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5 Tips For Launching A New Business

Diana Jelen — Fri, 24 Jul 2015 18:28:20 +0000

Rule #1: Plan, Plan, Plan – But be Flexible

Before we could launch Grace Hightower & Coffees of Rwanda, we spent months planning our business model and strategy. From trips to Rwanda to meet the farmers, getting an education in the coffee production process, learning how to import beans to the US to discovering how to distribute product. Only when we had a solid plan were we able to start our business.

Planning saves on costly mistakes.

5 Bookkeeping Mistakes To Avoid

Diana Jelen — Fri, 24 Jul 2015 18:19:11 +0000

Five easy bookkeeping mistakes to avoid

Once you’ve learned to look at bookkeeping with fresh (and hopefully more enthusiastic) eyes, the next step to making it less of a chore is to identify five common – but easily avoided – mistakes, and steer well clear of them.

1) Combining personal and business finances

In my experience, this is the number one culprit of bad record-keeping. So ensure there’s no room for confusion, and keep your personal expenses personal, and your business expenses attached to the business.

This means opening a separate bank account for your freelance work or business (if you haven’t already) and using the correct card or cheque book when making purchases or issuing payments related to your work.

Taking a few seconds to ensure you’re paying from the right account at the time can save hours of trying to unravel mixed-up bank statements later on..

How Can I Support and Finance Company Growth?

Diana Jelen — Tue, 30 Jun 2015 17:34:59 +0000

First of all by identifying when you’re ready to scale and when you’re not. In order to scale, you need to identify milestones to help keep you on track to hit key operating targets, set budgets and plan your fundraising. Your finance professional should have and develop connections with other businesses that can help you, and be proactive about making introductions for your business.

Lastly, your accountant should also provide the GAAP-compliant financial statements and other financial documentation you need to submit as part of the due diligence process. A more efficient and cost-effective solution is to outsource the finance function to experienced professionals who understand small businesses.

Article by AlleyWatch
Get full article: http://www.alleywatch.com/2015/06/3-questions-every-entrepreneur-should-ask-their-accountant/

How Can I Improve the Financial Health of My Company?

Diana Jelen — Tue, 30 Jun 2015 17:33:19 +0000

At its heart, this question is all about cash flow and finding ways to increase your cash flow and reduce costs. Your finance professional should support you with day-to-day budgeting, help you refine your accounts receivable and accounts payable systems and maximize your pricing strategy, to name just a few tasks that greatly impact your cash flow.

Article by AlleyWatch
Get full article: http://www.alleywatch.com/2015/06/3-questions-every-entrepreneur-should-ask-their-accountant/

How Can I Minimize My Income Tax Burden?

Diana Jelen — Tue, 30 Jun 2015 17:25:17 +0000

Your finance partner needs to be on top of new tax laws and credits to help you to maximize your finances. Of equal importance, with the right support, you can be assured that you are meeting all of your tax obligations, thereby avoiding an unwanted IRS audit due to compliance issues.

Article by AlleyWatch
See full article: http://www.alleywatch.com/2015/06/3-questions-every-entrepreneur-should-ask-their-accountant/

How Much Tax Money Should Come Out of My Paycheck?

Diana Jelen — Tue, 16 Jun 2015 15:51:38 +0000

The IRS requires that your total withholding tax for the current year be equal or greater than your total tax liability for the prior year.
Q. I’m changing jobs and I’m not sure the best way to decide how much I should have withheld in taxes. My husband does side contract work and he doesn’t pay estimated taxes, so at my job now, I have them take out more each week to cover his taxes too so we don’t get slammed at the end of the year. Advice?

A. Figuring out — ahead of time — what taxes will be due can be a challenge. But you can make smart guesses to ease the process come April 15

For starters, taxes can be tough to estimate because the withholding tax schedules do not take into consideration itemized deductions, said Howard Hook, a certified financial planner and certified public accountant with EKS Associates in Princeton, N.J. They also don’t adequately account for two high-income earners where the lower tax brackets have already been filled with the first spouse’s income, he said.

“The fact that your husband does not pay estimated taxes on his side work does make things more difficult,” Hook said.

That said, the answer to your question depends largely upon the amount of income you and your husband are currently earning, said Steve Gallo, a certified public accountant with U.S. Financial Services in Fairfield, N.J.

Article by: Time.com

Read full article: http://time.com/money/3921130/taxes-paycheck-withholding/

How Remarriage Can Mess Up Your Social Security

Diana Jelen — Tue, 16 Jun 2015 15:36:19 +0000

Social Security is dauntingly complex. It gets more so if you are divorced and remarried. How can you navigate these shoals? For answers, we turn to one of the top experts on the subject, AdviceIQ Network member Jim Blankenship, an independent, fee-only financial planner at Blankenship Financial Planning in New Berlin, Ill. His advice:

Social Security has a way of making your life decisions difficult. When divorce and remarriage enter the picture, things get very complicated.

The earliest age you can start claiming Social Security benefits is 62. You can also delay taking benefits to any age. If you wait until your full retirement age, which is 66 for the current crop of baby boomers, you receive a larger benefit. If you can get by without the monthly benefits for a few years longer, delaying further to 70 results in a maximized benefit for you.

Article by: Forbes.com

See full article: http://www.forbes.com/sites/lawrencelight/2015/06/16/how-remarriage-can-mess-up-your-social-security/

Where’s My Amended Return?

Diana Jelen — Tue, 16 Jun 2015 15:25:33 +0000

The “Where’s My Amended Return?” tool provides the status of Form 1040X Amended Tax Return for the current year and up to three prior years.

You can generally expect your amended return to be processed up to 16 weeks from the date we receive it. It can take up to three weeks from the date you mailed it to show up in our system.

Please Note: You will not be able to access certain amended returns using this application.

IRS telephone assistors will not be able to provide additional information while your amended return moves through processing.

There is no need to call our toll-free number unless “Where’s My Amended Return?” specifically indicates that you should call.

Article by: Irs.gov

For more information visit: http://www.irs.gov/Filing/Individuals/Amended-Returns-(Form-1040-X)/Wheres-My-Amended-Return-1

ITINS

Diana Jelen — Tue, 16 Jun 2015 14:29:34 +0000

What is an ITIN?
An Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) is a tax processing number issued by the Internal Revenue Service. It is a nine-digit number that always begins with the number 9 and has a range of 70-88 in the fourth and fifth digit.

What is an ITIN used for?
ITINs are for federal tax reporting only, and are not intended to serve any other purpose. IRS issues ITINs to help individuals comply with the U.S. tax laws, and to provide a means to efficiently process and account for tax returns and payments for those not eligible for Social Security Numbers (SSNs)

Who needs an ITIN?
IRS issues ITINs to foreign nationals and others who have federal tax reporting or filing requirements and do not qualify for SSNs. A non-resident alien individual not eligible for a SSN who is required to file a U.S. tax return only to claim a refund of tax under the provisions of a U.S. tax treaty needs an ITIN.

Other examples of individuals who need ITINs include:
• A nonresident alien required to file a U.S. tax return
• A U.S. resident alien (based on days present in the United States) filing a U.S. tax return
• A dependent or spouse of a U.S. citizen/resident alien
• A dependent or spouse of a nonresident alien visa holde

Article by: irs.gov

To see full article visit: http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/General-ITIN-Information