 comments)
tax solutions for realtors: It’s a Wrap!!
- 10/04/13 11:56 PM
How many of you have been driving around town and we see a SUV or even a cabin cruiser on the lake with the entire body wrapped in advertising promoting a real estate agent. Many times you could say the vehicle is a walking billboard. So I guess that must be his business vehicle, right? Wrong! That walking billboard does nothing to prove it is being used in business. The cost of the wrap and installation is considered advertising or even business promotion. But in no way does this go to prove the business use of the vehicle. Proof of business … (0 comments)
tax solutions for realtors: The Good and the Bad of Finance Reform
- 10/04/13 11:37 PM
NAR is urging lawmakers not to make affordable home ownership harder for consumers by cosponsoring the Protecting American Taxpayers and Homeowners (PATH Act. H.R. 2767, introduced by Rep Joe Hensarling (R Texas) as a way to reform the secondary mortgage market. NAR supports reform but opposes the bill because it phases out Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac without replacing them with a federal backstop and it dramatically scales back the availability of FHA. We all know this is in a preliminary stage but it bears watching. Bill Zumwalt Helping REALTORS with Tax Solutions and Solving Tax Problems for REALTORS REALTOR Tax Preparation, REALTOR … (0 comments)
tax solutions for realtors: Glad to be Back Home
- 10/04/13 01:23 AM
Does everyone feel this way about traveling? I do my fair share of seminars and always find it a comfort to get back home. Traveling is stressful. So many things can go wrong from missing a flight due to a traffic accident to missing a turn on the highway. This trip was going well until the morning of the seminar when my car would not start. I was able to get to the seminar location in time (Stress point one) and called AAA for road side assistance. Had someone meet them while I was teaching the class and got it started. … (2 comments)
tax solutions for realtors: Great Time in Little Rock
- 10/04/13 01:09 AM
Just got back last night from a great time in Little Rock, Arkansas. The personnel at Cooperative Arkansas Realtors MLS were wonderful to work with. Especially with regard to my car trouble that turned out to be a bad battery. This tax seminar addressed the issues of the new agents that attended and all of the steps along the way to becoming a top agent. Tax awareness is important for a new agent or “Nick Newby” as I call them. They are usually not well versed on the terms and conditions of even the most basic of info they need to … (2 comments)
tax solutions for realtors: A Sweeter Tax Than Most
- 09/24/13 11:10 PM
When you hear the word "tax," you probably think of something the IRS takes out of your paycheck. Or you might think of something they take out of an inheritance. But taxes affect virtually every financial transaction you make. Take, for example, that simple jar of honey lurking on the shelf in your refrigerator. Americans eat more honey than anyone else in the world — about 400 million pounds of it a year. Most of it goes towards sweetening foods like cereals, cookies, and breads. Even whiskey producers are adding honey to their blends to attract younger drinkers. (The Scotch Whiskey … (0 comments)
tax solutions for realtors: Emergency Blood Drive in Tulsa. Kane and Cherokee Step up to the Plate
- 09/24/13 10:58 PM
Last night there came out a call for dogs to give blood. Our boxers, Kane and Cherokee, were asked to donate to help the cause. Boxers have a universal blood type that can be used to help all dogs. More than a dozen blood type groups have been described in a dog. The various systems are called DEA followed by a number. The DEA 1 system seems to be the predominate type in North America. This group has three subgroups: DEA 1.1 (also known as A1); DEA 2.2 (A2) and rare type A3. DEA 1.1 negative cells are preferred over positive cells … (0 comments)
Well now that it is Fall Break in Tulsa my wife, Debbie and 7 of her best friends from her Tuesday night tap dancing class are headed to Dallas. She always likes to help out our country during any economic slowdown. The Outlet Mall is high up on everyone’s shopping agenda as well as Nordstrom’s. (Boy, I wish they would open a store here in Tulsa)
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