Benjamin McPherson, CPA

01/31/2023

Got a 1099-NEC this year after receiving a payment over $600? If you used TurboTax, Tax ACT, or other software providers they will force you into their small business tier which is significantly more expensive. For just a little bit more, you can have a professional handle your taxes this year.

01/12/2023

The IRS has announced that their systems will open to accept electronic returns starting on January 23rd.

01/02/2023

Happy New Year everyone! I am now accepting clients for the 2023 tax year. For a quote go to https://benmcpcpa.com/contact-us.html , email [email protected], or use the button below to chat through FB.

12/19/2022

I expect a significant amount of people to get unexpected 1099-Ks this year as Paypay, Venmo and others will have to report transactions that add up over $600.
The IRS set the de minimis $600 threshold in 1954 related to other legislation. The old threshold before the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 was $20,000. The $600 threshold adjusted for inflation would be around $6,600 in todays dollars. The AICPA is fighting to raise the threshold for reporting to $5,000.
As always, if you get a tax form you weren't expecting or don't understand reach out to a tax professional.

The $600 threshold is based on a threshold established by the Internal Revenue Code section 6041 established in 1954 and does not account for increases in ...

11/24/2022

Yet another reason to use a CPA to file your taxes. We won't sell your return info to Facebook and Google..
"Income was rounded to the nearest thousand and refunds to the nearest hundred."

The Markup found that tax preparation services including TaxAct, TaxSlayer, and H&R Block have sent users’ personal financial information to Facebook through the Meta Pixel.

01/15/2022

If you liked counting down to Christmas you'll LOVE counting down to filing season. IRS will start accepting returns in 10 days!

However, most people won't have the majority of their forms from their employers, banks, and brokers till the end of the month.

11/18/2021

I get asked a lot about pricing. Pricing is always based on the complexity of the return. Usually last year's tax return and a short questionnaire can give a clear idea of how much it will cost. In previous years I'd match H&R, Liberty Jackson Hewitt, etc. This year I will match on the longer returns but have found that I cannot compete on the short returns.

11/15/2021

Only 6 more weeks until the end of the year. Now is a great time to get your books in order, evaluate what transactions should be made before year end or postponed, AND reach out to your CPA about booking a slot for 2021 tax return preparation.

08/03/2021

How do you budget your personal finances?
A. I don't
B. Don't budget but track where spending goes
C. I budget for major recurring expenses like mortgage/car/credit card payment/utilities etc.
D. Full budget for all spending in all categories

07/15/2021

Today millions of Americans with minor children are receiving the first of 6 payments of advanced tax credits from the IRS. This is the top issue I've had people ask me about in the last month.

A couple of highlights:
1. This is a fully refundable credit. That means that even if you have no federal income tax you will still receive this credit.
2. There is no limit to the number of children eligible for this credit.
3. You "may" have to repay a small portion of this. Individuals who have already fully adjusted their withholding for the $2k per child Trump era child credit will need to pay back $500 for each child over 6 and $200 for each child under 6.
4. There is an opt out available. This can be useful if you anticipate a larger tax bill due to business income or other taxable events like a Roth conversion etc.

06/17/2021

Some people wonder what do I do when its not "tax season"? I lump it into two categories.
1. Compliance (also known as stuff business owners hate so I do it for them)
Sales tax filings
Quarterly income tax filings
Payroll tax filings
Bookkeeping
Payroll
Internal controls (account speak for making sure you aren't robbed from within and that everything checks out)
Audit support (goes alot easier if I did the taxes 😁 )

2. Strategy (also known as the fun stuff that business owners love to talk about)
Tax Planning
Legal entity setup
Partnership profit splitting modeling
Make vs Buy Analysis
"Flexible" budgeting/planning (you won't believe how many business owners don't have a budget or profit plan!!)
Retirement Planning
Personal Budgeting
Business Plan Creation for startups looking for funding
Advertising ROI