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August 2026

Worker misclassification can carry serious consequences

Leave a Comment / Independent Contractors, Small Business, Small Business Owners, Small Business Tips, U.S. Department of Labor /

Hiring independent contractors provides your business with valuable flexibility, particularly when you require specialized expertise or help with a short-term project. But calling someone an independent contractor doesn’t automatically make them one. Worker status depends on your actual working relationship. And getting it wrong can expose your business to tax liabilities and other consequences. What’s […]

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Educators may be able to claim 2 deductions for 2026 classroom expenses

Leave a Comment / Educator Expense Deduction, Educators, Itemized Deduction, One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act /

Teachers and other educators often spend their own money on books, supplies, equipment and other classroom needs. For 2026, eligible educators may have two ways to deduct qualifying unreimbursed expenses. One deduction is available whether or not they itemize, and a new deduction under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) is available to itemizers.

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Which fringe benefits are tax-free to employees?

Leave a Comment / Disability Insurance, Fringe Benefits For Employees, Health Care Insurance, Life Insurance, Long-Term Care Insurance, One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act, Small Business, Small Business Owners, Small Business Tips, Tax-Advantaged Benefits /

To attract and retain skilled workers, your small business needs to offer more than competitive pay. Your benefits package matters, too — and benefits with favorable tax treatment can be even more valuable to prospective and existing employees. Open enrollment is right around the corner for many businesses. As you review your benefits package for

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Sometimes how much is in tax-deferred retirement accounts may be too much

Leave a Comment / 401K, IRA, Required Minimum Distributions (RMD), Retirement, Roth IRA, Tax-Deferred Retirement Accounts, Traditional IRA /

Contributing as much as possible to tax-deferred retirement accounts such as traditional 401(k)s and IRAs is a common recommendation. Contributions generally are pretax or deductible, and the power of tax-deferred compounding can help turbocharge growth. But some taxpayers can reach a point where maximizing tax deferral may become counterproductive. Potential downsides of tax-deferred saving After

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Let’s trade! Business bartering is still taxable

Leave a Comment / (ATI) Adjusted Taxable Income, Barter Clubs, Bartering, Small Business, Small Business Owners, Small Business Tips, Tax-Deductible Business Expenses /

Trading items or services — without exchanging cash — has long been common among small businesses. Today, some use online barter exchanges to facilitate trades. In addition to preserving cash flow, these types of transactions may expand your purchasing power, help you move overstocked inventory and increase your business’s exposure to new markets. But bartering

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How a lockbox or other service can benefit accounts receivable

Leave a Comment / Accounts Receivable, Automnated Clearing House (ACH), Billing and Collections, Electronic Payments, Small Business, Small Business Owners, Small Business Tips /

For decades, businesses have used bank lockbox services to speed up collections and reduce administrative work involved in processing customer checks. Today, the basic idea remains the same, but modern lockbox services can automate your accounts receivable processes. Automated clearing house (ACH), credit card and instant-payment services can also provide efficient collections. So the question

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Tax essentials for sole proprietors

Leave a Comment / Federal Income Tax, Federal Taxes, Home Office Deduction, One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act, Qualified Business Income Deducton (QBI), Self Employment Tax, Simplified Employee Pension (SEP), Small Business, Small Business Owners, Small Business Tax Tips, Sole Proprietors, Tax Planning, Tax-Advantaged Retirement Plan /

Many small businesses start out as sole proprietorships. This structure is simple and inexpensive to establish and maintain — and it gives the owner direct access to profits without having to take formal distributions. But it also makes your taxes more complicated than when you were a W-2 employee. Here are some federal tax issues

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Professional valuations provide businesses with more than a number

Leave a Comment / Business Valuation, Intangible Assets, Small Business, Small Business Owners, Small Business Tips /

Are you selling your business, soliciting new investors, updating a buy-sell agreement, pursuing litigation or drafting an estate plan? An accurate business valuation prepared by a valuation professional is critical to the success of these and many other activities. Knowing some fundamentals about the process can help you understand your valuator’s conclusions, what drives business

Professional valuations provide businesses with more than a number Read More »