3 Moves To Make By End of 2017
Give To Charity If you are a charitably inclined person and itemize your tax returns, consider making another gift by the end of the year. A lot of deductions are going away in 2018, which will make it harder for many people to take advantage of itemized tax returns. In addition, with the standard deduction nearly…
Should You Prepay Your 2018 Property Taxes In 2017?
Tax reform will be capping your state and local tax deductions at $10,000 beginning in 2018. To prevent taxpayers from navigating around the $10,000 deduction cap that will take effect in 2018, Congress wrote right into the tax bill that taxpayers will not be able to prepay their 2018 state income taxes and take the…
2018 Standard Mileage Reimbursement Rates
The Internal Revenue Service has issued its 2018 optional standard mileage rates. Effective January 1st, 2018, the IRS standard rate will be 54.5 cents per mile driven for ministry or business purposes (The new rate is up from 53.5 cents per mile for 2017 because of higher gas prices ). Use of this rate is…
Year-end strategies for charitable giving
As the holidays approach, many people look for ways of combining their desire to help the causes they believe in with their desire to save on taxes. For the charitably inclined, there are strategic ways of giving that can accomplish both goals. However, if Congress passes a tax reform bill this year, it could include…
How Many Hours Should a Pastor Work?
For most business professionals, there is a societal assumption that the person will work at least 40 hours per week, on a somewhat predictable schedule (that the person will be in the office most weekdays- 5 days from 8 am to 5 pm, for example). But most pastors do not fit this assumption and will work more…
Ask the Pros – Clergy Tax Law
Researching a clergy issue on your own takes time and can leave you wondering if you’ve got the right answer. Turn to Clergy Financial Resources to save time while getting the correct answers. Most callers want answers to specific questions on tax returns, interpretations of new laws or maybe you don’t have time to find the answer…
Designating 2018 Housing Allowance
A housing allowance is a portion of clergy income that may be excluded from income for federal income tax purposes (W-2 “Box 1” wages) under Section 107 of the Internal Revenue Code. To be eligible, the pastor/clergy must be a “minister of the gospel” and be ordained, licensed, or commissioned by a church, convention or…
Year End Check Up – Estimated Payments
Although you know what your 2016 tax bill came to, you probably don’t quite know what your 2017 tax will be. While it can’t be predicted with absolute certainty, you may want to review your financial picture thus far, as well as on events you anticipate will occur and transactions you anticipate finalizing in the balance of…
