Entries by IslerNW

Health Savings Accounts Fill Multiple Tax Needs

The Health Savings Account (HSA) is one of the most misunderstood and underused benefits in the Internal Revenue Code. Congress created HSAs as a way for individuals with high-deductible health plans (HDHPs) to save for medical expenses that are not covered by insurance due to the high-deductible provisions of their insurance coverage.

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Clergy Tax Benefits Under Fire

Section 107 of the Internal Revenue Code provides that a minister of the gospel’s gross income doesn’t include the rental value of a home (parsonage) provided; if the home itself isn’t provided, a rental allowance paid as part of compensation for ministerial services is excludable. The benefit is generally referred to as a parsonage allowance. […]

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Big Changes to the Kiddie Tax

Years ago, to prevent parents from transferring their investment accounts into their children’s name to avoid taxes, Congress created what is referred to as the kiddie tax. This counteracted the strategy of taking income from the parents’ higher tax bracket and shifting it to their children’s lower tax bracket.

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Taxpayers Find Gift Tax Reporting Confusing

Gift taxes were created to prevent wealthy taxpayers from transferring their estates to their beneficiaries via gifts and thus avoid estate taxes when they pass away. But that does not mean only wealthy taxpayers need to be concerned with the gift tax provisions as, under many circumstances, even lower-income taxpayers may find they are liable […]

A Mid-Year Tax Checkup May Be Appropriate

Taxes are similar to vehicles, in that they sometimes need a check-up to make sure they are performing as expected. That is especially true for 2018, with all of the changes brought about by tax reform.

Moving Deductions are Kaput

Prior to the passage of tax reform, individuals who moved as the result of a job change or job relocation could deduct their unreimbursed moving expenses if the driving distance from their home to the new job location was at least 50 miles more than the driving distance from home to the old job location. […]

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Is an Inheritance Taxable?

A frequent question is whether inheritances are taxable. This is a frequently misunderstood question related to taxation and can be complicated. When someone passes away, all of their assets will be subject to inheritance taxation, and whatever is left over after paying the inheritance tax passes to the decedent’s beneficiaries.

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5 QuickBooks Online Reports You Should Run Regularly

5 QuickBooks Online Reports You Should Run Regularly  There are numerous QuickBooks Online reports that you should be consulting at regular intervals. But you need these five at least every week. QuickBooks Online’s Dashboard, the first screen you see when you log in, provides an effective overview of your company’s finances. It contains at-a-glance information […]