Issue #11 - July 1 2013

Hi!

Welcome to the eleventh issue of the InformedContractors.com newsletter!

In today's main essay my guest expert Joe Collinsworth, tax accountant for nearly a decade, gives us a list of top tax tips to help us keep more of our hard-earned money.

Also in today's issue...

Following up on our main essay, the Check it Out! section provides several suggestions for help on reducing your taxes.

My Quick Tip for today has links to some free construction magazines, no credit card required.

I hope you enjoy this issue of InformedContractors.com.

Cheers,
Di-
PS: My son and I took a tour of the local Job Corps campus and he's interested in Facilities Maintenance so we had a chat with the head honcho in that department. As we were chatting I noticed on the wall in nice big letters "OSHA 10". The Job Corps is run by the Department of Labor. These kids are being taught this before they land on job sites. Chances are they're also being taught that it's a legal requirement of their employers. Don't wait until it's too late, OSHA is cracking down hard. 10 Hour Construction Industry Outreach

"What is the difference between a taxidermist and a tax collector?
The taxidermist takes only your skin."
~  Mark Twain

Top Tax Tips to Keep More of Your Hard Earned Money

By Joe Collinsworth

[Note from Diane: This article was originally written in February 2013, hence the "Tax season is upon us" statement at the beginning of the article.

Because it's important to be aware of your tax situation throughout the year, what can you write off, what can't you write off, when's the best time to purchase X for the best tax advantage, etc. I decided it's a good time to publish this article since we're now half way through 2013 (yikes!).]

Tax season is upon us and it is the beginning of a New Year so this article is two-fold: how to use tax deductions to the utmost on your personal tax return and how to plan for the New Year.

Know that tax laws change constantly leaving professionals and others scrambling to come up with the best ways to keep taxes down while using legal loopholes the government allows. Also know that this is a general article because incomes range extensively and the IRS has limitations and thresh holds on many of the advantageous tax saving strategies allowed.

Let's discuss some of the top strategies for tax saving and planning

- Tax planning is a year-round effort. It doesn't matter how much or little money you make. The goal is to keep as much of it as possible. The people who plan accordingly are the ones who tend to get the most benefit when it is time to file. Once the year ends many of the tax saving strategies are gone for that filing year.

- Maximize retirement plans. If you are an employee take advantage of your company retirement plans to reduce federal taxable income. You can also contribute to IRA accounts for potential deductions on your tax return (unless you decide on a Roth which is a good idea as well). If you are self-employed, then you are eligible for similar deductions many times with less limitations. Self-employed individuals can contribute to retirement accounts, deduct health insurance premiums, H.S.A. contributions, and so forth.

- Consider investing in your own business. Business owners have a little more flexibility than employees do when it comes to deducting business expenses and other items. A business owner has the ability to grow their income exponentially whereas an employee grows theirs in a linear fashion. There are a lot of advantages (of course there is risk) to owning a thriving business that involves tax strategies among other areas.

- Know what deductions you are allowed, if they are limited, and take advantage of them. There are above the line deductions and below the line (i.e. Schedule A). It is critical for you to know what deductions you are able to claim and do so. As long as you keep good records there should be no questions such as with charitable deductions.

- Tax credits are available as well for both businesses and individuals and you should know which ones are available including the rules. Some of the big ones are the child care credit, child credit, work opportunity credit, tuition, and others. These credits can off substantial tax savings. If you own a company and fall under the realms of manufacturing, some construction, and research consider the R&D credit and domestic production activities deduction.

- Turn passive activities into active. Due to the ever-changing tax laws consider if you are able to turn investments into other entities where you do not materially participate into an active activity to take advantage of losses (passive losses tend to get frozen if there is no income to offset them).

- Review your gains and losses from holdings. Do you have substantial losses that you can use to offset substantial gains? You are only allowed $3,000 per year in capital losses so if you have holdings you can take gains on, do so if you have large losses.

- Depending on current market situations, there may be opportunity to invest in tax-free investments such as municipal bonds.

- Setting up for long-term by utilizing trusts, gifting, and other estate planning tactics can provide tax saving strategies especially for the long-term.

- Find a good tax accountant to work with. Successful people know the importance of having good advisors.

Within these tips there are many more. They become very specific to your situation. The point is to start thinking about these aspects in order to ask the right questions and know where to find the answers. Educate yourself, plan accordingly, and you'll be well on your way to saving more money now and for the long-term.

As a tax accountant for nearly a decade I have seen many of the changes but now more than ever before and it is affecting people from all walks of life. I have created accountants Dayton Ohio to help people find competent tax help. Please note that accountantsdaytonohio.com can serve all areas of the U.S.

Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Joe_Collinsworth

Check It Out!

How awesome would it be to have a specialized tax accountant looking over your shoulder every day to help you know exactly what to do and when in order to reduce your taxes - but without the cost that would be involved in having an expert like that helping you every day?

The next best thing is having information put together by those special tax guys/gals that you can review and refer back to throughout the year to make sure you're doing what you need to do to slash your tax bill.

To that end I present the following three instantly downloadable eBooks so that you can get started immediately on saving taxes, before the second half of the year is gone (it'll be here before we know it!):

Tax Reduction Toolkit

Once you've been through this toolkit you'll know more about how to reduce your taxes than 99.9% of all the Small Business Owners in this country!

Just a sample of the tax-saving "secrets" revealed in this book/toolkit:

• What is the EASIEST way for a Business Owner/Self-Employed Person like you to lower your taxes? The answer is so simple it will shock you. Implementing this strategy is easy and will save you thousands in taxes immediately.

• Are you paying yourself the "right way" or the "wrong way"? Business Owners are notorious for mishandling the way they pay themselves. Without even realizing it, you could be paying too much in taxes simply because of the way you compensate yourself. Fix this mistake and your tax bill automatically decreases.

• Did you know there is a way to turn non-deductible personal medical expenses into a legitimate business expense? This Toolkit reveals how to do this. Plain and simple, and perfectly legal. You've probably been missing out on this deduction for years. Find out how to deduct what most people assume are non-deductible personal medical expenses.

[Note from Diane: Believe me, the one directly above here alone will save you thousands of dollars every year! I know because I've been doing it for years myself.]

• Do you know how to convert TAXABLE income into NON-TAXABLE income? This is probably the most overlooked "tax break" on the books. Few people use it. You can!!

Learn the above and SO much more from the Tax Reduction Toolkit!
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My Tax Tutor For Small Business Owners - What Every Business Owner Should Know About Their Taxes

Over 97% of small business owners overpay their taxes to the tune of $160 billion a year!

For less than the cost of dinner out for you and a friend, you can start saving on your small business taxes just minutes from now.

If you invested a tax savings of $4,000 from one year at 11.5% for 30 years you have $1,048,745.98. Cut that in half and save $2,000 at the rate above and you'll have $542,372.99 – not too bad and it’s easier than you think.

Your copy of My Tax Tutor for Small Business Owners includes chapters on:

• Business vs. Hobby and Why Should I Care
  

• Starting a Business and Keeping Records
  

• What Can I Deduct?
  

• The Small Business Deduction Checklist – so you don’t miss a single one
  

• The A-B-C’s of Small Business Deductions – every Deduction from the checklist explained in easy to understand detail
  

• Independent Contractor vs. Employee
  

• The Home Office Deduction, The Best Thing Since Sliced Bread or Not?
  

• Plus, the latest tax tips, tricks, techniques and strategies e-mail straight to your in-box every other week. These small nuggets of priceless information are designed to be quick to read, understand and implement.

My Tax Tutor For Small Business Owners
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Cut Thousands Per Year In Taxes - And It's Legal

Business owners can save thousands per year in taxes!

Immediate Tax Savings for Business Owners.

Pay less in taxes, making taxes you owe more affordable.

Get practical advice on bookkeeping, entity selection, and IRS audit prevention steps using this strategy.

A Certified Financial Planner™, Admiited to Practice before the IRS, with a BS in Accounting, Stephen Heller (author of this downloadable e-Book) brings you a safe and secure method to Slash your federal tax bill. He has been using his system successfully for years with his clients and has never had any client 'audited' because of its use.

Although the banner on his page says the $39 special offer expires December 2012 when I checked it out the special was still in place. Sshhh... ;)

Cut Thousands Per Year In Taxes - And It's Legal

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Disclaimer: InformedContractors.com only recommends products that we've either personally checked out ourselves, or that come from people we know and trust. For doing so, we may receive a commission.

Nothing in this e-mail should be considered personalized advice, legal or otherwise. Although our employees may answer your general customer service questions, they are not licensed under laws to address your particular legal situation. No communication by our employees to you should be deemed as personalized advice.

Monk and DBug, LLC
Diane Dennis
555 NW Fairhaven Drive
Oak Harbor, WA 98277

For specific legal advice please visit: https://www.informedcontractors.com/ja