Rod's Blog

If you owe the IRS, you are at risk of liens being filed against you and your property. Liens can affect your credit score and your ability to refinance your home. The good news is there are options to try and prevent liens from being filed. The key is to take action now and show the IRS you are trying to settle your tax debt.

In this edition of celebrity tax trouble, we see an estate of the late award-winning singer Whitney Houston settle with the IRS, and an actor whose rise in income created a rise in his tax debt, and a reality TV star who went to prison for tax trouble.

Since the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act passed earlier this year, we have been continually asked about what recent Tax Court rulings we’ve seen because of this. The truth is, we have not seen any tax court rulings affected by it yet. Because the changes will not set in until January 1, 2019, all current tax court cases are not affected by it.

Did you miss the April tax filing deadline? If you haven’t filed your 2017 federal tax return and you will likely owe for last year, it’s important that you file your individual tax return and pay the taxes you owe by June 14^th, or you will likely face a higher late-filing penalty.

Needing some extra money for summer vacation? Are you thinking about taking funds out of your Retirement Account to help pay off your bills? You may need some of the funds in your retirement account to purchase a home or vehicle or to help pay off medical bills that have piled up. Whatever the reason for taking funds out of your retirement account, the last thing you may be thinking of are the tax consequences of taking those funds out early. A withdrawal is considered early typically if you withdraw money before you turn 59 and a half.

Although no amount of tax breaks could truly thank members of the military for their service, the IRS does offer a few tax breaks to help take the tax burden off military members and their families. There are also special rules that could lower the amount of taxes they owe or give them more time to file and pay taxes. Here are a few benefits for military members and their families:

If you plan on deducting any moving or vehicle expenses on your 2018 tax return, there are some changes coming. The IRS released information on the changes from the Tax Cuts and Jobs act that affect moving expenses, vehicle expenses, unreimbursed employee expenses and depreciation limits for some vehicles. Here are some changes you should be aware of:

There are a lot of scams going around these days and scammers are taking advantage of every form of technology to try and steal your identity and your financial information. Some scammers will call you stating you owe the IRS and that they will send a sheriff to arrest you if you do not pay the balance immediately. This can be a very frightening phone call to receive, especially if you do in fact owe the IRS.

It has been just over a month since this year’s tax deadline, but that doesn’t mean taxes aren’t still on your mind. If you filed your 2017 federal tax return and were unable to pay the balance you owed, you likely are beginning to get collection notices from the IRS. Maybe this is the first year you’ve owed the IRS and you aren’t sure what to do. That fear can be paralyzing to anyone and the constant letters only make it worse. Maybe you’ve owed the IRS before but never gotten around to resolving it as other life events have taken priority. Or maybe you didn’t withhold enough on your W-2. We understand that you did not end up here on purpose. Regardless of how you ended up here or what has kept you from resolving it, you need to know there are options out there!

If you’re a small business owner, chances are you’ve been researching and looking at the new tax law to see how it could affect you. Depending on how you are structured, there are a few changes that will apply to you, and it’s important that you pay attention to your business structure, because that can mean more or less taxes.