http://askcpasam.com/blog Making Payroll, Tax, Finance, Accounting Understandable Fri, 04 May 2012 13:21:07 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 http://askcpasam.com/blog/2010/01/15/filing-status-what-is-that/ http://askcpasam.com/blog/2010/01/15/filing-status-what-is-that/#comments Fri, 15 Jan 2010 15:39:07 +0000 CPA Sam http://askcpasam.com/blog/?p=450 Q. My payroll person told me that the filing status on the W-4 doesn’t necessarily mean the same thing as my marital status.  Is that true?  What is filing status? A. Filing status on the W-4 and filing status on your tax return are not necessarily the same thing.  The W-4 drives withholding only.  The [...]

]]> http://askcpasam.com/blog/2010/01/15/filing-status-what-is-that/feed/ 0 http://askcpasam.com/blog/2009/09/02/what-tax-bracket-am-i-in-2/ http://askcpasam.com/blog/2009/09/02/what-tax-bracket-am-i-in-2/#comments Wed, 02 Sep 2009 13:36:43 +0000 CPA Sam http://askcpasam.com/blog/?p=387 Q. How do I know what tax bracket I’m in?  Where does that number come from? A. This question probably ranks right up at the top of the list of most frequent questions.  First of all, you probably meant to ask what is your marginal tax rate.  Let me explain.  Federal income tax is calculated [...]

]]> http://askcpasam.com/blog/2009/09/02/what-tax-bracket-am-i-in-2/feed/ 1 http://askcpasam.com/blog/2009/03/12/more-tax-relief/ http://askcpasam.com/blog/2009/03/12/more-tax-relief/#comments Thu, 12 Mar 2009 14:24:15 +0000 CPA Sam http://askcpasam.com/blog/?p=292 1) The IRS just released a press release regarding a new deduction for the 2008 and 2009 tax years.  If you pay real estate taxes, but don’t have enough deductions to itemize on Schedule A, you can still deduct some of the real estate tax you pay on your home.  The amount can be up [...]

]]> http://askcpasam.com/blog/2009/03/12/more-tax-relief/feed/ 0 http://askcpasam.com/blog/2009/01/28/alimony-taxable-income/ http://askcpasam.com/blog/2009/01/28/alimony-taxable-income/#comments Wed, 28 Jan 2009 14:32:46 +0000 CPA Sam http://askcpasam.com/blog/?p=260 Q. My divorce was finalized mid November…I do not work….how should my ex-husband and I file? We still live in the same house, although me and the kids upstairs, he downstairs…In our divorce decree, he gets to claim both kids as exemptions through 2010. As stated in the decree, he also must pay me temporary [...]

]]> http://askcpasam.com/blog/2009/01/28/alimony-taxable-income/feed/ 0 http://askcpasam.com/blog/2008/09/10/managing-and-ira-is-a-business/ http://askcpasam.com/blog/2008/09/10/managing-and-ira-is-a-business/#comments Wed, 10 Sep 2008 21:42:26 +0000 CPA Sam http://askcpasam.com/blog/?p=62 Q. I will be self directing an IRA to generate income. I will need a computer, software, attending investing seminars, and a host of other expenses in order to self direct it. Can any of these be business deductions? A. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could get paid for every activity that we undertake.  [...]

]]> http://askcpasam.com/blog/2008/09/10/managing-and-ira-is-a-business/feed/ 0 http://askcpasam.com/blog/2008/08/20/decrease-withholding-on-paycheck/ http://askcpasam.com/blog/2008/08/20/decrease-withholding-on-paycheck/#comments Wed, 20 Aug 2008 20:13:00 +0000 CPA Sam http://askcpasam.com/blog/?p=35 Q. I would like to ask how I can decrease the withholdings from each paycheck…I am married, salaried about 52K yearly; HR explained to me that I needed to increase the number of dependents (?!) I bought a house, I will therefore deduct the mortgage interest and the taxes. I live in Florida. Thanks for [...]

]]> http://askcpasam.com/blog/2008/08/20/decrease-withholding-on-paycheck/feed/ 0 http://askcpasam.com/blog/2008/07/30/withholding-in-more-than-one-state/ http://askcpasam.com/blog/2008/07/30/withholding-in-more-than-one-state/#comments Wed, 30 Jul 2008 22:25:00 +0000 CPA Sam http://askcpasam.com/blog/?p=32 Special Note: Dear readers, Thanks for your patience last week. There were two problems with the blog. Due to a configuration issue, it was down for a few days. Also, I was unable to post due to a very remote cabin for a week-long vacation. Things will return to normal now will at least weekly [...]

]]> http://askcpasam.com/blog/2008/07/30/withholding-in-more-than-one-state/feed/ 0 http://askcpasam.com/blog/2008/06/12/arizona-withholding/ http://askcpasam.com/blog/2008/06/12/arizona-withholding/#comments Thu, 12 Jun 2008 12:55:00 +0000 CPA Sam http://askcpasam.com/blog/?p=25 Q. I’m using PaycheckCity.com to estimate my paycheck after moving to Arizona. What’s up with the percentage stuff? Why is there no filing status and allowance values like everyone else? A. I wish I could tell you why Arizona withholds like it does. Employers in Arizona calculate withholding as a percentage of federal withholding. This [...]

]]> http://askcpasam.com/blog/2008/06/12/arizona-withholding/feed/ 0 http://askcpasam.com/blog/2008/05/16/changing-your-withholding/ http://askcpasam.com/blog/2008/05/16/changing-your-withholding/#comments Fri, 16 May 2008 14:00:00 +0000 CPA Sam http://askcpasam.com/blog/?p=20 Q. I had way too much withholding last year and got a huge refund when filing my tax return. How do I change that? A. This blog is coming from the floor of the Exhibit Hall at the American Payroll Association 2008 Congress in Austin, TX. With almost 2000 payroll folks surrounding me, I get [...]

]]> http://askcpasam.com/blog/2008/05/16/changing-your-withholding/feed/ 0 http://askcpasam.com/blog/2008/05/01/direct-deposit-and-stimulus-payment/ http://askcpasam.com/blog/2008/05/01/direct-deposit-and-stimulus-payment/#comments Thu, 01 May 2008 15:57:00 +0000 CPA Sam http://askcpasam.com/blog/?p=18 Q. What happens if I no longer have the same checking account for my direct deposit to go into with the Economic Stimulus Check? A. The IRS has a great section of Frequently Asked Questions regarding the Economic Stimulus payment. Many questions, like this one are already answered. According to the IRS website at this [...]

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