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Make Endowment Funding Your Nonprofit’s Ally
Income from endowment funds may be able to help your not-for-profit meet operating expenses, ease cash-flow problems and supplement next year’s annual budget. But you need to pay attention to several factors, including investment performance, inflation, operational changes and — the only factor you can truly control — your nonprofit’s
Investors: Beware of the Wash Sale Rule
A tried-and-true tax-saving strategy for investors is to sell assets at a loss to offset gains that have been realized during the year. So if you’ve cashed in some big gains this year, consider looking for unrealized losses in your portfolio and selling those investments before year end to offset
2 Ways Spouse-Owned Businesses Can Reduce Their Self-Employment Tax Bill
If you own a profitable, unincorporated business with your spouse, you probably find the high self-employment (SE) tax bills burdensome. An unincorporated business in which both spouses are active is typically treated by the IRS as a partnership owned 50/50 by the spouses. (For simplicity, when we refer to “partnerships,”
How an HSA Can Benefit Your Estate Plan
One health care arrangement that has been soaring in popularity in recent years has been the pairing of a high-deductible health plan (HDHP) with a Health Savings Account (HSA). The good news is that not only does an HSA provide a tax-advantaged way to pay for health care costs, but
How Profitable are Your Customers?
“We love our customers!” Every business owner says it. But how profitable are your customers? All customers aren’t created equal, and it’s in your strategic interest to know which customers are really strengthening your bottom line and by how much. Sorting out the data If your business systems track individual
Why You Should Boost Your 401(k) Contribution Rate Before Year End
One important step to both reducing taxes and saving for retirement is to contribute to a tax-advantaged retirement plan. If your employer offers a 401(k) plan, contributing to that is likely your best first step. If you’re not already contributing the maximum allowed, consider increasing your contribution rate between now
Should Your Business Use Per Diem Rates for Travel Reimbursement?
Updated travel per diem rates go into effect October 1, 2017. To simplify recordkeeping, they can be used for reimbursement of ordinary and normal business expenses incurred while employees travel away from home. Per diem advantages As long as employees properly account for their business-travel expenses, reimbursements are generally tax-free
How Effectively do You Manage Risk?
Businesses can’t eliminate risk, but they can manage it to maximize the entity’s economic return. A new framework aims to help business owners and managers more effectively integrate enterprise risk management (ERM) practices into their overall business strategies. 5-part approach On September 6, the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the
Charitable Giving – Artwork Donations
Charitable giving is a key part of estate planning for many people. If you’re among them and own valuable works of art, they may be ideal candidates for charitable donations during your life. Generally, it’s advantageous to donate appreciated property because, in addition to gaining a valuable tax deduction, you
Ready for the New Not-for-Profit Accounting Standard?
A new accounting standard goes into effect starting in 2018 for churches, charities and other not-for-profit entities. Here’s a summary of the major changes. Net asset classifications The existing rules require nonprofit organizations to classify their net assets as either unrestricted, temporarily restricted or permanently restricted. But under Accounting Standards