Give to cut taxes
If you are in a position to give, making annual gifts can be an excellent strategy for reducing both your estate and income tax liability. Doing your gift-giving during midyear rather than late in the year is especially smart if you are gifting income-producing real estate. By doing so, you may further reduce your 2017 tax liability.
Parents need to do estate planning
For a parent, estate planning is especially important. The first priority is to make sure your children are protected in the event that something happens to you. Your estate plan should appoint guardians for your minor children, as well as provide for their financial well-being.
September 15 tax deadline for business
September 15 is an important tax filing deadline for partnerships and corporations. It's the filing deadline for 2016 tax returns for calendar-year S corporations that received an automatic extension of the March 15 filing deadline. It's also the filing deadline for 2016 partnership tax returns that received an extension of the April 15 filing deadline. If you need assistance, contact our office.
College or retirement – Which should you fund first?
Saving for your children's education or your own retirement – how do you decide which is more important? A typical retirement will generally last longer and cost more than your child's education. If you cannot adequately fund both, maximize your retirement savings first. There are far more options for your child to finance his or her college education than there are for you to fund your retirement.
IRS releases interest rates for second quarter 2017
Interest rates charged by the IRS on underpaid taxes and applied by the IRS on tax overpayments will remain the same for the second quarter of 2017 (April 1 through June 30). Therefore, the rates will be the following:
For individuals:
• 4% charged on underpayments; 4% paid on overpayments.
For corporations:
• 4% charged on underpayments; 3% paid on overpayments.
• 6% charged on large corporate underpayments.
• 1.5% paid on the portion of a corporate overpayment exceeding $10,000.
2017 Section 179 deduction
In 2017, businesses can expense up to $510,000 of qualified new or used business equipment purchases, with a $2,030,000 annual purchase limit. In addition, new equipment purchased in 2017 may qualify for 50% bonus depreciation. This rate drops to 40% in 2018, so plan your purchasing accordingly.
