Author: Leah Spielman

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What are Public Accounting Specializations?

When you are building a public accounting career, it may seem that the only two choices for technical specialization are tax or audit. However, there are many ways that you can add skills, gain certifications and advance your career. You may notice that other public accountants carry different credentials behind their names besides, or in

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California Small Business Resources

After a short Internet search, it is easy to find a handful of sites dedicated to small business resources in California. To make it even easier, this article summarizes each site and what small business owners can find for financing and business planning support in California. California has relatively high taxes and a high cost

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Choosing the Best CPA Firm for You

Knowing what you want in a CPA firm goes a long way toward helping you make the decision as to which firm you’d like to work for. And it’s a hard decision to make. You want to find a position that comes with job security, provides you a living wage and works with your schedule

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Important Tax Figures for 2022

The Internal Revenue Service announced the tax year 2022 annual inflation adjustments for more than 60 tax provisions, including the tax rate schedules and other tax changes. Revenue Procedure 2021-45 provides details about these annual adjustments. The following table provides some important federal tax information for 2022, as compared with 2021. Some of the dollar amounts

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Close-Up on the Individual AMT

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) made the individual alternative minimum tax more taxpayer friendly for 2018 through 2025. For those years, the odds of owing the alternative minimum tax (AMT) have been significantly reduced – and, if you still owe the AMT, you’ll probably owe less than under prior law. Are you at

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Work-Life Balance When WFH

Virtual reality, IRL, working from home—what’s the difference? Should you look for a CPA job with the ability to work from home, or do you find yourself more focused when you’re in the office? Maybe you don’t know what you prefer yet. Here are the key elements of working from home vs. working in the

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Row of low income housing units.

IRS Extends Temporary Relief for Late-leased Units

Notice 2022-05 released by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on January 10, 2022 provided extensions to various compliance deadlines for low-income housing projects claiming credits under Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 42. Prior to the release of Notice 2022-05, the IRS had provided temporary relief in its Notice 2021-12. However, due to the ongoing COVID-19

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IRS Notice 2022-05 Extends Compliance Deadlines for LIHTC Projects

In response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the IRS has issued Notice 2022-05 on January 10, 2022 to extend temporary relief from certain requirements under the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 42 for qualified low-income housing projects.  For relief that was provided before this recent IRS notice, please refer to our 1/25/21 blog “IRS Notice

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Family sitting on the floor of new apartment with moving boxes around them.

IRS Guidance On Minimum 4% LIHTC Rate

On December 1, 2021, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued guidance on the minimum 4% low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) rate. Revenue Ruling (Rev Rul) 2021-20 clarifies when the 4% floor applies to projects receiving housing credit allocations or tax-exempt bonds. Revenue Procedure (Rev Proc) 2021-43 provides safe harbors for determining whether an exempt bond

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PPP Update: Timing and Tax Effects of PPP Loan Forgiveness

On November 18, 2021, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued a series of three revenue procedures (Rev Proc) to address various tax issues relating to PPP loan forgiveness.   Rev Proc 2021-48 addresses the timing of receipt of PPP forgiveness tax-exempt income. Taxpayers may treat amounts that are excluded from gross income (i.e., tax-exempt income) as

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Internship Etiquette for Your Accounting Career

Congratulations, you have landed that all important career-starter: an internship at a CPA firm! Being selected over others means that the firm sees some potential in you. Now your task is to learn as much as you can in this real-time test of skills, attitude and fortitude. How can you make the most of this

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Don’t Skip the Soft Skills

Soft skills, sometimes referred to as interpersonal communications skills, relate to how well a person interacts with others. Up to now, the majority of your professional educational efforts have probably been razor-focused on hard skill, fact-based learning.  For certain, mad-fast calculator skills and the ability to craft the perfect pivot table are awesome technical feats.

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Graduate holding a diploma

Do You Need a Master’s in Taxation Degree?

Talk to people who have, or had, your desired position. An advanced degree may not, in fact, be required to get to where they are. After all, professional experience and connections matter as much or more than any degree.  That being said, many who have a master’s in taxation (MST) find that it accelerates their

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PPP Update: SBA Drops PPP Loan Necessity Questionnaire

After numerous trade organizations challenged the legality of the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) Loan Necessity Questionnaires, the SBA announced this month that it is dropping the requirement for loan necessity review for PPP loans of $2 million or larger. The questionnaires were an additional step to collect supplemental information to evaluate

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Man working from home participating in a Zoom call.

5 Ideas to Start Your Remote Job the Right Way

Between co-workers, managers, projects and a different culture from your previous workplace, the transition to a new job can be difficult—even in the best of times. For employees who start a new job remotely, it can be a daunting task to get up to speed on processes, expectations and collaboration. By communicating and proactively showing

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Modern apartment complex.

IRS Guidance to Change Depreciation Method for RPTOB

On June 17, 2021, the IRS released Revenue Procedure 2021-28 and Revenue Procedure 2021-29 that provide guidance for an electing Real Property Trade or Business (RPTOB) to conform to the use of a depreciation recovery period of 30 years under the Alternative Depreciation System (ADS) for residential rental property placed in service before January 1,

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Overcome New Job Nerves

Starting a new job is a big life change! It’s an exciting time in your life, but it can leave you feeling nervous and uncertain about what’s to come. This feeling of nervousness is normal when starting a new job—we’ve all experienced it. It can feel challenging, or maybe even overwhelming to face a new

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Turn Stress into Productivity

As we go through life, stressful situations happen. Starting a new job is one of the most stressful situations we will face, but there are ways to turn that stress or anxiety into productivity. Use these tips to turn this or any stressful situation into a positive one.   Find Balance There is a lot

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PPP Update: Deductibility of Eligible Expenses on California Returns

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 80 (AB 80) on April 29, 2021 to allow certain businesses to deduct their eligible expenses that were paid with forgiven Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans. Prior to this new legislation, California did not allow a tax deduction of eligible expenses paid with forgiven PPP loan funds. California

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Modern Workplace Etiquette

Modern Workplace Etiquette

Workplaces are becoming casual and employers are eager to showcase their relaxed culture with new or potential hires. Offices have ditched professional attire to allow employees to wear casual clothing all week long, not just on specific days of the week. Leadership teams are also becoming more accepting of varying work schedules, allowing employees to

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IRS Extends 2020 Individual Federal Return Filing Due Date

On March 17, 2021, the IRS announced that the federal individual income tax filing due date for 2020 returns will be automatically extended from April 15, 2021 to May 17, 2021. Formal IRS guidance will be issued shortly. The extended due date also applies to the tax payment due with the individual return. No interest

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How to Use LinkedIn Effectively

When was the last time you updated your LinkedIn profile? It’s important to regularly update your profile and check-in with your followers, not just when you’re looking for a job. An up-to-date profile is a reflection of who you are and the organization you work for, and can also be used as an effective business

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Develop Your Career with Professional Communication

Whether you’re applying for a new job, just starting off in your career or are an established professional, the way you communicate matters. Written communication can become sloppy and unprofessional if we aren’t careful. Here are a few tips to ensure you’re communicating professionally within the work place or when applying for a new position.

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Business Energy Credit Impacted by the Consolidated Appropriations Act

The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 (CAA), signed into law by President Trump on December 27, 2020, included extenders to extend tax provisions related to various energy credits. One of the extended credits is the business energy credit under Internal Revenue Code Section 48(a) for solar property. Credits for solar property are commonly seen in

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Consolidated Appropriations Act Changes the ADS Depreciable Life

The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA), signed into law on December 27, 2020 by President Trump, included provisions that shorten the depreciable life under the Alternative Depreciation System (ADS) for pre-2018 residential real estate for an IRC Sec. 163(j)(7)(A)(ii) electing real property trade or business.  For residential real estate placed in service prior to January

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Temporary Relief for Late-leased Units in LIHTC Projects

Notice 2021-12 released by the Internal Revenue Service on January 15, 2021 provided various extensions and modifications to the requirements for low income housing tax credits under Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 42. Please refer to our earlier blog, IRS Notice 2021-12 Provides LIHTC Relief and Extends Deadlines.   One modification in Notice 2021-12 that

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IRS Notice 2021-12 Provides LIHTC Relief and Extends Deadlines

The Internal Revenue Service issued Notice 2021-12 on January 15, 2021 to grant relief and to extend deadlines for various Low-Income Housing Tax Credit requirements.  Here is a summary of the relief and extensions. Operational relief for the period from April 1, 2020 to September 30, 2021: Building owners are not required to perform income

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Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), Round 2

On December 27, 2020, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA) was signed into law.  It contains extensions and expansions of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a program included in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act that allows eligible employers to obtain forgivable loans for certain payroll and non-payroll purposes. The PPP loan

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The Importance of Being Organized at Work

A lack of organization can be a real problem in the workplace. It can affect your productivity levels, and hinders your professional appearance to colleagues and clients. It isn’t just about your professional reputation; implementing daily habits to remain organized can have a positive impact on your overall health and well-being. Feeling unorganized can produce

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