A like-kind exchange is any exchange (1) of property held for investment or for productive use in your trade or business for (2) like-kind investment property or trade or business property. For these purposes, “like-kind” is very broadly defined. As long as the exchange is real estate (land and/or buildings) for real estate, or [...]
This article will discuss whether you can deduct the interest you will pay on your new mortgage, the points that you pay, and other fees that you may pay in connection with the refinancing. Interest deduction: Interest that you pay on a home mortgage is deductible within limits, depending on whether it is home [...]
As you may be aware, income that you generate conducting your business as a sole proprietorship (or through a wholly-owned limited liability company (LLC)) is subject to both income tax and self-employment tax. The self-employment tax is imposed on 92.35% of self-employment income at a 12.4% rate for social security up to the social [...]
Unfortunately, in addition to the difficult personal issues the process entails, several tax concerns need to be addressed to ensure that tax costs are kept to a minimum and that important tax-related decisions are properly made when facing a divorce or legal separation. Support provisions. Where one spouse is to be making support payments [...]
If you are thinking about setting up a retirement plan for yourself and your employees, but are concerned about the financial commitment and administrative burdens involved in providing a traditional pension or profit-sharing plan you may want to consider a “simplified employee pension,” or SEP. SEPs are intended as an alternative to “qualified” retirement [...]
Parent Buys House, Kid Pays The Mortgage. Who Gets the Interest Deduction? March 1, 2012 by WithumSmith Brown, CPAs As you’re likely aware, the lending market is not what it used to be. The resulting housing market crash forced lenders to tighten their purse strings, leaving many hopeful homebuyers unable to secure a mortgage. [...]
Do you have a number of rental real estate properties that are throwing off losses that you'd like to deduct against your other income for tax purposes? The passive activity loss (PAL) rules would normally make this impossible. Under those rules, losses from passive activities—that is, activities in which you do not “materially participate” [...]
Nursing-home care can be very expensive. As a result, insurance for such care is growing in popularity. Fortunately, there is some tax relief for these expenses. Both the cost of qualified long-term care and insurance coverage for such care qualify as deductible medical expenses. “Qualified long-term care” services are necessary diagnostic, preventive, therapeutic, curing, [...]
As a parent with college-bound children, you are concerned with setting up a financial plan to fund future college costs. If your children are already college age, your goal is to pay for current or imminent college bills. I'd like to address both of these concerns by suggesting several approaches that seek to take [...]
lf you have a child or grandchild who is going to attend college in the future, you have probably heard about qualified tuition programs, also known as 529 plans, which allow prepayment of higher education costs on a tax-favored basis. There are two types of programs: prepaid plans, which allow you to buy tuition [...]