When people establish an estate or designate a gift, they are doing so with good intentions. However, they may not always be informed about related tax consequences for the recipient. It’s important to know the dollar limitations and amounts that qualify as a tax-free gift, and when those amounts trigger tax payments. We have the knowledge and experience to provide guidance as these gifts are being made to minimize recipient taxes.

When making a financial gift, it’s important to partner with an attorney or accountant you trust to assist with fund management. Seek out trusted referrals to ensure you are working with someone qualified to set up an estate or trust correctly.

If you are the beneficiary of an estate or trust, be sure you know:  who has control of the money; what you are entitled to; whenyou will receive distributions and who has oversight of the funds to ensure they are used as directed.

If you want to discuss how we can help provide oversight and reconciliation responsibilities for your estate or trust, call us anytime at (913) 888-9100. We can also recommend a wealth management professional, if you need financial planning guidance as well.

There is often confusion around small business classifications. That’s where we come in! If you’re looking for a firm to guide the accounting structure of your business, we can help. It’s our job to ask the right questions to help determine the best business type for you.

Often, we recommend our clients consider an LLC (limited liability company) business classification, as it allows the owners to select the type of entity that would best benefit the business. This classification also provides the most flexibility in structure.

The first step of the process for us is to learn as much about your business as possible. We will review a series of questions with you to get started. After that, we will conduct independent research, if needed. Once we have a good understanding of the business and your goals, we will provide our recommendation. But, of course, the final decision is yours, and whatever structure you decide on, we can support you with our accounting and tax services.

As you’re thinking about the structure that is best for your business, our experience shows most any business that is not a C-Corp (a traditional corporation, like GM, General Electric, etc.) should be an LLC. One of the benefits of this classification is that in the state of Kansas, income from an LLC is not taxable for the 2015 tax year. Call us at (913) 888-9100 to discuss if an LLC is right for you!

We know how to prepare more than just taxes! Memorial Day weekend is almost here – try one of these recipes as you celebrate the holiday with family and friends:

Beer Braised Pork Butt from Dave Lieberman, Food Network

Food Network

Asian Style Slaw from Dave Lieberman, Food Network

Food Network

If you have a favorite recipe to share, comment with a link below! Wishing you all a safe and FUN weekend!

Serving as a Notary Public is an additional convenience and service we provide at Adams Accounting Solutions. I have been a Notary Public for 15 years, and make myself available when clients, or even non-clients, need something notarized for the state or city.

Having this capability streamlines things for our clients when there is a document that requires this certification. In fact, there are many documents that need to be notarized before they can be accepted by banks, realtors, attorneys and schools to validate that they are true and correct.

The ability to prepare documents and notarize them in-house allows us to process business in a timely manner. We’re able to prepare documents and mail them the same day easily for our clients – saving them from having to make multiple trips to finalize paperwork.

While this may sound like a small thing, sometimes the small things make all the difference! We’re happy to be able to provide this service that makes our clients’ lives a bit easier.

If you, or someone you know is in need of a Notary Public, let us know. We’ll always make time to help! You can call us at 913.888.9100 to schedule a time to stop by.

Managing a business successfully requires attention to detail. Is your business accounting current and accurate? At Adams Accounting Solutions, we take an informed approach to put a sound accounting structure in place for you.

We begin all of our accounting relationships by taking the time to learn the details of the business. We do this by identifying and asking the right questions. While we take a very thorough approach, you’ll probably find our style is more relaxed than most CPA firms. That’s because we want you to feel comfortable asking questions of us, too!

Our approach is to partner with you to create a structure that will support your business and put it on track for growth. As someone who has been involved with small businesses for more than 40 years, I bring a lot of practical knowledge to the table. My parents are small business owners and I own three businesses myself!

Our firm has the technology and experience to prepare your business for the future. As Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisors, we can provide training for you and your employees – from initial setup procedures, through advanced and industry-specific training. We think outside the box to find the best ways to manage and account for your business and to take advantage of unused deductions available.

Call us at (913) 888-9100 to learn how we can benefit you today!

“More than one-third of all working-age adults haven’t managed to save any money toward retirement,” according to a 2014 survey by Bankrate.com and reported by CBS News. If you’re in the two-thirds of Americans who are saving for retirement, don’t sacrifice this effort by making an early withdrawal! But if an early withdrawal is necessary, it’s important you understand that tax implications first.

Withdrawals from ALL retirement accounts prior to age 59 ½ are subject to a 10% penalty, in addition to it being added to taxable income in the year of withdrawal. Of course, there are exceptions – so you should review your options with a professional. BEFORE making any withdrawals from a retirement account, check with your tax preparer to see what the consequences will be. If you find yourself in this situation but don’t have a relationship with a tax accountant, you can always call us at (913) 888-9100. We will take the time to familiarize ourselves with your financial situation to provide sound guidance.

Hopefully your tax accountant or a qualified financial advisor can help guide you to other options to fill a financial need without dipping into retirement savings. The best advice for retirement accounts is to use them for what they are intended for – your retirement. Invest the money you can now and leave it until you retire! THEN enjoy it!

You filed your income taxes on time – now you’re just waiting for your refund. Generally speaking, the IRS guideline for refunds is 6 to 8 weeks after confirmation of filing. This assumes the return was e-filed and there were no missing forms or errors. If you filed a paper return, the wait time is longer – it could be up to 2 to 3 months, and all amendments MUST be paper filed.

Credit: IRS.gov

If you’re feeling antsy and want to check, the IRS has a “Where’s My Refund?” page for that. You can check within 24 hours of submitting an e-file, or 4 weeks after mailing a paper return. Refund times vary by state, but generally 2 to 3 weeks is normal if you e-file.

If you are required to make estimated payments, we generally suggest any refund be applied forward to reduce the required estimates and eliminate the chance of penalties for late payments.

We also recommend everyone use direct deposit for federal and state refunds. Refunds are received up to 4 weeks faster if they are electronic, and paper checks can be easily stolen from the mail and cashed. Even if you don’t have a bank account, we can send a direct deposit refund to a prepaid Visa card (for a fee) and have your tax prep fees automatically deducted from your return.

If you want to invest all or part of your refund, but aren’t sure where to start, we can provide you with a referral to a qualified financial advisor. You can also reach us at (913) 888-9100 with questions about your refund status or to establish a plan for your 2015 income taxes that will allow us to simplify things for you.

Today is Earth Day. Have you taken steps around your home to improve energy efficiency? Not only can these measures save you money on utility bills, they may be deductible as well. Ongoing deductions available for energy efficient homes can be found in Publication 530 from the IRS.

Homeowners may be able to take a credit for energy saving improvements made to their homes. Some examples that fall in this category include solar upgrades and geo-thermal upgrades. If you have questions about improvements and whether they qualify, call us at (913) 888-9100 for help! One thing to be cautious of, there is a maximum total deduction over a two-year period for this category. Be sure you haven’t used the total deduction before trying to deduct more, as doing this could trigger an audit. Remember, we’re always available to review guidelines like this with you to ensure you’re using the deductions available to you the right way. 

We also get questions from clients about energy efficient appliances. It seems retailers sometimes sell appliances in this category as being tax deductible. However, the reality is most taxpayers cannot deduct the cost of energy efficient appliances because their total maximum deduction has already been used. While these choices are indeed better for the environment and also have potential to provide a utility savings – don’t count on them to be deductible on your taxes!

Tax preparation can be complicated. Part of the confusion comes from the many deduction categories and determining which ones are applicable to your situation. We are often able to help our clients identify deductions they didn’t realize they were eligible for. One area where this tends to be unique, however, is the section on dependents.

Most people do not “overlook” dependent deductions. Instead, they try to claim non-dependents as a deduction. A few examples we have seen, include:  pets; a friend living with family; a neighbor who divorced and lives with family; a sibling’s children because the sibling can’t claim the kids. Dependent deductions can save you a lot of money on your taxes, but it’s important you get it right.

There are two classes of people who can qualify as dependents:  qualifying children and qualifying relatives. If you’re unsure whether or not someone qualifies, let us know. We can discuss your situation in more detail to determine which dependents can be claimed on your tax return.

Of course, there many exceptions that may impact dependent deductions. One that’s worth pointing out is related to qualifying children. Generally speaking, you can claim an exemption for your child under age 19, but full-time students may be claimed as dependents until the age of 24. Those additional years can be significant!

Questions about deductions or anything else related to your income taxes? Call us at (913) 888-9100.

If you pay for child care, you know how costly it can be. That’s why it’s important to understand how the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit can reduce the taxes you pay. Review these 10 facts from the IRS about this potential tax credit to see which ones might apply to you!

Child care is an area where we often identify missed deductions among our clients. While most people understand that “daycare” is deductible, they often don’t realize that preschool costs, summer camps and “parents day out” programs may be as well. All of these expenses are deductible child care costs.

Another point that is regularly overlooked is related to kindergarten. If you pay for all-day kindergarten, that is also considered child care if the school district only provides for half-day kindergarten for normal enrollment.

For each of these deductions, you will need documentation from the child care provider (or school). This should be in the form of a statement that documents the total of all costs paid per child, the address of the facility, the telephone number and the provider’s federal tax ID number.

If you’re unsure about the deductions in this category you might be eligible for, scheduled an appointment with us today by calling (913) 888-9100. We can review your situation together to maximize the deduction (or reduce the payment) on your taxes.