Expert Advice on Accounting & Financial News

FINANCIAL ADVICE

Is Your Business Prepared for the Increase in Minimum Wages?

By The BIDaWIZ Team on December 5th, 2011 at 5:45 pm

Small businesses in eight states may want to start thinking about a strategy to offset the wage increases they may have to shell out to non-salaried minimum wage workers. Beginning on January 1, 2012, small businesses across eight states or 17% of the country will owe an additional $0.32 on average per hour or $665 per year for each minimum wage worker. This means that those with several employees in this category will owe several thousand dollars a year in additional wages. Is your business prepared for this wage increase? Read More.

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TAX BREAKS

The Self Employed Can Get a Big Tax Break From Retirement Savings

By The BIDaWIZ Team on November 29th, 2011 at 6:00 pm

As we head into the final month of 2011, now is the time to start acting on year end tax saving strategies. For those that are self employed or have a side business, the savings can be significant by contributing to a tax friendly retirement plan now or or before April 16, 2012. Read More.

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CREDIT CARDS

Will my Credit be Impacted if I’m Late on a Credit Card Payment?

By Susan Ladika on November 10th, 2011 at 3:45 pm

While you don't have to go into panic mode if you've been late on a credit card payment or two, it's also not something you should take lightly. Depending on how far behind you are, it could impact the interest rate you pay for your credit card purchases, and ultimately take a toll on your credit score. .

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TAX BREAKS

Do I Qualify for the Small Business Health Care Tax Credit?

By Susan Ladika on November 3rd, 2011 at 6:45 pm

If you own a small business and employ fewer than 25 full-time equivalent employees, you may very well be eligible for the tax credit. It all depends on your employees' average annual wages, and whether you pay part of their health care coverage. If you meet specific criteria, you could be eligible for a tax credit of up to a maximum of 35 percent of your health care premium costs. The credit was adopted as part of federal health care reform legislation. .

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FINANCIAL ADVICE

What’s The Best Way To Determine E-Commerce Shipping Costs?

By Susan Ladika on October 28th, 2011 at 11:30 am

As anyone who runs an eCommerce site can tell you, calculating shipping costs can be one of the most complicated aspects of the entire transaction. Charge too little, and you won't be able to cover your costs. Charge too much, and you can drive shoppers away. In fact, a survey done for PayPal earlier this year found that more than 40 percent of online shoppers had abandoned their carts in midstream, most frequently due to high shipping costs. The average price of the goods that were abandoned exceeded $100. .

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INVESTING, PERSONAL FINANCE

New Cost Basis Reporting May Impact Your Capital Gains Tax

By The BIDaWIZ Team on October 25th, 2011 at 6:45 pm

You may have received a notice recently from your financial institution or broker dealer indicating that they will begin reporting the cost basis for all "covered transactions" to both you and the IRS on form 1099-B. This means that any stocks and ETFs purchased this year will include a cost basis which is intended to make it easier for you to calculate your capital gains tax. But, this also means that electing the appropriate type of cost basis method will be so much more important than in the past. The days of coming up with a cost basis out of thin air are over .

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SMALL BUSINESS, TAX REPORTING

Businesses with Sales over $20,000 Need to Prepare for form 1099-K

By Susan Ladika on October 17th, 2011 at 2:15 pm

Beginning with transactions made this year, income that came to you through third-party payment processors like PayPal and credit and debit card companies need to be reported to both you and the Internal Revenue Service on the new 1099-K form. The form is being implemented in an effort to prevent merchants from underreporting their income to the IRS and is applicable to all small business owners who have 200 transactions or more for the year and total at least $20,000 from a particular payment processor. .

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TAX ADVICE, TAX PLANNING, TAX SAVINGS

Should we Recharacterize our Roth IRAs?

By Susan Ladika on October 17th, 2011 at 12:00 pm

In 2010, we told you that if you have a traditional IRA (no matter your income level), you can convert those funds into a Roth IRA. Many IRA holders went on to convert to a Roth because the principal and appreciation of a Roth IRA grows tax free. But, now with the recent fall in the market, it may make sense to recharacterize or undo your Roth IRA conversion to avoid paying taxes and then to convert it back later. Read More.

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INSURANCE

I’m considering purchasing life insurance. What do I need to know?

By Susan Ladika on October 7th, 2011 at 11:00 am

Life insurance can be a complicated topic, just because there are so many different permutations. The two overarching categories are permanent life insurance and term life insurance, and there are a number of variations from there. Before you buy life insurance, you should first determine how much life insurance you need, and a number of websites, such as the non-profit LIFE Foundation (www.lifehappens.org), provide a life insurance calculator. .

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