Now I’m the first one to stand up and advocate for a well diversified portfolio, which will also include a good portion of the assets dedicated to a strong “Wall Street” mix of mutual funds, stocks, bond ladders, etc… But for goodness sake, we also have to give equal weight and respect to investments in real estate, lending, business endeavors, and even limited partnerships in energy and medical ventures, just to name a few; and heaven forbid Money Magazine recommend starting a small business for potential independence to fall back on, additional cash flow, or even educating family members regarding basic business skills.

It just blows my mind that the majority of financial planners exclusively recommend Wall Street based products for wealth building and preservation. The fact is, of the 25 richest people in America, nine reached that designation by starting their own business and are entrepreneurs. The other 16 inherited it. (See Forbes top 400. www.forbes.com). Give me a break Financial Planners!! PLEASE recommend strategies that simply don’t generate a commission for your benefit! Business ownership and even real estate, yes real estate, can be important parts, if not critical to your success in building wealth.

KKO Lawyers is proud to recommend ONLY Financial Planners with the mentality of broad financial diversification over multiple industries, sectors and asset classes. They’re not afraid to recommend strategies that don’t make them money. They do what’s best for the client, AND have a healthy respect, if not love, for entrepreneurship.

With all of that said, please consider the following 10 strategies to TRULY build wealth and achieve retirement at an earlier age:

• UNDERSTAND THE PROPER APPROACH TO WEALTH BUILDING.
  First and foremost, it is critical to realize that the general rule is “it takes money to make money.” Creativity, hard work and education are the only factors that can break this universal law in my opinion; and regrettably any one of those three factors in and of themselves will probably not help you break the mold. In fact, many say that without a little bit of luck, true wealth will be elusive. HOWEVER, I have never believed in luck and actually believe that “Luck is Preparation meeting Opportunity.” Now maybe that is a little altruistic, but I like to feel I have ‘some control’ over my own destiny. BOTTOM LINE- “Working for the Man” your whole life is going to create the least possible chance for you to build wealth and an early retirement, if any true retirement at all. Be ready to push your limits to “work outside the box”, consider investing and partnering with others in business ventures, understand that you may have to put some late hours in the basement strategizing for your own business, and for heaven sakes, continued learning and education is critical in a variety of disciplines.
• MAINTAIN GOOD FINANCIAL HABITS.
  I emphasize the word “Habits” because they are not easily obtained, nor implemented. It takes hard work to implement and practice healthy financial habits. Here is just a few to consider:
  • Live within your means. Don’t spend what you don’t have. Work and save first, spend later.
  • Keep a balanced checkbook. Keep good records
  • Establish a monthly budget for your personal and business life and live within it.
  • Manage your consumer debt carefully. Haggle down credit card rates, upgrade to better cards when you can, and escape late fees by paying bills on line.
  • Consistently review your insurance policies. This includes life, auto, home, etc..
  • Price Shop for everything. It sounds cheap and miserly, but remember “a penny saved is a penny earned.” Shop on-line for cheaper prices. Curb impulse buying. Demand better cell phone and satellite/cable packages. Negotiate whenever possible! The true wealthy don’t spend money like it grows on trees.
  • Have annual, if not regular meetings with your accountant to discuss tax strategies. Taxes are the biggest cost in our lives, minimize the damage!
  • Have annual, if not regular meetings with your business planning attorney to evaluate your legal structure for ‘asset protection’ purposes. We live in a litigious society, don’t put on your blinders. It’s a reality you have to plan for and live with.
• BE WILLING TO CONSIDER ENTREPRENEURSHIP OR A CHANGE IN CAREER.
  As I stated above, “working for the man” creates the least possible chance for you and your family building true financial independence. This doesn’t mean however that you can’t have a wonderful job, career or work for an amazing company. Just ask yourself on a regular basis if your plan is going to help you reach your long-term financial goals. I’m also not saying that you need to ‘quit your job’, simply consider starting something on the side and see what happens. You might actually turn a hobby into a business and enjoy work even more than you already do now. You might create additional cash flow, assets for retirement, something to fall back on in a crisis and teach your family about work ethics and business principles along the way.
• ALWAYS CONTINUE YOUR EDUCATION.
  I’m not just talking about traditional 4yr college institutions. This could be legitimate continuing education classes, seminars on all types of industries and markets, good books, and speaking engagements with experts in the areas of business that interest you. We all know knowledge is power, but do we truly realize that those with more education make more money. They do, BOTTOM LINE. It’s a proven fact and the more we learn the more opportunities we have to succeed and the more doors that may open for us in the future. Remember, “luck is when preparation meets opportunity.”
• BUY YOUR PERSONAL RESIDENCE AND PROTECT ITS VALUE.
  One of the most valuable assets many of us have is our own home. It is truly a treasure that we can hold on to if we are careful. Be careful to not over purchase and ‘live beyond our means’, but once we are in, look for opportunities to build value with sweat equity and trade up to more valuable homes when possible. Although our grandparents would tell us to pay off our home, be careful!! The equity in our home can be an outright target for a plaintiff in this litigious world we live in. Stripping out the equity on a regular basis and using that cash wisely is very important, and can I emphasize the word “WISELY” enough. Don’t strip equity out of your home to increase your lifestyle or repeatedly consolidate debt that allowed you to live beyond your means before. Break the cycle if you’re in that situation and treat the equity in your personal residence as one of the most valuable assets you have. Let me reiterate, “equity stripping” is not for everyone and doesn’t work in every situation. This is why number 4 above is so important.
• HAVE A WELL DIVERSIFIED PORTFOLIO.
  Now its time to talk about a portfolio; yes, believe it or not, building wealth doesn’t always start by maxing out your 401(k) (as many financial planners would like you believe). It is important to save, ABSOLUTLEY. But again, hopefully you’ve recognized with this brief article that there are some other very important things to consider other than your “Wall Street” portfolio when it comes to retirement. Again, sometimes you need money to make money. If you aren’t making enough money in your career to even put money in a ‘portfolio’, start with some of the other items I listed above. May I suggest that your portfolio might include some of the following items: a money market account getting the best possible rate of interest on your checking accounts, rental real estate, stocks, mutual funds, Real Estate Investment Trusts, Limited Partnerships in energy projects, Tenant In Common Interests in real estate, etc… Of course, you will need to find a mix that fits your risk tolerance, cash flow needs, long-term retirement needs; but most importantly be open to variety of investments and don’t simply rely on a CD at the bank.
• HAVE A PLAN FOR MEDICAL EXPENSES.
  Interestingly, I felt this was critical for my top ten list and a must for us to continually evaluate and plan for. Regrettably, we have to realize that after taxes and our house payment, medical costs are probably our next biggest expense. The reality is, that some, or most, of us could be one accident or tragic illness away from financial ruin. Make sure you have a catastrophic insurance policy in place at the bare minimum; they are more affordable than you realize and can also allow you to qualify for a Health Savings Account (an excellent tax planning strategy). For those that are a little older, it is never too late to consider a long-term care insurance policy. Unless you are wealthy enough to self insure you and/or your spouse and the costs to live in a health care facility or have in-home hospice care for 10 years or more, you could spend everything you have built for you and your family in just a few short years on medical expense in the latter years of our life.
• PROTECT AND BUILD YOUR CREDIT SCORE.
  Maybe this is another ‘surprise’ to you for the top 10 Strategies to Wealth and Retirement. Those of you out there that have tried to start a business, buy real estate, or simply operate at a higher level of financial independence know that a credit score is absolutely critical. It is almost as valuable as cash, and I say ‘almost’. But it is true. If you can’t get a loan with realistic terms for a home, car or credit for your business or real estate, your not building wealth anytime soon. Pull your credit on a regular basis and employ legitimate services to help you increase and maintain the highest possible credit score.
• TAKE CARE OF YOUR FAMILY.
  Have a “PLAN,” and what I mean is an “Estate Plan”. It’s no fun to recognize and deal with, but we are all mortal and we are going to leave our family and friends someday. Even if we don’t have a spouse or children, don’t leave your loved ones with a mess. Moreover, believe it or not, by having a good Estate Plan, which generally includes a revocable living trust, it forces you to be more ‘careful’ and ‘wise’ in your planning. It actually forces us to take a hard look at the first 6 items on this list.
• DON’T TRY AND KEEP UP WITH THE “JONES.”
  Many people see others in their same neighborhood with bigger toys, more vacations and flashier lifestyles and wonder what they are doing wrong. Don’t judge a book by the cover. Many people around us are living on borrowed money or time, and are living well beyond their means. In fact, many are living month to month, and are 60 days away from a financial disaster. Worry about you

       As many of you know, I speak on a regular basis on the benefits of paying your ‘fair share’ of Social Security and Medicare, but not a dollar too much.  The ‘rule of diminishing returns’ certainly applies when it comes to paying into the Social Security system.  What I mean by this is, once we pay in so much to the system our Social Security benefits tap out.  For example, many of our own benefits will be the same as Bill Gates, although he has probably paid in more than we have into the ‘system’. 

     Now with that said, it’s still important we pay in enough to get our Social Security benefits and understand how the system works.  Thankfully, this is not too hard of a process.  First, I encourage all of you visit www.ssa.gov and click on “What You Can Do Online” and then select “Estimate your future benefits”.  The information here is amazing and the resources are really easy to use.

     Here is how the system works in a nutshell.  Social Security benefits are based on earnings averaged over most of a worker’s lifetime. Your actual earnings are first adjusted or “indexed” to account for changes in average wages since the year the earnings were received. Then we calculate your average monthly indexed earnings during the 35 years in which you earned the most. We apply a formula to these earnings and arrive at your basic benefit, or “primary insurance amount” (PIA). This is the amount you would receive at your full retirement age, for most people, age 65. However, beginning with people born in 1938 or later, that age will gradually increase until it reaches 67 for people born after 1959.

      If that seems confusing to you, it does to me as too.  This is where using the Retirement Estimator I referred to above on the SSA.gov website comes in handy, and you can even request a Social Security Statement.  There are also some other methods to come up with your estimate, but the important thing is to realize is that the process doesn’t have to be overwhelming.  Don’t worry about the calculation, just play around with the resources on the website.

      Bottom line, make sure you pay into the system, but don’t pay in too much, and when you say your prayers at night, you just might want to pray for a little blessing that Social Security will still be there when it’s your turn to get a check.

President Bush applauded the legislation now approved by both the Senate and House and said that he would sign the Bill as soon as it reaches his desk. Here is a summary of the various provisions of this new Legislation that may affect you:

Rebates-. The principal assumption is that every red blooded American will rush out and spend the money (which will stimulate the economy), rather than pay down their debt load (the greatest per individual in relationship to their net worth in the history of the United States). We would highly encourage you to help out America in the long run by paying down any unnecessary debts you may be servicing and continue to strive to live within your means (rather than go out and buy more stuff you don’t need).
        How much are the Rebates?- Recovery Rebates, technically known as “advance credit payments”, will be as high as $600 for single individuals and $1,200 for married couples.
        Who Receives the Rebates?- The IRS will calculate the proper amount of the rebate check based on your 2007 tax return or other certification. The maximum credit of $600 or $1,200 will start phasing out at $75,000 if you are single and $150,000 if you are married filing jointly. When its all said and done, if you are married filing jointly, you will not get a rebate if your Adjusted Gross Income exceeds $174,000, and $87,000 if you are single.
        When do I get my Check?- Once the Bill was passed, the IRS and Treasury Department immediately began preparations to issue the rebate checks. We estimate that the IRS will start mailing out checks after May 1st. Also, please note that you must file your 2007 tax return before you will receive the Rebate.

Child Payments- Individuals who qualify for the basic rebate credit are also eligible to receive additional rebate credit amount equal to $300 per qualifying child. Any additional amount received for each qualifying child is added to the basic rebate credit amount for purposes of applying the phase out rules.

Business Incentives- In addition to the rebates, the new law includes $44.8 billion in business incentives and help for homeowners facing foreclosure due to the ‘mortgage meltdown’, as Wall Street likes to term it.

• Enhanced Expensing- The new law doubles the amount of deductible Code Sec. 179 expenses for 2008 to $250,000 and increases the threshold for reducing the deduction to $800,000. Of course, this deduction applies to the purchase of tangible personal property used actively in the conduct of a trade or business in 2008.
• Bonus Depreciation- This is a 50% bonus depreciation on certain types of property purchased in a trade or business. It is a complex determination as to what types of property quality, so make sure you speak with your tax advisor before purchasing property you hope to get bonus depreciation.
• Luxury Autos- The new law also raises the limitations on “luxury auto” depreciation. Ordinarily, the first-year limit on depreciation for passenger automobiles cannot exceed $2,650. However, this limit is now increased to $8,000 if bonus depreciation is claimed for a qualifying vehicle.

Foreclosure Help- Congress continues to enact legislation to assist taxpayers during the sub-prime mortgage crises. In December it passes the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007, which permits taxpayers to exclude from gross income in 2007 forgiveness for qualified indebtedness used to acquire a personal residence. This law does not help real estate investors with investment property- Only those in problems with their primary residence!! The new law essentially increases the maximum amounts of principal for mortgages and primarily targets jumbo loans of greater than $417,000. These are loans also issued by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. In sum, we don’t see much of a benefit for investors, but those purchasing or in trouble with a primary residence.

1. Talk to your teens about the economy and tough times that may be ahead this year.  Our children are not stupid.  They hear what is going on in the media regarding the economy and they may even be talking about it in school.  Take the time to have conversations about the economy around the dinner table.  Let them know what your plan is as a family. Ask for suggestions on ways they think the family could better cope with the economy.  Your children sense your stress and can certainly get ‘stressed’ as well over the family budget.  Get them involved; it can help the family cut costs, reduce your kids stress, reduce your stress, and maybe bring the family together more emotionally as you work together financially.            

2. Put your kids on the payroll for services they provide in the business, or an allowance for services they provide to the family.  Don’t give your kids money for doing nothing, but get them involved in the family finances some how some way and let them pay for their own clothes, supplies, hobbies and expenses.  Lori Mackey, a best selling author and lecturer, trains parents to set up proper systems and structures for paying your children and helping them budget their own money. Please see her website for a tremendous amount of information on training your children in regards to money management www.prosperity4kids.com. Remember, if you can get your kids on the payroll in your business, it saves you money and helps your kids learn the value of hard work AND money.

3. Finally, implement some system to ‘teach’ your children about money.  Simply talking about it isn’t good enough.  We certainly want you to set up systems and structures to pay your children so they can pay for their own expenses, but where is the education?  If your children are younger, get them some books that you can read to them or with them.  Again, see Lori’s website for some education materials that may help (www.prosperity4kids.com).  If your children are older, get them in an education system or require them to take classes before you help them financially or leave them an inheritance.  Place some penalties and rewards in your family plan to ensure that they will get some education in conjunction with your family training and discussions.

In summary, we all know we have to do something, its just making sure we do it.  Make a new years resolution to speak with your children about finances and make a plan.

Whether your kids are 5 years old or 50 years old, it is never too late to teach them financial skills and proper ways to manage their money.  We have compiled several suggestions that could change your child’s life and yours!!

1. Talk to your teens about the economy and tough times that may be ahead this year.  Our children are not stupid.  They hear what is going on in the media regarding the economy and they may even be talking about it in school.  Take the time to have conversations about the economy around the dinner table.  Let them know what your plan is as a family. Ask for suggestions on ways they think the family could better cope with the economy.  Your children sense your stress and can certainly get ‘stressed’ as well over the family budget.  Get them involved; it can help the family cut costs, reduce your kids stress, reduce your stress, and maybe bring the family together more emotionally as you work together financially.            

2. Put your kids on the payroll for services they provide in the business, or an allowance for services they provide to the family.  Don’t give your kids money for doing nothing, but get them involved in the family finances some how some way and let them pay for their own clothes, supplies, hobbies and expenses.  Lori Mackey, a best selling author and lecturer, trains parents to set up proper systems and structures for paying your children and helping them budget their own money. Please see her website for a tremendous amount of information on training your children in regards to money management www.prosperity4kids.com. Remember, if you can get your kids on the payroll in your business, it saves you money and helps your kids learn the value of hard work AND money.

3. Finally, implement some system to ‘teach’ your children about money.  Simply talking about it isn’t good enough.  We certainly want you to set up systems and structures to pay your children so they can pay for their own expenses, but where is the education?  If your children are younger, get them some books that you can read to them or with them.  Again, see Lori’s website for some education materials that may help (www.prosperity4kids.com).  If your children are older, get them in an education system or require them to take classes before you help them financially or leave them an inheritance.  Place some penalties and rewards in your family plan to ensure that they will get some education in conjunction with your family training and discussions.

In summary, we all know we have to do something, its just making sure we do it.  Make a new years resolution to speak with your children about finances and make a plan. 

It’s been six months since President Obama signed the health care reform bill into law, and that means more provisions go into effect.  If you remember, this Health Care bill phases in over time and according to an implementation timeline by the Kaiser Family Foundation, here are the key items . They are:

• Teens and young adults may stay on parents’ health plans until age 26.

• No more denying children coverage based on pre-existing conditions (Extended to all age groups in 2014).

• No more limits on how much an insurer pays out on coverage for a consumer’s lifetime.

• Restrictions on annual limits on how much an insurer pays out on coverage. (Annual limits to be eliminated altogether in 2014).

• No more rescinding coverage for sick consumers based on accidental application errors.

• Insurers must come up with and implement an improved appeals process for consumers to appeal decisions.

• New health plans must cover a minimum set of preventive benefits, including basic immunizations and certain screenings.

Consumers should also be aware of the fine print attached to some of the provisions going into effect as USA Today noted.  Marian Wang, of the ProPublica reported the following provisions and political issues we may not know about.

Some provisions—such as the preventive care provision and the appeals process provision—do not apply to so-called “grandfathered plans,” which Dow Jones describes as plans to which employers and insurers have only made minor changes, in order to avoid having “to comply with all the new regulations right away.” Consumers are supposed to be notified if they have grandfathered plans, but they can also ask about to be sure about the status of their policies.

Some of the confusion about the reform bill’s functionality and effectiveness may be due to frequent reports of rate hikes by insurance companies that attribute their actions to the cost of the reform bill.

Earlier this month, the Obama administration warned insurers against attributing “unjustified rate increases” to the law. The administration has promised to provide $250 million to states over the next five years to help states better police such rate hikes.

Not all states, however, seem to have the necessary enforcement capability to keep up with the law’s new requirements, and many are scrambling to get it from their state legislators, according to The New York Times. (Arizona Governor Jan Brewer, it’s worth noting, said her state had “no plans to adopt rules related to enforcement,” but her state still applied for funds to help it do so. Arizona is hardly the only one to sue the federal government for the law while claiming its subsidies.)

But for consumers in states that are looking to enforce the law and crack down on rate hikes, what happened recently in North Carolina may provide some encouragement. Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina last week announced it would be refunding $156 million to more than 215,000 of its individual policyholders, after state insurance regulators scrutinized a rate hike request and found the insurer was collecting reserves to pay claims beyond 2014. (Brad Wilson, the insurer’s president and CEO, told USA Today that the insurer “maintained this money on behalf of our customers” in order to stabilize monthly insurance payments over time.)

Insurers, meanwhile, are hanging tight as they await decisions from state insurance regulators regarding a critical part of the bill for them—what’s known as a medical loss ratio.

According to a piece in Bloomberg last week, the health care law requires that insurers spend at least 80 percent of their premiums on medical care, a measure intended to rein in administrative costs. The National Association of Insurance Commissioners was supposed to agree on how to calculate the figure back in June, but has not yet done so. Several members met with administration officials today to discuss the issue, The Hill reported.

Again, please stay tuned to our updates and newsletters in the months to come.  We are going to be holding more educational events to help us ALL plan for the new health care bill and take advantage of its loopholes. There ARE OPTIONS and STRATEGIES!!

With today’s stress in the credit market, investors have been challenged to find the funds they need to complete their deals. One source that is often overlooked is the amount that may be available to you through loans from your retirement plans, including where you currently work! We frequently receive questions about taking Participant loans from retirement plans, as they can be a tremendous tool to allow you to access some of your money now. Many people want to use these funds to help themselves today, perhaps to start a business, fund down payment on real estate, to payoff high interest credit card debt or other debt, or far any other purpose that they choose.

Loans can be permitted by qualified plans, if the plan sponsor has chosen the option for its participants, and the majority of these plans do permit loans. To find out if your plan does have a loan provision, you need to review the Summary Plan Description (SPD). Qualified plans are defined as those maintained by an employer that:

1. Provide retirement income to employees, or
2. Result in deferral of income by employees for periods extending to the end of employment or beyond, or
3. Is afforded special tax treatment under a host of I.R.S. regulations, or
4. An annuity under section 403(a) of the Code, or
5. A Tax sheltered annuity , or
6. Any plan that is maintained for any federal, state, or local political subdivision or any agency thereof.

In summary, qualified plans that could provide loans include 401(k), 403(b) and 457′s, as well as certain annuities. They DO NOT include IRA’s, SEP IRA’s, SEP 401(k) or SIMPLE Plans, however. Another strategy, however, is to rollover your money into a qualified plan you create for your own self-employed business from one that does not permit loans, and you could immediately access the funds.

There are certain requirements that must be met for a participant loan not to be deemed as a distribution from the plan. These include the following:

1. It must be repaid within a five year period from the date of the loan, unless it is used for your principal residence, which then has a fifteen year period.
2. It must have a level amortization requirement, with payments made in substantially equal installments of principal and interest made no less frequently than quarterly.
3. It must be an enforceable agreement that contains terms for the amount of the loan, the date, and the repayment schedule.

The maximum amount of the loan is the lesser of:

1. $50,000 reduced by the excess of:
   1. The highest outstanding balance of loans from the plan during the one year period ending on the day before the loan was made, over
   2. The outstanding balance of loans from the Plan on the date the loan was made, or
2. The greater of
   1.  50% of the present value of the Participant’s vested benefit in the Plan, or
   2. $10,000.

The interest rate charged to the Participant must be a reasonable amount, which has been determined by the I.R.S. to comply with “safe harbor” rules if it is at least at the Prime Rate plus 2%. The interest paid into the plan is a fixed rate of return for the investment by the Participant.

As you can see, the opportunity to use the money from your own retirement plan presents the participant with a choice that can be very advantageous. IT IS YOUR MONEY, so if you would like to know how to set up a 401(k) plan to use participant loans.  If you want more information, please Jim Allfrey at American Pension at (801) 571-0667, or email jallfrey@aps-utah.com.

California’s gross receipts tax is charged to all LLC’s doing business in CA and is based on the company’s total gross receipts worldwide and not just to the income attributable to California operations. The tax applies to LLC’s with Annual Gross Receipts in excess of $250,000. The Court recently held that this tax was unconstitutional because it was not properly apportioned to the taxpaying LLC based on the income the LLC earned in the state of California. The tax laws of all states are subject to a common constitutional requirement that states are only allowed to tax income properly apportioned to taxpayer’s income from their state. This requirement was violated when the state of California required out of state LLC’s who did business in California to pay tax to the state of California based on income or operations they did outside of California.

The California Franchise Tax Board is appealing the decision but has already established an administrative process for LLCs to file protective refund claims so that you can preserve your right to a refund during the appeal process. We strongly recommend you file a protective claim as the statute of limitations to file a claim for a refund in California is four years from when the tax was paid. The Franchise Tax Board has posted some helpful information on filing a protective claim on their website at http://www.ftb.ca.gov/professionals/taxnews/article/llcfee.shtml.

The question of whether a uniform or work clothing is suitable for ordinary wear and the question of whether its use is specifically required as a condition of employment are questions of fact. Bottom line, it can be a great deduction, but make sure you consult with your tax professional before taking a deduction for this expense on your tax return.

As Dustyn Johnson, the Chief Operations Officer and CPA at NumberWon Accountants discussed on the Mark Kohler Show this past week, visit Wealth Radio Now for the show times, there are some often time missed deductions by small business owners when it comes to their auto expenses.  Remember, the mileage deduction for business owners is fantastic and is 55 cents per mile in the year 2009.  This deduction encompasses a variety of expenses; such as depreciation, insurance, fuel, repairs, maintenance, etc… However, there are essentially four (4) OTHER deductions not to miss when you still simply take the mileage deduction. 

1.     Toll fees.  If you pay for tolls in your business travels with your auto, try to do your best to track your expenses in this area.  They are 100% deductable when incurred while driving your vehicle for business purposes.

2.     Parking fees.  Again, if you are parking while on a business errand and incur a fee, track it!  As a simple example, many of us go to the airport for business and pay a parking fee. This is a deduction not to be missed.  They too are 100% deductible.

3.     Interest on your Auto Loan.  If you have an auto loan, don’t forget that the percentage of your business use of your vehicle is the portion of your auto interest on your loan you can write-off.  Many, many accountants miss this deduction.  Don’t forget to get a statement from your auto loan lender at the end of the year for the amount of interest paid.  We will then create a ratio of business use for your vehicle based on your business mileage and total mileage, and that same ratio is multiplied by your auto interest paid.  In the words of Emeril Lagassi- BAMM!!  Deduction

4.     Taxes on your Vehicle.  Make sure you keep track of your taxes paid and registration fees incurred when you register your car each year.  In most states, these are deductible expenses on top of your mileage rates, and a portion thereof for business purposes.

Bottom line, if your CPA is not taking these expenses above into consideration and talking to you about them, you have the wrong CPA.  Please give Kohler and Eyre or NumberWon Accountants a call for a “Tax Return Review and Planning Meeting”.  From $200 to $250, total, a CPA in our office will review your last year’s tax return to see if you have missed out on any of these deductions and what your planning opportunities are for the upcoming year.