• All Good With Recent PCAOB Inspection

    Recently, Morison Cogen LLP underwent it's routine PCAOB (Public Company Accounting Oversight Board) inspection. The PCAOB has rigorous standards. Its reviews are exacting and they predictably identify matters of concern in most audits. This year, however, the PCAOB’s review did not identify any deficiencies or matters of concern in Morison Cogen LLP’s auditing or accounting work. In addition, the PCAOB did not identify any quality [...]

    Published On: February 1, 2016Categories: Featured
  • 7 last-minute tax-saving tips

    The year is quickly drawing to a close, but there’s still time to take steps to reduce your 2015 tax liability — you just must act by December 31: Pay your 2015 property tax bill that’s due in early 2016. Make your January 1 mortgage payment. Incur deductible medical expenses (if your deductible medical expenses for the year already exceed the applicable floor). Pay tuition for [...]

    Published On: December 15, 2015Categories: Featured
  • Avoid a 50% penalty: Take retirement plan RMDs by December 31

    After you reach age 70½, you must take annual required minimum distributions (RMDs) from your IRAs (except Roth IRAs) and, generally, from your defined contribution plans (such as 401(k) plans). You also could be required to take RMDs if you inherited a retirement plan (including Roth IRAs). If you don’t comply — which usually requires taking the RMD by December 31 — you can owe [...]

    Published On: December 8, 2015Categories: Featured
  • Don’t miss your opportunity to make 2015 annual exclusion gifts

    Recently, the IRS released the 2016 annually adjusted amount for the unified gift and estate tax exemption and the generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax exemption: $5.45 million (up from $5.43 million in 2015). But even with the rising exemptions, annual exclusion gifts offer a valuable tax-saving opportunity. The 2015 gift tax annual exclusion allows you to give up to $14,000 per recipient tax-free — without using [...]

    Published On: December 3, 2015Categories: Featured
  • PTO contribution arrangements can help prevent the year-end vacation-time scramble

    From the Thanksgiving kick-off of the holiday season through December 31, many businesses find themselves short-staffed as employees take time off to spend with family and friends. But if you limit how many vacation days employees can roll over to the new year, you might find your workplace to be nearly a ghost town as employees scramble to use their time off rather than lose [...]

    Published On: November 30, 2015Categories: Featured
  • Reduce taxes on your investments with these year-end strategies

    While tax consequences should never drive investment decisions, it’s critical that they be considered — especially by higher-income taxpayers, who may be facing the 39.6% short-term capital gains rate, the 20% long-term capital gains rate and the 3.8% net investment income tax (NIIT). Holding on to an investment until you’ve owned it more than one year so the gains qualify for long-term treatment may help substantially [...]

    Published On: November 17, 2015Categories: Featured
  • Protect your deduction: Verify that a charity is eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions before you donate

    Donations to qualified charities are generally fully deductible, and they may be the easiest deductible expense to time to your tax advantage. After all, you control exactly when and how much you give. But before you donate, it’s critical to make sure the charity you’re considering is indeed a qualified charity — that it’s eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions. The IRS’s online search tool, Exempt [...]

    Published On: November 10, 2015Categories: Featured
  • The 529 savings plan: A tax-smart way to fund college expenses

    If you’re saving for college, consider a Section 529 plan. Although contributions aren’t deductible for federal purposes, plan assets can grow tax-deferred. (Some states do offer tax incentives for contributing.) Distributions used to pay qualified expenses (such as tuition, mandatory fees, books, equipment, supplies and, generally, room and board) are income-tax-free for federal purposes and typically for state purposes as well, thus making the tax [...]

    Published On: November 4, 2015Categories: Featured
  • Save tax — or at least defer it — by carefully timing business income and expenses

    The first step to smart timing is to project your business’s income and expenses for 2015 and 2016. With this information in hand, you can determine the best year-end timing strategy for your business. If you expect to be in the same or lower tax bracket in 2016, consider: Deferring income to 2016. If your business uses the cash method of accounting, you can defer [...]

    Published On: October 28, 2015Categories: Featured
  • 2 tax consequences to consider if you’re refinancing a home

    Now may be a great time to refinance, because mortgage rates are still low but expected to increase. Before deciding to refinance, however, here are a couple of tax consequences to consider: Cash-out refinancing. If you borrow more than you need to cover your outstanding mortgage balance, the tax treatment of the cash-out portion depends on how you use the excess cash. If you use [...]

    Published On: October 21, 2015Categories: Featured
  • Your exec comp could be subject to the 0.9% additional Medicare tax or the 3.8% NIIT

    The additional Medicare tax and net investment income tax (NIIT) apply when certain income exceeds the applicable threshold: $250,000 for married filing jointly, $125,000 for married filing separately, and $200,000 for other taxpayers. The following types of executive compensation could be subject to the 0.9% additional Medicare tax if your earned income exceeds the applicable threshold: Fair market value (FMV) of restricted stock once the [...]

    Published On: October 14, 2015Categories: Featured
  • Gearing up for the ACA’s information reporting requirements

    Starting in 2016, applicable large employers (ALEs) under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) will have to file Forms 1094-C and 1095-C to provide information to the IRS and plan participants regarding their health care benefits for the previous year. Both the forms and their instructions are now available for ALEs to study and begin preparations for required filings. In addition, organizations that expect to file [...]

    Published On: October 12, 2015Categories: Featured
  • Should you “bunch” medical expenses into 2015?

    Medical expenses that aren’t reimbursable by insurance or paid through a tax-advantaged account (such as a Health Savings Account or Flexible Spending Account) may be deductible — but generally only to the extent that they exceed 10% of your adjusted gross income. Taxpayers age 65 and older can enjoy a 7.5% floor through 2016. The floor for alternative minimum tax purposes, however, is 10% for [...]

    Published On: October 7, 2015Categories: Featured
  • Selling rather than trading in business vehicles can save tax

    Although a vehicle’s value typically drops fairly rapidly, the tax rules limit the amount of annual depreciation that can be claimed on most cars and light trucks. Thus, when it’s time to replace a vehicle used in business, it’s not unusual for its tax basis to be higher than its value. If you trade a vehicle in on a new one, the undepreciated basis of [...]

    Published On: September 29, 2015Categories: Featured