Tax Tips

Illustration of laptop with books and cellphone on turquoise background

An Employee Benefit with Possible Magnetic Power

Employers seeking to attract new recruits and retain talent should consider offering educational assistance programs to their employees. The plans aren’t new, but they temporarily offer greater flexibility in how they work.

Read more

Cartoon-like rocket illustration shootind out of a thin laptop.

Tax Secrets: Optimizing Business Website Expenses

Most businesses have websites today. Despite their widespread use, the IRS hasn’t issued formal guidance on when website costs can be deducted.

However, there are established rules that generally apply to the deductibility of business expenses and provide business taxpayers launching a website with some guidance about proper treatment. In addition, businesses can turn to IRS guidance on software costs. Here are some answers to questions you may have.

Read more

A hand checking off boxes.

Vroom Vroom: What Businesses Should Know about Sales Velocity

Owning and running a company tends to test one’s patience. You wait for strategies to play out. You wait for materials, supplies, or equipment to arrive. You wait for key positions to be filled. But, when it comes to sales, how patient should you be? A widely used metric called “sales velocity” can help you decide.

Read more

Russo CPA Tax Tip Article Image: Mouse Trap snapped closed on U.S. dollar pile

Using an IRA Withdrawal for a Qualified Home Purchase

Purchasing a home is an expensive proposition that leaves many would-be buyers feeling cash-strapped. If that’s you, you might be thinking about taking some money out of your traditional IRA to help fund the purchase. But should you? After all, a 10% penalty normally applies to IRA withdrawals before age 59 1/2. The good news is that there’s an exception to the penalty for certain home purchases, subject to a lifetime limit of $10,000.

Read more

Chess pieces and board

Get a Jump on Tax Planning

Summer is a good time for some tax planning that could lower your 2024 tax bill. Since the passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which increased the standard deduction, fewer people benefit from itemizing deductions. You can use this IRS Interactive Tax Assistant to find your 2024 standard deduction.

Read more

Russo CPA Tax Tips: Excise Taxes and your business

How to Deduct Business Travel

Before traveling for business, it’s important to know what’s tax deductible. Through 2025, employees aren’t permitted to deduct unreimbursed business expenses, including travel expenses, but self-employed people may deduct business travel expenses on Schedule C. Businesses may deduct employees’ travel expenses if they provide advances or reimbursements to employees or pay the expenses directly.

Read more

Solar panel installer smiling into the camera. Below the the home owner watching.

Valuable Tax Credit Available for Energy-Efficient Homes

Under the Inflation Reduction Act, construction contractors who build or rehab energy-efficient homes may be eligible for a federal tax credit of up to $5,000 per project.

To claim the credit, builders are required to construct or substantially rehab a qualified home and own it during the construction process.

Read more