Insights
Planning ideas, deadline reminders, and answers to the questions clients ask most, written by the practices that handle them.
Articles and resources
Every filing and payment deadline for the year, adjusted for weekends and holidays
Individual, business, fiduciary, and payroll due dates in one place, with a filter by practice and an export to your own calendar.
When a trust files its own tax return, explained
A trust or estate can be its own taxpayer. When a fiduciary return is required, who pays the tax, and why trusts reach the top bracket so fast.
S corp vs. LLC: how entity choice changes your tax bill
An LLC is a legal entity. An S corp is a tax election. How the choice affects self-employment tax, payroll, and paperwork, and when it is worth electing.
1031 exchanges: the 45‑day and 180‑day clocks
Defer capital gains tax by reinvesting in like-kind real estate. How the two strict deadlines work, and the rules that quietly sink exchanges.
What executors need to do in the first 90 days
The estate's EIN, Form 56, the final 1040, the estate's 1041 and fiscal year, basis step-up, and when a Form 706 is required, in the order they come up.
Gifting to family: the annual exclusion, the lifetime exemption, and Form 709
Most family gifts owe no tax, but many still require a return. How the exclusion and the exemption fit together, and when Form 709 is due.
Reasonable compensation for S corporation owners: how the IRS looks at it
The factors examiners use, what happens when distributions are reclassified as wages, and how to set and document an owner salary that holds up.
The monthly close for a small business, and why lenders ask for it
What a monthly close includes, why lenders and buyers ask for it, and the six bookkeeping messes we see most often when there has never been one.
Cost segregation, explained: who benefits, what it costs, and recapture on sale
Front-loading depreciation only pays if you can use the loss and hold long enough. Who benefits, how the fee compares to the tax effect, and what comes back on sale.
Passive activity rules for landlords: the $25,000 allowance, the professional test, and grouping
Rental losses are passive by default. The three ways around that, what each test requires, and the elections that have to be made on time.
Year-end tax checklist
What individuals, business owners, and real estate investors should review before December 31, so the next filing season is a confirmation rather than a scramble.