taxlaw Archives - Wiss & Company, LLP

Denial of Expense Deductions for Marijuana Businesses Is Reinforced

Written on December 19, 2018. Posted in Food & Beverage.

In the most recent in a now developing line of Tax Court cases involving the application of Section 280E of the Internal Revenue Code, a hard blow struck the ever-expanding cannabis industry. In Patients Mutual Assistance Collective Corp. (dba Harborside Health Center) (“Harborside”), v. Commissioner, 151 T.C. No. 11 (November 29, 2018), the Tax Court rejected a variety of arguments in support of ordinary and necessary business deductions and costs of goods sold taken by a taxpayer...

Hardship Withdrawal Rule Changes from the New Tax Code

Written on October 23, 2018. Posted in Tax.

By Laura Zindel, CPA Details of the Trump Administration’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act are so complex that it is easier for businesses to discuss the details and ramifications in smaller pieces. One specific section of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act involves changes to rules affecting hardship withdrawals from your employees’ benefit plan account, most commonly 401(k) and 403(b) plans. The definition of a hardship withdrawal hasn’t changed. If a plan permits, a hardship is an early withdrawal...

Finding Tax Advantages in Opportunity Zones

Written on June 19, 2018. Posted in Real Estate.

By Michael Kroll, CPA The Tax Cuts and Jobs Acts has been a popular topic this year where the focus has been mainly on tax cuts. However, there is a lot more to the new tax law than just tax cuts. There are new provisions providing significant tax benefits for investments in so-called Opportunity Zones and below are the details you need to know. Distressed Area Investment The idea behind the Opportunity Zones program is to create tax incentives for investments targeted at some...

The New Partnership Audit Rules Effective January 1, 2018

Written on February 20, 2018. Posted in Tax Alerts.

By Mike Bodrato, CPA, JD As part of the Bipartisan Budget Agreement of 2015, Congress made significant changes in the procedures used by the IRS to conduct partnership audits (including LLCs treated as partnerships) and their partners. Proposed regulations were issued on January 19, 2017, but prior to being released were withdrawn by executive order. New proposed regulations were issued on June 14, 2017. The new partnership audit rules repeal the current regime under the Tax Equity...

Impact of the New Tax Law on Engineering Firms

Written on February 6, 2018. Posted in Engineering.

The “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” signed by President Trump on December 22, 2017, contains numerous provisions that impact business that specialize in providing professional services in the field of engineering. Below is a summary of some of the key provisions: Corporate and Non-corporate: Limits on the Deduction of Business Interest – IRC Sec. 163(j) Generally, for tax years beginning after Dec. 31, 2017, every business, regardless of its form, will be subject to a...

QBI and Guaranteed Payments

Written on January 30, 2018. Posted in Tax Alerts.

While there is much to say about the complexity and application of the new Qualified Business Income (“QBI”) deduction provided under the recently enacted Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, I am going to focus on a narrow aspect of these rules that could have a significant impact on partners and partnerships. Under the new QBI deduction provisions, effective after January 1, 2018, an owner of a sole proprietorship, S corporation or partnership is entitled to a deduction equal to 20% of the “qualified...

Using Tax Certiorari to Challenge New York City Tax Assessments

Written on February 24, 2016. Posted in Tax.

By Wiss Associate Do you feel that your latest New York City real estate tax assessment was unjustified? If so, you have a strong tool for challenging unfair assessments: a Tax Certiorari. The Certiorari is a classification of challenges that property owners can make before the city’s Tax Commission as the aggrieved party in an assessment. Parties can include real estate developers, landlords and individuals with a financial or other specified interest in the property. There are...

The “Sexy” Career Path of Real Estate Accounting

Written on December 14, 2015. Posted in Real Estate.

By Wiss Associate I got into the field of real estate accounting for one good reason: I was majoring in accounting at Rutgers-Newark, working nights at a warehouse and looking for a part-time job that would let me use more of what I was learning at school. The first offer I got was for an internship with a real estate accounting firm. That turned into my first career job out of college and that’s what I’ve been doing for the last 15 years. If you’re just starting out and exploring...

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