Business succession planning can be a little hard to discuss. Talking about the next steps in life tends to have a particular element of morbidity. The heavy memento mori vibe aside, every business owner should have some exit plan for their business. The lack of a business succession plan can create tax heartaches for your… Read More

Internal financial controls can be the foundation of a good business. And they are often at the heart of the risk assurance process because they deter fraud and soothe investors. For the last installment in our risk assurance series, let’s look at these internal financial controls. We’ll examine what they are, some of the more… Read More

Today, let’s dive into the CPA Audit. It’s one of the highest levels of risk assurance and is used to provide stakeholders feedback on the accuracy and reliability of financial statements in your business. We’ll look into when and why you might want to consider one and what a good one looks like. Let’s go!… Read More

Last week, we started our series on risk assurance for small businesses by providing a broad overview. This week we’ll drill down and look at compilation, gathering data and information to determine risks. This may not be the stuff of business reality shows, but it is foundational. The risk assurance process won’t be effective if… Read More

The only sure thing about running a small business is that nothing is certain. At least, it seems that way. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Adverse events that seem beyond a business owner’s control can be mitigated (or avoided altogether) by practicing risk assurance. But what is risk assurance, and how does… Read More

Tax fraud. Those words conjure images of old-time gangsters, dishonest corporate executives, and thieving politicians. But is it possible for the average taxpayer to accidentally commit tax fraud? The short answer is maybe. Today, we’ll look at fraud versus negligence and how to avoid both. Fraud vs. Negligence The IRS deems fraud as a willful attempt to… Read More

Deciding to start a business or a side hustle can be heady stuff. It’s fun to develop business plans and dream of possibilities, but you must also know your tax information. So, here are some tax essentials every new business owner should know and how to use them. We’ll examine the most common types of… Read More

Last week, we looked at different filing statuses for married tax filers. But what if you aren’t married? As Part I of this series mentions, you can use Single Filer (SF) or Head of Household (HOH) status. What’s the main difference? Well, head of household means you have a dependent to care for. Sorry, single filers,… Read More

One of the fastest ways to mess up a tax return is to claim the wrong filing status. Last week provided an overview of the pros and cons of tax filing statuses. But this week, let’s zero in on the best choice for married couples. Understanding the Options Married couples have two basic filing options: Married… Read More

Every year, thousands of tax filers make simple mistakes on their returns that cost them money. Ironically, one of the biggest ones is choosing the wrong tax filing status. That’s why we put together a three-part series on selecting the correct filing status. Today we’ll provide an overview of the different types of filing status,… Read More