MBA News

As we approach year end, it’s again time to focus on last-minute moves you can make to save taxes — both on your 2014 return and in future years. Here are a few ideas. Maximize the benefit of the standard deduction. For 2014, the standard deduction is $12,400 for married... Continue Reading

Are you a collector of antiques, artifacts or other goods? If your passion evolves into a full-fledged business with a profit motive, you may use a resulting tax loss to offset other income on your return. However, if the IRS classifies the activity as just a hobby — as it... Continue Reading

Many businesses scramble around at year end to come up with clever, relevant holiday gifts to send to customers to reinforce brands and cement business ties. But the most memorable ideas aren’t necessarily the most expensive. In today’s high-paced, electronic world, a... Continue Reading

Inventory is normally valued for tax purposes at cost or the lower of cost or market value. Regardless of which of these methods is used, the end-of-the-year inventory should be reviewed to detect obsolete or damaged items. The carrying cost of any such items may be written down... Continue Reading

The long-term capital gains rate is 0% for gain that would be taxed at 10% or 15% based on the taxpayer’s ordinary-income rate. If you have loved ones in the 0% bracket, you may be able to take advantage of it by transferring appreciated assets to them. The recipients can then... Continue Reading

For tax year 2015, the IRS recently announced annual inflation adjustments for many tax provisions, including the tax rate schedules, and other tax changes. IRS Revenue Procedure 2014-61 provides details about these annual adjustments. The tax items for tax year 2015 of greatest... Continue Reading

If your employer has a health care and/or dependent care FSA, before year end you must specify how much of your 2015 salary to convert into tax-free contributions to the plan. You can then take tax-free withdrawals next year to reimburse yourself for out-of-pocket medical and... Continue Reading

The Ebola outbreak is all over the news, especially now that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported cases on U.S. soil. As of Oct. 22, the World Health Organization, a specialized agency of the United Nations, reported more than 9,900 reported cases of Ebola... Continue Reading

Typically, it’s better to defer tax. Here are two timing strategies that can help businesses do this: Defer income to next year. If your business uses the cash method of accounting, you can defer billing for your products or services. Or, if you use the accrual method, you can... Continue Reading