Free Teleseminar – How to Minimize Your Taxes and Maximize Your Profits

Give me 60 minutes and I’ll show you how to minimize your taxes and maximize your profits – for Free!

Attention coaches, eBay sellers, affiliate marketers, and other online business owners…

• As an online business
  owner, do you know what your
  tax responsibilities are?

• Did you know that as an
  online business owner, you can save money on your taxes by deducting
  expenses?  Do you know which type of items qualify for these
  deductions?
• Do you want to learn
  how to pay fewer taxes and keep more of your profits? 

Announcing the Free teleseminar, ‘How to Minimize Your Taxes and Maximize Your Profits’!

Join me on Friday October 26th at 12:00 CST to learn:

• The tax advantages of having an online business
• The most common tax deductions for online business owners
• How to qualify for the home office deduction
• How hiring your family can save on taxes,
• and much more!

Click here for more information and to sign up today!

Subscribe to EbizTaxTips.com

Attn: Online Business Owners! Do you want to learn how to minimize your online business taxes?

My free report '5 Tax Saving Tips for Ebiz Owners' includes tips to help you get all the deductions and credits you're entitled to, so you don't overpay Uncle Sam!

Money Makeover: Saving for College and Retirement

I had the pleasure of working on a Money Makeover for the Kansas City Star recently. Here’s the article that appeared in the KC Star this morning…

Money Makeover: Couple frets over saving at the same time for their retirement, kids’ college expenses

by Gene Meyer
The Kansas City Star

Steven and Angie Cortez look into the future and see a financial dilemma they want to resolve now.

The
couple, who both are educators and not yet 40, theoretically will be
eligible to retire when Steven turns 53 and achieves the combination of
age and years in service to qualify for Kansas Public Employees Retirement System teachers’ benefits.

That
doesn’t seem realistic, the Olathe residents say, because their
children, twins Kennedy and Carson, who turn 6 Monday, will still be in
college when the milestone arrives.

They don’t mind postponing retirement for a few years. But they are
concerned about how best to prepare now to hit two humungous savings
targets — college and retirement — so potentially close together.

“We’ve
been told that we should max out our Roth IRA savings before we
contribute anything to college funds, but I’m not sure that’s the best
way to go,” Steven Cortez said.

Neither target is an easy one.

Some rough, back-of-the-envelope calculations based on College Board projections
show that the $50,000 it costs to send a student to a public college
for four years now may more than double by the time Kennedy and Carson
are freshmen. For a private school, the already higher costs will
almost double too.

But a financial planner who analyzed the
Cortezes’ situation more thoroughly calculates Steven and Angie also
need to accumulate $1.97 million in the next two decades to supplement
his KPERS and their other projected retirement benefits so he can
retire at 60 and live as comfortably as they do now.

“Retirement
savings should be your higher priority,” said Kristine McKinley, the
certified financial planner from Lee’s Summit who examined the Cortez’s
circumstances.

Saving for retirement often is more urgent than
saving for college, McKinley said. First, as is the case with the
Cortezes, retirement requires more money than college. Second, families
have resources such as loans, grants or scholarships to turn to if
savings come up short. Retirees have far fewer alternate choices.

But there’s good news too, McKinley told the couple.

Saving
more aggressively and more efficiently now for retirement should also
provide a potential cushion to help with the college funding if that’s
needed.

The keys are Roth IRAs that the Cortezes opened to
provide tax-free income when they retire. In a jam, Roth savers also
can withdraw money they’ve contributed — but not the investment profits
earned — before retirement without incurring penalties, she said.
Pulling money out also will trim the account’s potential growth,
however, so it shouldn’t be done lightly.

Click here to continue reading…

QuickBooks Basics – Free Teleclass at Teleclass.com

I know many of you use QuickBooks to keep track of your income and expenses for your business.

I just saw a free teleclass at www.teleclass.com on QuickBooks
Basics.  I’m a little rusty on QuickBooks myself, so I’m signing up. 

Here are the details if anyone is interested in joining me…

101410. QuickBooks Basics: Bookkeeping Essentials
(Other) 

Section: 1

One Tuesday, October 30, 2007, from 3-4pm Eastern/NY.  Tuition: Free

Led by
Gabrielle Fontaine

, PB

Gabrielle Fontaine, PB is a freelance Professional Bookkeeper and
Advanced Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor. She specializes assisting
Internet savvy entrepreneurs get control of their financial records and
maximize profits. Gabrielle also publishes the business-boosting
monthly online newsletter, Smart Money Choices. For more information,
visit http://www.bookkeepingdirect.com

gabrielle@bookkeepingdirect.com

http://www.bookkeepingdirect.com

Class Description:
Here are just a few topics you will learn in this class:

What a Chart of Accounts is and why it is the backbone of your business records

How QuickBooks makes it easy to track the money flowing into and out of your Chart of Accounts

A rundown of all the basic bookkeeping terms and what they mean to you

Cash and Accrual basis – why knowing the difference can have a dramatic affect on your tax bill and your business planning

How to use two key financial reports to measure the present health of your company and build future profitability

Putting it all together to understand the behind-the-scenes "adjustments" your accountant makes to your financial records.

Preclass Instructions:

When calling into the audio portion of this class, you will need to enter
Bridge ID: 145412

Gabrielle’s Teaching Style:
This class is in webinar format, using web-based visual and telephone audio. It is lecture style, with Q & A if time allows.

Click here to register for this class.

EBay Urges Internet Access Tax Ban

from Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — An eBay executive warned Wednesday that fewer small businesses would sell products through the Web auctioneer, and elsewhere online, without a permanent ban on Internet access taxes.

Congress first imposed a moratorium on taxing Internet access — which bars state and local governments from taxing the connection to basic Internet content — in 1998. Since then, it has been twice extended, but is set to expire Nov. 1.

Congress is considering legislation that would extend the moratorium for several years or ban it permanently.

While Brian Bieron, eBay Inc.’s senior director of federal government relations, did not directly say the company would suffer without the ban, he said the effect would be far reaching.

“More importantly, fewer consumers will use the Internet,” he said in testimony prepared for a House hearing. “And, for the small businesses using the Internet, that means fewer sales and less opportunity to compete with the mega retailers.”

He estimated more than 720,000 small businesses use the San Jose, Calif.-based company as a primary or secondary marketing channel, calling it a “lifeline” against larger retailers.

Through eBay, he said about 15 percent of sales of U.S. small businesses are exported to other countries and small businesses can also find products from all around the world on the Web site.

Bieron was one of five witnesses to testify before the House Small Business Committee, which
is considering the potential impact on small businesses if the moratorium isn’t renewed.

Rep. Nydia Velazquez, D-N.Y., who chairs the committee, said in her opening statement that if Internet
access is taxed then small businesses could see a 15 to 30 percent increase in their Internet bills.

My First Live Seminar!

I’m excited to announce that I will be speaking at my first live seminar!

Tim Knox – entrepreneur, author, speaker, and eBay guru – has asked me to speak at his "Ultimate Small Business Bootcamp 2007" in November. 

This two-day event is for entrepreneurs
who are serious about starting their own business or kicking their current
business into high gear. 

I will be talking about tax strategies to minimize your taxes and to maximize your profits.

• How to choose the right business for
  you
• Podcasting for fun and profits (I’m looking
  forward to this session!)
• How to use eBay to drive traffic to your
  business
• How to minimize your taxes and maximize
  your profits
• How to write your way to the
  bank
• How to build a profitable coaching
  business
• How to build a killer business
  website
• Combining sales and marketing for maximum
  results
• And more!

Reporting Online Auction Income – New IRS Fact Sheet

Being the tax geek that I am, I subscribe to the IRS Small Business Tax Newsletter. 

Today’s newsletter included a fact sheet on reporting online auction income. 

Here’s the full text of the fact sheet:

Reporting Auction Income and the Tax Gap

FS-2007-23, September 2007 Many people don’t realize the income they earn from auctions and consignment sales may be taxable. This fact sheet, the 16th in the Tax Gap series, will help taxpayers better understand what income they are required to report and what deductions they may be entitled to take. The tax gap, or the amount of tax that goes unpaid each year, results from taxpayers underreporting their taxable income. Fortunately most people want to pay their fair share of taxes and many simply need a better understanding of their obligations. What’s Taxable All income from auctions, traditional or online, and consignment sales is generally taxable unless certain exceptions are met. This income is usually considered either “business” or “ordinary” income. In certain circumstances such income can qualify for capital gain treatment. There are also some exceptions where income can be excluded from taxable income. Business income resulting from an auction or consignment sale is subject to the same taxes as the income of any other retail or service business. That may include income tax, self-employment tax, employment tax, or excise tax. A retail or service business owner must include this income in his or her business income. A person must report a gain from a sale whether he or she operates a business or not. A reportable gain is the income above the original cost or basis of the item. These gains may be business income or capital gains. Income resulting from auctions akin to an occasional garage or yard sale is generally not required to be reported. However, there may be exceptions. If an online garage sale turns into a business with recurring sales and purchasing of items for resale, it may be considered an online auction business. Some people sell a product or service online as a hobby. This income generally must be reported and deductible expenses are limited. The deductions cannot total more than the income reported and can only be taken if deductions are itemized on Form 1040, Schedule A, Itemized Deductions. For additional information about whether an activity is a business or a hobby, see April’s fact sheet titled, Business or Hobby? Answer Has Implications for Deductions. What’s a Deductible Expense Traditional or online auction and consignment sellers in the business to make a profit can generally deduct expenses that are both ordinary and necessary. An “ordinary” expense is one that is common and accepted in a trade or business. A “necessary” expense is one that is helpful and appropriate for a trade or business. Verifiable auction and consignment fees and commissions are examples of allowable business expenses. Expenses related to personal, living, or family matters are generally not deductible. There are expenses that are partly personal and partly business-related. The business portion of the expense is deductible. Here’s a simple example. A person might borrow $10,000, using $7,000 for personal use and the other $3,000 for his or her online auction business. The interest expense on the $7,000 is not deductible but the interest on the other $3,000 is deductible. Chapter 5 of Publication 535, Business Expenses, can help a taxpayer understand these rules better. A common split expense issue is a person’s home that they also use for their business. That person may be able to deduct expenses for the business use of the home if they meet the regular use requirement and the exclusive use requirement. However, auction and consignment sellers may compute their deduction to the extent of expenses allocable to space in the residence that is used on a regular basis (does not have to be exclusive) to store inventory and/or product samples if the residence is the sole fixed location of the retail or wholesale auction or consignment business. Allocable expenses may include mortgage interest, insurance, utilities, repairs, and depreciation. Refer to Publication 587, Business Use of Your Home, for more information. This Web site also contains additional information about business expenses, starting and operating a business and online auction sellers.

Get Your EIN Online – Free

Just a quick note to let you know that you can now apply for your Employer Identification Number (EIN) online.

This is a free tool on the IRS website.   Please, don’t be fooled by companies who try to charge you to get an EIN.  Applying for an EIN has always been free, and now it’s even easier since you can do it online.

Click here to apply for your EIN online at the IRS website. 

Final Tax Deadline Approaching Quickly

Attention US taxpayers!  If you haven’t filed your 2006 income tax return yet, you’re almost out of time.

The final deadline is approaching quickly.  Assuming that you filed an extension, you have until October 15th to file your tax return with being considered late.  If you didn’t file an extension, well that’s another story…

A couple of thoughts about the upcoming deadline:

1.  If you filed an extension because you owed money, you’re out of luck.  The extension only extends the time to FILE your tax return.  It does not extend the time to PAY your taxes. So, if you expect to owe a balance due, expect to pay interest and penalties.

2.  What should you do if you expect to owe a balance due, and you don’t think you’ll be able to pay? 

    a.  First, go ahead and file your tax return.  The IRS will be more willing to work with you if you file a timely tax return. 

    b.  Ask for a payment extension.  The IRS used to allow a 60-day payment extension (can’t find any info online about this, but I bet they still do offer it).  If you think you’ll have the money pretty quickly, then call and see if they still offer this option.  It doesn’t waive any interest or penalties, but it keeps the IRS off your back for a couple of months while you find the money to pay up.

    c.  Pay by credit card.  I don’t really recommend this option, but if you’ve got a low interest credit card, it may be less expensive than paying interest or penalties to the IRS.  There is a convenience fee to pay your taxes by credit card.

    d.  Apply for an installment agreement.  If you absolutely can’t pay your taxes, you should request an installment plan with the IRS.  Again, you may not be able to get out of any interest or penalties, but it will at least allow you to pay your debt in smaller, more manageable payment amounts.

Lastly, be kind to your tax preparer!  Please, please, please help us keep our sanity by NOT waiting til the last minute to file your tax return!

For more information on filing late or paying late, click here.