Credit Continues to Loosen for Small Businesses
A new survey provides an optimistic outlook on small business lending. The survey, conducted by the Professional Risk Managers’ International Association, polled 255 risk managers at U.S. banks to gain insight on their projected lending practices. Seventy percent reported that they expect increased demand for small business loans over the next half-year period. More importantly,…
April 15 has passed — now what?
With the 2012 tax filing season behind us, it’s time to start thinking seriously about 2013 tax planning — especially if you’re a higher-income taxpayer, because you might be subject to one or more significant tax increases this year: Taxpayers with FICA wages and self-employment income exceeding $200,000 for singles and $250,000 for joint filers…
4 Ways Employee Feedback Can Improve Your Business
As a business owner, have you written down a list of goals that need to be achieved in order to bring about success this year? If so, then you are one of the few. Most business owners don’t prepare this list of priorities and end up creating a business plan that fails to communicate the…
The perils of filing for an extension
Now that the 2012 tax return deadline is nearly upon us, if you haven’t filed your return yet, you may be thinking about an extension. This allows you to delay filing your return until the applicable extension deadline: Individuals — Oct. 15, 2013 Calendar-year partnerships — Sept. 16, 2013 Trusts and estates — Sept. 16,…
4 Ways to Clean Up Your Brand This Spring
Although it might not feel like spring in some areas, April is here and it’s the perfect time to do some spring cleaning of your brand. Keeping your brand relevant and updated is crucial to your business’ success. Below are four ways to freshen up your brand: Re-evaluate your audience. Clean up your market by…
The revived research credit can still reduce your 2012 tax bill
For many years, the research credit (also commonly referred to as the “research and development” or “research and experimentation” credit) has provided an incentive for businesses to increase their investments in research. But the credit expired at the end of 2011. The American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (ATRA) extends the credit to 2012 and…
There’s Still Time to Take Advantage of Tax Deductions
With April 15th right around the corner, businesses are scrambling to find any remaining tax deductions. While there’s still time, take a look at the list below of several often overlooked business-tax deductions and see if you qualify for any of them: Loan interest: If you took out a business loan in the last year,…
IRS provides penalty relief to certain late filers
On March 20, the IRS issued guidance providing penalty relief to both individual and business taxpayers who file for an extension of their 2012 tax return and ultimately owe additional tax — but only if they meet certain criteria. First, the reason for filing for the extension must be that the taxpayer’s 2012 return involved…