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5 Things A Busines Owner Needs To Know

In our current economy it is important for business owners to make sound financial business decisions. Here are five things that business owners should consider when making decisions.

First, it is very important to keep your receipts of business expenditures in an organized manner. It will take your accountant more time to input your information into your accounting system if your records are disorganized. Without proper documentation you will not get a true picture of your business.

Second, once you have your system in place for the organization of your records, stay the course. It is easy to let the organization of your records get out of hand. If your accountant has set up a system work with them to keep records in order and your accounting cost down.

Third, make sure your current business is profitable before you decide to expand. A premature decision to expand your business could cost you everything. Has your company reached its break-even point yet? The break-even point is the point at which your income matches your expenses. It is not until after you have reached your break-even point that you will begin to see a profit. It is important to know how much you need to produce or how much in services you need to provide to break even.

Fourth, it is important to set prices right. How much will the market you serve be willing to pay for your product or service? Your prices should not be higher than the market is willing to pay. If you have more products than you can sell consider reducing the price.

Fifth, budget wisely. Your company should have a budget just like your household should have. Can you determine from your company budget if you are over or under budget on your projected expenditures. Make a sound budget and you will be able to make sound decisions.

These ideas are just a few you should consider in making decisions for your business. The better your decision making process the greater the chance of your business succeeding.

It's Almost Tax Time Again

The end of the year is upon us. Do you have your tax information in order? Starting now to get things in order would make your tax prepares job easier. When organizing consider the following items.

Will I itemize this year? If you will be itemizing make sure you have the following items organized. First make sure you have totals for any medical expenses paid out of pocket not reimbursed by your employer. Second make sure you have totals for state and local taxes paid. Also consider interest you paid, gifts to charity, casualty or theft losses, job expenses and certain miscellaneous deductions. See IRS schedule A for more information. http://ping.fm/evouN

If you have a small business, consider the following. Do you have your income totals for the year? Have all the expenses of your business properly catergorized? What adjustments need to be made to your financial statement before they are ready for the final review?

This is just a start of what should be considered as we approach another tax season. If you have questions about your tax situation please leave a comment.

Year End Tax Planning Stratigies

Some Year-End Tax Planning Strategies
The 2009 tax year is drawing to a close. The sooner you address year-end tax planning issues, the better. Whether you are approaching year-end planning from an individual or business perspective, you can take action to benefit from favorable tax law provisions.

Careful planning can reduce your tax liability. The lower your liablity the more money you have available to invest, or save for future goals. Set goals, stay on track and make sound financial decisions.

IRA Charitable Donation Rule for 2009
Contributing to charity is a way to benefit others and realize valuable tax benefits at the same time. If you are an older IRA owner, you may be eligible for a special charitable contribution rule that extends through the end of 2009. Under federal tax law, an IRA owner age 70½ or older can directly transfer tax free up to $100,000 from the IRA to an eligible charitable organization in 2009. This planning option is eligible to IRA owners regardless of whether they itemize their deductions. To qualify, the funds must be contributed directly by the IRA trustee to the eligible charity. The transferred amounts are not taxable to the IRA owner and no deduction is available for the amount given to charity. We can help you determine if this strategy would be beneficial to you in your planning.

IRA Contributions
The deadline for contributions to a traditional IRA for the year is the due date of your return, not including any extensions of time to file. Amounts you withdraw from your IRA are fully or partially taxable in the year you withdraw them. If you made only deductible contributions, withdrawals are fully taxable. Use Form 8606 to figure the taxable portion of withdrawals.

Withdrawals made prior to age 59 1/2 may be subject to a 10% additional tax. You also may owe an excise tax if you do not begin to withdraw minimum distributions by April 1st of the year after you reach age 70 1/2. These additional taxes are figured and reported on Form 5329 (PDF). Refer to Form 5329 Instructions for exceptions to the additional taxes. For information on Roth IRA contributions or distributions, refer to Topic 309. For information on conversions from a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA, refer to Publication 590.

5 Money Monitoring Tips

In today's world of finances we need to have a better handle on our money. Do you know how much you spend on that latte' per month? Simple guidelines for monitoring your money will help in the long run.

These Five Tips can help you stay on top. There is no need to continue to have questions about your finances when you can have answers. If you will only monitor a few items you could be well on your way to greater control over your finances.

1.Hang Up on High Phone Bills
Monthly savings up to: $145*Eight out of 10 U.S. families pay too much for phone service, reports billshrink.com. Use one or more of these strategies to ensure yours isn't among them. Take a message. Teens who live at home average 1,742 texts a month. Switch to a family cell plan with unlimited texting. Get smart. College students text less than high school kids. Spring for a smartphone (like an iPhone) with unlimited data if your child agrees to a limited text and calling plan. Drop the landline. Some 20% of homes have only cellphones. Maybe yours should be one. If you decide to keep the landline check the bill for hidden fees. Question your carrier about the fees.

2. Check your medical bills.
Don't assume the bill is correct. Does your insurance company pay for some medical bills? If so attached the hospital or doctor's off bill to the insurance company statement. Compare what your insurance company says is your portion to what the doctor or hospital charges. Sometimes the part the insurance company has already paid can be charged to you because of a simple mistake.

3. Check your auto insurance.
Does your auto insurance company offer you the cheapest rate. Many companies offer deals to match other companies if you find a cheaper rate. Check around for a better auto insurance rate. Did you know your insurance rate is based on where your vehicle is parked at night. i.e your residence address.

4. Check your Grocery bill.
Studies show that if you go to the grocery store when you are hungry you are likely to spend more. Make sure you do not go to the grocery store on an empty stomach. Don't be afraid to use coupons on items you buy on a regular basis. Most stores offer double coupon savings days. Check your local Sunday paper for coupon offers.

5. Check Your Internet Carrier
If you have internet service at your home or office check that you are getting the best deal. Is there a better service than the one you are using. Consider all of you choices. Bigger is not always better.

These tips are just a few to get you to see where you may be able to save. If you will take a look at your normal daily activities you may see other areas you can monitor and maybe save money. Happy Money Monitoring

Using Quickbooks To Track & Pay Sales Tax

QuickBooks software allows for you to track sales tax that is owed. Companies that collect sales taxes are required by law to pay the taxes collected to the appropriate taxing ageny. QuickBooks makes that job easier.

The state of Michigan only has a state sales tax. There is not a county, local or city sales tax. For more information on the tax regulations for the state of Michigan go to http://www.michigan.gov/taxes/0,1607,7-238-43519_43521_44039-5922--,00.html

In order for the sales taxes to be calculated correctly the software has to be set up correctly. Several steps are required in setting up the sales tax information. You must set your company preferences to let the software know you are collecting sales tax.

You also need to complete the following steps.

First you should set up sales tax items. You'll set up your sales tax items with rates and the tax agencies to pay, assign taxable or non-taxable status to your items and customers, and set up a payment schedule.
Second you should enter and opening balance for your sales tax payable account. If you have sales tax that you currently owe to your tax agency, you need to enter that balance in the sales tax payable account where your sales tax is tracked.
Third you should charge sales tax when you make a sale. Once your sales tax information is set up, sales tax is automatically added to your invoice, sales receipt, or other sales forms. QuickBooks does the calculations for you.

The last thing you should do is pay your tax agency. You can run a sales tax liability report to track what you owe, then pay the sales tax when it's due.

Sales tax tracking is just another of the benefits of using QuickBooks to track your company finances. Your accountant should be able to help you further.

Using QuickBooks to Customize Letters and Forms

Customized forms (invoices, credit memos, sales receipts, sales orders, purchase orders, statements, and estimates) help you run your business more efficiently by providing you with the sales forms you need for your day-to-day activities. How much or how little you customize your forms depends on your business needs and how you set up the template.

The template is the foundation—the building block—of your sales forms. You can present the same information in different ways by how you design the template and by which template you choose for the form. So customizing your templates and selecting the right template for a form is an important part of working with your different forms.

Create the forms you need to run your business

There are many uses for customized forms in a business. For example, you can:
·Create different versions of a form for use in specific situations. For example, if you ship goods with a packing slip, you can create an invoice form that has the title "Packing Slip" instead of "Invoice."
·Add new columns and fields (or delete ones you don't need). For example, if you've created custom fields for your inventory, you can add those fields to different forms so you can use just the right form when you need it.
·Change the layout of the form by moving a field to a different location in order to give it greater visibility. Or if you want to have your company address centered on the form or use a larger font size, you can move other objects on the printed form to make room for the address.
·Have some fields or columns appear when you view or fill out the form onscreen but not be on the form when you print it.
·Add standardized text, such as warranty information, contractual details, or special sections, to the form.
·Change the font size or color used for your company name; and add or move your company logo to a different position on your printed forms.
·Choose from over 100 predesigned templates from the QuickBooks online Template Gallery. These templates are already set up for different businesses with special layouts (including watermarks and special sections). By far, the quickest and easiest way to start using a professional-looking form is to download a predesigned template.
·And much more.

QuickBooks comes with a variety of templates for you to use for your invoices, estimates, credit memos, sales orders, purchase orders, sales receipts, statements, packing slips, and pick lists. A template determines the appearance of your forms such as which information is included, whether a logo appears, what color scheme is used, and where all elements are placed.