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         Tuesday Tips and Tricks
          October 28, 2014

It's The Most Wonderful Time for the Year-End
               
    Five Year-End Tax Planning Tips

 

It is hard to believe we are in the final quarter of 2014. The holidays will be here before we know it. Before you get caught up in them, now is the perfect time to start year-end tax planning for your business. Here are a few tips you can start getting your tax plan in place.

  1. Make sure your bookkeeping is up to date. If you don't know where you are, how can you plan? I run into so many business owners who keep all of their receipts in a "shoe box" to give to their tax preparer at tax time. Not only are they most likely missing some of those precious deductions, but they are paying their tax preparer to go through each of those receipts and do bookkeeping work for them at a very high hourly rate.
  2. Know whether your business runs on a cash or accrual basis. This is very important for every business owner to know. It determines when you claim income and expenses. Cash basis means that you recognize income when you receive the funds (i.e. you have a check in hand.) Accrual means that income is captured when an invoice is prepared. So if you invoice a customer on December 31, you claim the income on December 31 even though you may not get paid until January. The same thing applies to expenditures. Expenses are captured when payment is made using the cash basis, but they are recorded at the time of purchase with the accrual basis.
  3. Review payments to individuals, sole proprietors, single member LLC's, landlords and attorneys. If you think they will go over the $600 threshold for 1099 reporting, send a W-9 form now so that you are not scrambling in late January.
  4. Discuss your current business structure with your tax preparer. Each type of entity has its own benefits and drawbacks. It is important to know what they are, and whether your current business structure is right for your situation.
  5. Check with your tax preparer now about year-end tax planning. Taking them accurate and up to date financial statements helps them make recommendations to minimize your tax situation.

We can help you get your records in order, and will work closely with your tax preparer to ensure you get the maximum tax benefits for 2014. Contact us today for a free consultation.

     

                                           Kim

 

Where's My Paycheck?

Don't Make Paying Your Employees For Their Work, More Work For You


 

When electing to run payroll in house, many business owners don't consider all of payroll processing difficulties. A mistake could cost you the trust of your employees, perhaps resulting in resignations of reliable, talented individuals. But perhaps even more painful, it could cost you thousands of dollars in IRS penalties and hours upon hours of time correcting it.

 

Payroll errors are common and costly. Statistics show that roughly 40 percent of small businesses incur an average of $845 a year in IRS penalties.

 

Some of the most common errors when running payroll manually include: 

  • Setting up Payroll Incorrectly    
  • Forgetting to Record Paper Checks   
  • Submitting Deposits Late or Incorrectly    
  • Failing to Update Your State Unemployment Insurance (SUI) Rate
  • Neglecting to Run Payroll on Time   

Off-Site Business Services helps small business customers avoid payroll pitfalls, saving them from hundreds - or even thousands - of dollars in penalties.

 

So ask yourself: "How much time does it take you or your bookkeeper to manually add up time cards and calculate pay, taxes, and benefits?" "How much time is spent investigating and making corrections, answering employee questions about alleged discrepancies and manually cutting checks to compensate for underpayment?"

 

If you are asking yourself how can I improve my payroll process, ask us how we can help. Call 877-966-4441 or send us an email at clientservices@offsitebiz.com.

 

Join us at The Business Event this Thursday!

 

Off-Site Business Services will be exhibiting at the third annual Small Business Advocacy Council's "The Business Event" on Thursday, October 30th, from 10 am to 3 pm at
Block 37, third floor of 108 N State Street, in Downtown Chicago.

Over 100 vendors, thousands of business networkers and prominent workshop presenters that will be participating at this amazing, and FREE, event. Click here to sign up as an attendee

 


Our next free webinar is on Wednesday, November 12 on 

"Business Apps Shouldn't Be That Hard To Use"


Need Some Additional "Help" For The Holidays?

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Refer a new bookkeeping or payroll service client 
and receive a

 $50 VISA gift card

      (after $100 of paid services).   

 

Off-Site Business Services, Inc.

Full-time Professional Office Management-Without the Full-time Cost.


 
Kimberly Shannon
President
877-966-4441


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