News and Events

“Planning is bringing the future into the present so that you can do something about it now.” ~ Alan Lakein

Tax planning is a concept which has become a more prevalent topic in American’s lexicon since the passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which became law in December of 2017. Tax planning is the analysis of your financial situation from a tax perspective and has several beneficial advantages that can help you leverage tax benefits, preserve investment returns, structure charitable donations, protect and secure financial support for dependents, and prepare for a secure retirement. If you’re looking to reduce your taxes or increase your tax refund for 2020, here are some tax planning basics to follow.
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Before anything can be sold in the marketplace, you need to formulate a price for that product or service. For nearly the entire history of capitalism, decision-makers have chosen one of two pricing strategies, often without knowing what pricing strategy they are actually using. These two pricing processes are the cost-based approach, where a price is formulated from its overall cost of production (plus a markup), and the competitor based approach, where a price is created based on what other market participants are charging (or maybe a little less than they are charging if you’re a new competitor).
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The new tax laws in the US and the subsequent tax code changes have caused much concern, confusion, and have even caused some to experience unwarranted tax penalties. With the massive overhaul of the tax codes and IRS guidance that has taken place over the past 24 months, there appeared to be quite a bit of “trial and error” taking place as the IRS scrambles to apply guidance and tax code to match the new tax laws. Recently in the news, the IRS announced it would waive tax penalties for more than 400,000 eligible taxpayers who underpaid on their 2018 tax returns.
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We hear a lot about the ‘cloud’ and have begun to frequently refer to our workplace data and storage as ‘the cloud.’ The term has become our metaphor for the Internet, and it is a blend of where we house our work and the processes of our work from software, to drives, to project management solutions. Xero, a New Zealand based accounting software, is one such solution to cloud-based software designed specifically for small businesses and accounting. The company has revolutionized project management, payroll, expense reports, inventory tracking, purchasing and much more.
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We all know the importance of keeping track of finances.  Personal, or business, keeping “good books” helps one avoid surprises, audits, and potential fines by the IRS or other taxing authority.  We also know it is always a good idea to have a professional accountant assist with one’s financial records.  In order to do this, we enter into a Financial Reporting Engagement.  Now, this is not the type of engagement which requires rehearsal dinners, flowers, and receptions.  A Financial Reporting Engagement is basically a Statement of Work (S.O.W.) agreement between the accountant and the client detailing what type of financial reporting will be done and can be broken into four main types: financial statement preparation, compilation, review, and audit.  In addition to this type of engagement, there are many other services a CPA firm can provide (payroll, tax preparation, etc.).
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**Update:  As of Monday, July 1, 2019, President Trump has signed the Taxpayer First Act into law.

A new, bipartisan IRS reform bill has just been signed into law by the President. The bill, called the Taxpayer First Act and championed by the Senate Finance Committee Chairman, Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), promises to do just that: place the taxpayers first when it comes to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Here’s what the act will do for Americans now that it is signed into law.
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Lawhorn CPA Group wants to remind you that 2nd quarter estimated tax payments for 2019 are due June 17, 2019.
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On most accounts, there has never been a better time to take the leap towards entrepreneurship in America. After all, there are have been several new initiatives that were part of the Tax Cut and Jobs Act of 2018 that helped introduce a single and flat corporate tax rate, new pass-through tax deduction, 100% bonus depreciation, increased automobile depreciation limits, and more. It just seems like everyone is rooting for small business owners. So, while there are numerous amounts of articles you will inevitably encounter as you search for guidance in starting a business (including several million on choosing the correct business structure), this one has one goal: helping you choose the right business entity for your new company. Keep in mind that we use the term “right” quite loosely as there may be several options for you at this point in your business that would be the best choice, and still other options that may be better as you grow, hire and earn more revenue. With that out of the way, we’ll seek to find the best match for your business and its owner(s).
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Accountants are often asked the difference between tax preparers, such as H&R Block, Jackson Hewitt, and Liberty Tax Services, and Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) during tax time in the US. These roles are often seen as similar when it comes to tax preparation, and so it’s useful to know the difference between the two. As the 2019 annual tax season begins, here is what you need to know about H&R Block-like services versus a CPA.
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Once all of the steps are completed in the framework of the FASB Accounting Standard concerning the Revenue from Contracts with Customers, then businesses can completely recognize the revenue. This final step recognizes revenue when or as the performance obligations are completed.

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