Saturday, December 23, 2017
Good Evening,
We want to start by wishing everyone an amazing Winter Solstice, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, New Year, End of Semester, Winter Break, or for me the end of the anticipation of Tax Reform and the beginning of my obsession with all the new ways we can save you money.
Tax Reform is here! President Trump signed the tax reform bill yesterday morning. The new tax bill was intended to simplify the tax code, and the result is a mixed bag. Tax reform will affect each of you differently. The recent tax law changes have presented some great tax saving opportunities for investors and entrepreneurs. We are excited to explore and exploit all the new opportunities to help you reduce your tax bill to greatest extent possible while preparing audit proof tax returns If you would like me to run detailed scenarios or discuss the possibility of tax planning (savings), we are happy to. Please let me know right away and we will send you a quote to get the work done.
BUT, between now and 12/31/2017 there are a few items I recommend you do in order to take advantage of some 2017 deductions that will be gone in 2018.
1. Prepay State & Local, real property, and personal property taxes in 2017 (pay all your state estimated tax payments).
2. Make charitable contributions in 2017 vs. 2018.
3. Defer income and other sources of revenue into 2018 (and not include in 2017), if possible.
I have read for countless hours and been to three webinars this week alone on tax reform, and there are a still many unanswered questions by the experts. For the details and the inner workings of tax reform, we will have to wait until the IRS interprets the bill. The broad view is:
1. Corporate Tax rates drop from 35 to 21 percent in 2018.
2. 85% of individual filers will no longer itemize, which means they can likely complete their taxes on a mobile app.
3. Some pass-through entities such as Partnerships, LLC's, and S-Corporations will receive a generous deduction, which means less tax.
4. Individual tax rates were reduced for all filers by 0-2.6% depending on income. Taxes actually increased from 0-10% for the group of filers earning less than $18,650 per year.
5. These rules are in effect through December 31, 2025. Beginning January 1, 2026, these changes would REVERT BACK to the numbers of today - 2017
Ch Ch Ch Changes!!
As well as the new tax bill changes, Mary and I, have spent a lot of time this year educating ourselves in the areas of tax planning, financial planning, technology solutions, and workflow solutions for ourselves and our clients. We have found numerous software tools that are designed to greatly simplify or essentially eliminate many time consuming administrative tasks, such as, paying contractors, collections, monthly invoicing/payments, data entry, filing and paying sales taxes. We will be proactive in recommending any tools we think may make your business run more efficiently and competitively.
On another exciting note, Mary has partnered with Kelly Landry and Richard Eddy at CONA Financial Group http://www.conafg.com to bring personal financial planning services to our clients. Additionally, in October of this year Sandra received the Certified Tax coach https://www.certifiedtaxcoach.com designation by the American Institute of Certified Tax Coaches (AICTC). Adding financial and tax planning knowledge and services broadens and deepens the resources we have to support your financial goals and put more money in your pocket. Our ongoing goal is to increase the value we bring to you.
Finally, here at Aurora Consulting Group, LLC we have passed our own ACCOUNTING PRACTICE REFORM and are changing the way we price and bill for our services in 2018. Unlike tax reform this plan will increase value, flexibility, and has a fixed fee you can rely on! In a nutshell:
1. We will no longer be billing by the hour or by the form, but instead by a fixed engagement fee.
2. We will base our fees on numerous factors including time required, difficulty of tasks, personal liability we take on, degree of skill and experience necessary, out-of-pocket costs, and the value we bring to our clients.
3. We are currently rolling out our new pricing structure one client at a time. Please contact us if you would like your file reviewed and moved to the to of the list.
4. Annual engagements will start at $600 per year, paid monthly via credit card or ACH and will include various levels if service based on the package you choose.
Our intention is to increase the value you receive from us while having an affordable fixed fee each month with no surprises that provides the services you want and need.
We wish all the best to you in 2018 and look forward to the upcoming tax season as well as the longer days.
"Many Happy Returns"
Sincerely,
Sandra and Mary
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