Hazlett, Lewis & Bieter, PLLC News

Annual Minutes Solicitation Form

Becky Fingerle — Mon, 18 Feb 13 15:16:10 +0000

Many corporations in Tennessee are receiving an Annual Minutes Form which is actually a solicitation. Please read all documents carefully before completing and/or remitting any requested fees. Contact our office if you have a question about whether a form is an official government filing form.

Congratulations to new CPAs!

Becky Fingerle — Tue, 29 Jan 13 23:41:07 +0000

Congratulations to Beth Granstaff and Dustin Washer for passing the CPA exam. This is an important accomplishment. We are very proud of you!

IRS Simplifies Home Office Reporting

Becky Fingerle — Tue, 29 Jan 13 23:36:59 +0000

Normally, if your home office qualifies, you can deduct a portion of your mortgage interest, property taxes, insurance, utilities and certain other expenses. Further, you can take a deduction for the depreciation allocable to the portion of your home used for the office. You can also deduct direct expenses, such as a business-only phone line and office supplies. However, the deduction generally requires completion of a 43-line form (Form 8829), often along with complex calculations.

The new simplified deduction is $5 per square foot for up to 300 square feet of home office space. So the maximum annual deduction is $1,500. If you choose this option, you can’t deduct depreciation for this portion of your home. But you can take itemized deductions for otherwise allowable mortgage interest and property taxes without allocating them between personal and business use.

Please contact us to determine whether you’re eligible for the home office deduction

Welcom to Jordan Pierce

Becky Fingerle — Thu, 10 Jan 13 16:02:09 +0000

We welcome Jordan R. Pierce to the HLB audit staff. Jordan is a December 2012 graduate of UTC.

Congratulations to Christian Bennett

Becky Fingerle — Fri, 16 Nov 12 20:52:34 +0000

In a ceremony on November 9th, Christian Bennett, a director at HLB, was named Accountant of the Year by the UTC Chapter of Beta Alpha Psi. We're proud of Christian and his service to UTC and to professional organizations.

Welcome Back to Anthony Ray

Becky Fingerle — Tue, 04 Sep 12 19:53:05 +0000

HLB welcomes Anthony Ray back to the HLB audit department. He has gained valuable experience by working in several industries and business sectors, including banking.

Congress Recesses without Tax Decision

Becky Fingerle — Tue, 07 Aug 12 21:41:59 +0000

While the House and Senate each passed its own tax bill, no compromises were made that would allow either bill to generate sufficient votes in the other chamber.

Congress isn’t scheduled to return until Sept. 10, and many pundits believe no tax law changes will be passed by both the House and Senate until the lame duck session after the Nov. 6 election. Still others believe nothing will happen until the new year, with changes made retroactive to the beginning of 2012 or 2013 (depending on when a particular provision expired).

This continued uncertainty makes tax planning a challenge. For example, it’s difficult to determine how to best time your income and deductible expenses when you don’t know whether your tax rate will go up, go down or remain the same next year. Deferring income to the next year and accelerating deductible expenses into the current year typically is a good idea, because it will defer tax, which is usually beneficial.

But when you expect to be in a higher tax bracket next year — or you expect tax rates to go up — the opposite approach may be beneficial: Accelerating income will allow more income to be taxed at your current year’s lower rate. And deferring expenses will make the deductions more valuable, because deductions save more tax when you’re subject to a higher tax rate

Dragon Boat Races!

Becky Fingerle — Thu, 07 Jun 12 17:15:18 +0000

HLB partnered with Children's Hospital at Erlanger to sponsor and participate in the Dragon Boat Race here in Chattanooga. All of the participants had a great time and, most importantly, celebrated and contributed to a great Chattanooga institution.

HLB Day of Caring

Becky Fingerle — Thu, 07 Jun 12 16:57:07 +0000

On Friday, May 18th, over 30 HLB employees pitched in to help Partnership for Families, Children and Adults. Everyone felt a great sense of accomplishment after cleaning out storage areas, organizing closets, and painting.

Tax Court Victory

Becky Fingerle — Tue, 28 Feb 12 16:41:09 +0000

In a case involving an asserted estate tax deficiency of over $2.5 million, the Tax Court has held that real estate transferred to a family limited partnership (FLP) did not have to be included in the transferor's gross estate under Code Sec. 2036 because the transfer was a bona fide sale for an adequate and full consideration in money or money's worth. [TC Memo 2012-48]

HLB assists high net worth individuals in crafting estate plans to comply with tax laws and shelter assets. We are always pleased when our experience and diligence is vindicated by an expert panel of Tax Court judges.