Mesa Money Minute
163 episodes - English - Latest episode: 5 months ago -We're local financial professionals who produce this daily feature at the studios of KAFM Community Radio in Grand Junction, Colorado. We offer up short, 1- to 2- minute segments on tax, finance, economy, markets and other financials topics.Image credit: President Washington by Laakso for FreeVector.com
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Episodes
Home Energy Credits
February 05, 2024 15:00 - 1 minute - 1.01 MBThe Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 implemented some new and changed other energy efficiency credits for home improvements. Certain types of home energy efficient upgrades, including exterior doors, windows, skylights, and insulation, central air conditioners, water heaters, furnaces, boilers and heat pumps, biomass stoves and boilers, and home energy audits, qualify for a credit up to 30% of the cost of the expenses, with a max of $1200 (heatpumps, biomass stoves, and boilers, have a separa...
Electric Vehicle Credits
January 29, 2024 15:00 - 1 minute - 1.15 MBThe Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 implemented and changed many of the clean energy credits available to both individual and business taxpayers. The electric vehicle (EV) credit is available for individual taxpayers with adjusted gross income of less than $300k for married taxpayers and $150k for single taxpayers. For a vehicle to qualify, it must be purchased new for personal use, and must have a battery capacity of at least 7kWh, and have a gross vehicle weight rating of less than 14,000 ...
National Data Privacy Week
January 22, 2024 15:00 - 1 minute - 1.14 MBJanuary 21-27 is National Data Privacy Week. It's a good time to review the steps you're taking to protect your personal sensitive information and make any adjustments for the new year. Check your security settings on your devices, and especially when you set up a new device. Device manufacturers often release new security features with software updates, so stay updated and familiarize yourself with any new settings. Default passwords should be changed as soon as possible. Never email sensit...
ERC Voluntary Disclosure Program
January 15, 2024 15:00 - 1 minute - 1.03 MBAmid the recovery efforts from COVID-19, many businesses took advantage of the Employee Retention Credit (ERC) which allowed a credit for keeping employees on payroll. However, the regulations and requirements of the credit are complex, and many businesses may have discovered after the fact that the claimed the credit in error. IRS has been stepping up enforcement action on incorrect ERC claims in recent months. If a business loses the ERC under audit, they'll be liable to repay the credit p...
FAMLI Leave is Now Available
January 15, 2024 15:00 - 1 minute - 1.2 MBColorado Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI or "Famli") leave is available to use beginning January 1, 2024. If you are an employee and need leave for an eligible reason, typically parental leave for birth or adoption of a child, medical leave to care for a person with a serious medical condition, whether that person is yourself or a family member, leave to support family members who are in the military, or to attend the needs of a person (including yourself) who has experienced domes...
Automatic Penalty Relief
January 08, 2024 20:00 - 1 minute - 1.2 MBOn December 19, the IRS announced a new program to help taxpayers who have been hit with penalties for 2020 and 2021, but were unaware of the accumulating penalties due to a pandemic-era policy to halt sending penalty notices. IRS had temporarily stopped sending automated reminders to pay past due tax bills in February 2022. Penalties, however, continued to accrue, sometimes without the knowledge of the taxpayer. The IRS will resume its normal process of sending automated reminders this mont...
R&D Credit
November 20, 2023 15:00 - 1 minute - 1.25 MBContrary to popular belief, you don't need to wear a lab coat or discover a new element to be eligible for a research and development (or R&D) tax credit. If your business is creating or improving a product, process, or software, you may qualify. For expenditures to qualify, they must be "incurred in connection with the taxpayer's trade or business" and must "represent research and development costs in the experimental or laboratory sense". According to the regulations, the "experimental or ...
Section 179D
November 13, 2023 15:00 - 1 minute - 1.09 MBWhat is Section 179D? Sounds intimidating doesn't it? Section 179D is a tax incentive for qualifying energy efficient commercial buildings. It allows for a deduction of up to $5/square foot if all energy efficiency and prevailing wage requirements are met. The deduction is primarily for building owners, but in certain circumstances it can be allocated to the designers, architects, engineers, and contractors of public buildings. The incentive is available for new construction projects as well...
MyUI Employer +
November 06, 2023 15:00 - 1 minute - 1.09 MBThe Colorado Department of Labor and Employment rolled out its new employer platform for paying unemployment premiums, reporting wages, and responding to claims last month. Employers will need to register their accounts on the new platform to report wages and pay premiums. Every employer should have received either an activation email or letter with the information necessary to register a new account. If you haven't received your activation information, you can call the division or visit the...
Proposition HH
November 02, 2023 19:00 - 1 minute - 1.28 MBWhat is Proposition HH? Prop HH would make various changes to state property taxes and changes to state revenue limits, including reducing the residential property tax assessment rate and subtracting a set amount of money from a property's taxable value before applying the assessment rate; creating two new subclasses of residential property effective in 2025; providing funds to local governments to make up for decreased property tax revenues, referred to as backfilling; creating a limit on l...
Tax Deductions for Small Businesses
August 25, 2023 06:00 - 1 minute - 1.28 MBWhether you're a sole proprietor, a partnership, or a small corporation, you're probably wondering what you can "write off" or deduct from your taxes. Any expenditure that is ordinary and necessary to the operations of your business can generally be deducted, with many exceptions noted in the code. A commonly overlooked deduction available for your sole proprietorship is the use of a home office. If you use a space in your home regularly and exclusively for your business, you can deduct a po...
The Gig Economy and Taxes
August 18, 2023 14:00 - 1 minute - 1.22 MBThe gig economy or sharing economy is a term for the activities in which people earn income by providing services or goods on an on-demand basis, usually connected through digital platforms. Income from the gig economy is taxable even if it is part time, temporary, not reported on any tax form like a W-2 or 1099, or paid in any form including cash, crypto, or with a trade. If you're employed in the gig economy, be prepared to track and report your income and expenses just like any other busi...
Colorado TABOR Sales Tax Refund
August 11, 2023 14:00 - 1 minute - 1.29 MBFor the second year in a row, many Colorado residents are eligible for a refundable state sales tax refund credit, which is a mechanism to refund tax revenue in excess of limits established by the Taxpayers' Bill of Rights amendment, or TABOR, added to the Colorado Constitution in 1992. The credit is allowed only to those individuals who lived in Colorado for the entire year. In order to claim the credit, taxpayers must file a Colorado income tax return or a Colorado Property Tax/Rent/Heat R...
Tax Benefits for Education
August 05, 2023 00:00 - 1 minute - 1.1 MBAugust means back to school! There are lots of tax benefits for higher education. The American Opportunity Credit is a credit of up to $2,500 per year for the first four years of college. The Lifetime Learning Credit is a credit of up to $2,000 per year for years after the first four years of higher education. Child not college age yet? You can still get a tax benefit by setting aside savings to a Qualified Tuition Program, also known as a 529 plan. Contributions to eligible plans are deduct...
Gift Taxes
June 27, 2023 14:00 - 1 minute - 1.47 MBThe taxation of gifts is complex, but the vast majority of us will never actually pay gift taxes, at least under current tax code. Gifts are generally not taxable to the recipient, however, if a gift of an asset such as a rental property is made, and then that property begins generating income, that income will be taxable to the new owner of the property (the recipient). Any potential gift taxation is the responsibility of the giver, not the recipient. There is currently a gift tax exclusion...
401(k)'s vs. IRA's
June 20, 2023 14:00 - 1 minute - 1.37 MBWhat is the best account to use for your retirement savings, a 401(k) or an Individual Retirement Account (IRA)? Each has pro's and cons. With a 401(k) you can set aside more each year (up to $22,500 in 2023, or $30,000 if you're over age 50); it is easy for an individual to set up (usually your employer takes care of deducting your contributions from your paycheck each month and depositing them to the account); there are no income limits; and often employers offer matching contributions to ...
Fiscal Responsibility Act
June 16, 2023 14:00 - 1 minute - 1.1 MBBiden signed the Fiscal Responsibility Act on June third, ending the debt limit crisis. The act increases the federal debt limit and suspends the federal debt limit until January 2025. It also ends the current student loan repayment pause, meaning that student loan repayments will resume towards the end of the summer. It also cuts about $20 billion of the $80 billion funding provided to the IRS by the Inflation Reduction Act. This could mean that the anticipated improvements in IRS taxpayer ...
Estimated Tax Payments
June 14, 2023 17:00 - 2 minutes - 1.5 MBJune is an estimate month! Generally individuals and businesses must submit their income tax payments to the IRS and state agencies four times per year. There is an exception if your tax bill, after withholding and other payments, is less than $1,000. However, if you don't meet this or other exceptions then there can be penalties for not paying estimated tax payments. The penalty rate is similar to interest and is applied on a daily basis. Currently the penalty rate is 7%, so it is similar t...
529 Roth Conversion
May 23, 2023 14:00 - 1 minute - 1.03 MBIt's graduation season! What if you didn't end up needing all your college savings for college? Maybe you got scholarships, went to a free school overseas, or decided not to pursue higher education after all and now you're wondering what do with the funds leftover in your 529 plan. Starting in 2024, the SECURE Act 2.0 passed last year allows you to convert some of the funds in your 529 tuition plan to a Roth Individual Retirement Account, so you can jump start your retirement savings. There...
Fed Raises Interest Again
May 16, 2023 14:00 - 1 minute - 1.1 MBOn May 3, the Federal Reserve once again raised interest rates by 0.25%, the latest in a series of rate hikes. However, they also hinted that they may be done raising interest rates for the time being. The latest rate hike was the 10th in a row, starting in March of 2022, in an attempt to curb the rampant inflation in the economy after the the pandemic. Inflation has slowed, from a high of 9.1% in June of 2022 to 4.98% in March. While this is still greater than the fed's 2% target, the fed h...
Colorado SecureSavings Registration Deadlines
May 09, 2023 14:00 - 1 minute - 1.22 MBDeadlines are approaching for employers to register for their Colorado SecureSavings accounts or to certify their exemptions. Colorado SecureSavings is a new state-sponsored retirement plan that is required for employers without an existing retirement plan who have at least 5 employees. For employers with 5-49 employees, the deadline to register is May 15. For employers with 50 or more employees, the deadline to register has already passed. If you haven't received an email from the state wit...
National Small Business Week
May 03, 2023 22:00 - 1 minute - 896 KBApril 30 to May 6 the Small Business Administration sponsors the National Small Business Week. Did you know that there are 33 million small business in the US and that small businesses create two-thirds of net new jobs, employ nearly half the workforce and produce 40% of our economic output? The SBA uses this week to honor and celebrate small businesses with awards and recognition. Visit SBA.gov for more information on the winners and to learn more about the programs and support the SBA off...
Understanding Tax Brackets
January 30, 2023 15:00 - 1 minute - 1.11 MBA common misconception regarding taxes is that a 40% tax rate means that you will pay 40% of your taxable income in taxes. In fact, the United States has a graduated income tax system, which means that your top, or marginal, tax rate only applies to the income in that bracket. For example, many people believe that a 24% tax rate on $100,000 of taxable income would equal $24,000 in taxes. In fact, the 24% would only apply to the last $5,000 of income. The first $11,000 of income would be taxe...
Standard vs. Itemized Deductions
January 23, 2023 15:00 - 1 minute - 1.23 MBDo you know the difference between taking the standard deduction and itemized deductions? It can be helpful in understanding your tax return and planning for taxes to know when you would itemize deductions instead of taking the standard deduction. The standard deduction is a dollar amount, adjusted for inflation each year, by which every American taxpayer gets to reduce their income to calculate their tax liability. The idea of the standard deduction was introduced in the 40's to simplify ta...
Tax Season is Almost Here
January 16, 2023 15:00 - 1 minute - 1020 KBThe IRS has not yet announced when it will begin accepting e-filed returns for the 2023 tax season, but it will likely be towards the end of January or beginning of February. That doesn't mean you can't start getting ready now! Most tax forms are due to be postmarked to the recipients by January 31, so keep a keen eye on the mail in the next few weeks. Also take note if any of your forms are selected for electronic delivery - watch your email inbox and junk folder for notifications that thos...
IRS Corrects 14 million 2020 Returns
January 10, 2023 21:00 - 1 minute - 983 KBThe IRS announced last week that it finished processing corrections on 14 million 2020 tax returns for taxpayers who overpaid their taxes on unemployment compensation they received that year. The American Rescue Plan Act which became law in March of 2021 excluded up to $10,200 in 2020 unemployment compensation from taxable income for individuals and married couples whose gross income was less than $150,000. Many people had already filed their tax returns when the law became effective, so IRS...
Student Loan Forgiveness Update
December 23, 2022 07:00 - 1 minute - 947 KBCourts have issued decisions which have halted the Biden administration's plan to cancel up to $20,000 in federal student debt for more than 40 million Americans. The Biden administration has appealed the decisions and is attempting to reinstate the program; however, in the meantime, the stay on student loan repayments has been extended until June 30, 2023, though you can continue to make payments on your loans if you wish. More than half of eligible borrowers had applied for the program bef...
FAMLI Deductions Begin Next Month
December 16, 2022 15:00 - 1 minute - 1.03 MBBeginning on January 1, 2023, Colorado employers will be required to start withholding .45% of their employees' wages to contribute to the new Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) program. Employers with more than 10 employees will also contribute .45% of wages to the program. The funds will be used, beginning in 2024, to pay employees for leave taken for the birth or adoption of a child or for caring for a family member with an illness, or other approved uses. The employer portal is o...
Colorado SECURE Savings Begins Next Month
December 09, 2022 15:00 - 1 minute - 1000 KBBeginning in early 2023, most employers without a retirement plan offering will be required to enroll in the Colorado SecureSavings program and automatically sign up their employees for a 5% payroll deduction to contribute to their savings accounts. The funds will be contributed to a Roth IRA for the employee. Employees will be able to opt out or change their savings rate if they wish. Employers will receive an official registration notice in early 2023 which they will use to set up their o...
National Tax Security Awareness Week
December 01, 2022 18:00 - 1 minute - 1.08 MBThis week is the 7th annual National Tax Security Awareness Week which is a joint effort by the IRS, state tax agencies, and the tax industry to urge increased security measures as fraudsters exploit COVID-19 concerns. The IRS is warning people to be on the lookout for scammers using fake charities during the holiday season when folks are expressing their generosity as well as year round. Some tips to avoid fake charity scams include, don't give in to pressure. Scammers often use the techniq...
Beware Employee Retention Credit Schemes
November 29, 2022 15:00 - 1 minute - 1.04 MBIf you own a small business, or even if you don't, you may be getting a lot of solicitations advising you that you may qualify for the Employee Retention Tax Credit (ERTC). Be wary of these "ERC Shops" that may advise you to claim the credit when you may not qualify. These third parties often charge large upfront fees or a fee that is contingent on the amount of the refund and may not inform taxpayers that wage deductions claimed on the business' federal income tax return must be reduced by ...
Tax Planning
November 22, 2022 15:00 - 1 minute - 1.06 MBNow that tax season 2021 is finally in the books, it's time to start thinking about next year! The last couple of months of the year are an excellent time to revisit your tax plan and make any last-minute adjustments. It's a good time to estimate your 2022 tax liability based on how you've done in the year so far, to be prepared for any extra payments that may be needed. There are online tools to do this such as the one on efile.com, or get with your CPA. Review your charitable goals and ma...
Energy Credits in the Inflation Reduction Act
November 14, 2022 15:00 - 1 minute - 1.17 MBThe Inflation Reduction Act, signed into law by the President on August 16, provides significant expansion of individual tax credits for green energy. Consumers may receive tax credits on new and used clean vehicle purchases. The federal credit for up to $7,500 for new vehicles and $4,000 for used vehicles. The solar credit increases the credit amount from 26% to 30% for solar panel installation costs. There is also a 30% credit for installing efficient exterior windows, skylights, doors, wa...
SALT Parity Act
November 07, 2022 15:00 - 1 minute - 1.15 MBThe 2017 federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the TCJA) went into effect on January 1, 2018. Among other things the TCJA capped the amount of state and local taxes (or SALT) that an individual could deduct to $10,000. This cap extends to individual owners of pass-through entities because business income generated from pass-through entities like LLC's, partnerships, and S-Corps, is assessed at the individual owner level rather than at the business level. This limitation does not apply to C-Corporat...
Inflation Reduction Act
September 19, 2022 14:00 - 1 minute - 941 KBOn August 16, President Biden signed into law the Inflation Reduction Act. This sweeping bill includes some changes to invididual income taxes, including extending the Premium Tax Credits for marketplace health plans through 2024 (they were originally scheduled to end this year). It modifies, extends, and creates a variety of tax credits for green energy. For busineses, it imposes a 15% minimum tax on corporate books income for corporations with profits over $1 billion. And increases the res...
Colorado SECURE Savings Plan
September 12, 2022 14:00 - 1 minute - 1.04 MBTo alleviate the nationwide issue of low retirement savings for individuals in Colorado, the state is implementing a public retirement savings plan. Employers who have more than 4 employees and don't offer a retirement account, will be required to enroll in the program and auto-enroll each employee. The default savings rate will be 5% of wages, but employees can change that rate or opt out completely. There is no employer match or cost, other than the cost of setting up and maintaining the p...
Student Loan Forgiveness
September 05, 2022 14:00 - 1 minute - 960 KBAll the buzz is about the federal student loan forgiveness program! In a nutshell, if you have federal student loans and make less than $125,000 if you are single or $250,000 if you are married or head of household, then you will qualify for $10,000 student loan forgiveness. If you received a Pell grant when you were in school, you will qualify for $20,000 forgiveness. If you are on an income-based repayment plan, the Department of Education may already have your income information on file a...
Audit Proof Your Small Business Part 2
August 15, 2022 14:00 - 1 minute - 942 KBLast week we gave you the first four tips for audit proofing your small business. Here are four more valuable tips. (5) Use technology. The options are endless and your CPA can help you decide what's best for you. (6) Understand what is deductible. Of course you will need your CPA's help from time to time, but having a general understanding of how tax deductions work will help you stay organizer. (7) Remember, only your business can make business deductions. If your employees spend their own...
Audit Proof Your Small Business Part 1
August 08, 2022 14:00 - 1 minute - 1.05 MBAudits are an unfortunate fact of life for small business owners. While the chance of an audit in any given year is low, there's a decent chance that over the life of your business you'll be subject to at least one type of audit of your business records. Here are eight tips to ensure you're prepared in case of an audit: (1) choose a strategy and stick with it! Are you going to use technology, a professional, old fashion paper ledgers? Figure out what works for you and keep it up. (2) Know wh...
Short Term vs. Long Term Rentals
July 29, 2022 14:00 - 1 minute - 1.01 MBA lot of real estate investors are converting their long-term rentals to short-term rentals, and renting them on websites such as AirBNB and VRBO. Before making the switch, it's important to understand the tax implications. First off, localities (including the City of Grand Junction) often charge lodging tax in addition to sales tax. They may also require a special permit be obtained. Check with the city your property is located in to learn about tax and licensing requirements. Additionally...
Cost Segregation Studies
July 27, 2022 14:00 - 1 minute - 1.09 MBWith the boom in real estate values in the last couple of years, many casual and professional real estate investors are looking for ways to save in taxes on their real estate investments. One strategy is to complete a cost segregation study. Cost segregation studies, or "cost segs" for short, are prepared to allocate or reallocate building costs to tangible personal property. A cost seg identifies and reclassifies personal property from real property assets to shorten the depreciation time f...
Retail Delivery Fee
July 25, 2022 14:00 - 2 minutes - 1.5 MBEffective July 1, Colorado imposes a retail delivery fee on all deliveries by motor vehicle to a location within Colorado with at least one item of tangible personal property subject to state sales or use tax. The retailer that collects the sales tax on the sale sold and delivered, including delivery by a third party, is liable to collect and remit the retail delivery fee. Deliveries include when any taxable goods are mailed, shipped, or otherwise delivered by motor vehicle to a purchaser in...
Colorado Cash Back
July 22, 2022 18:00 - 2 minutes - 1.5 MBOn May 23, 2022, Governor Polis signed a new law to give Coloradans a tax rebate of $750 for single filers and $1,500 for joint filers this summer. If you filed your individual 2021 tax return by June 30, you will receive your check by September 30. If you extended your tax return and file it by October 17, you will receive your check by January 31, 2023. To prevent fraud, all rebates will be issued by check, not direct deposit. You must file either a Colorado tax return or a property tax/re...
Worker classification
June 17, 2022 14:00 - 1 minute - 1.23 MBFederal and state departments of labor and other taxing authorities are cracking down on the misclassification of workers. Workers in your business can be classified as either independent contractors or employees. Properly classifying workers is important because misclassifying a worker as an independent contractor can open you up to back payroll taxes, penalties, and interest; whereas misclassifying a worker as an employee can cost you in payroll taxes and benefits. Determining whether a wo...
FAMLI
June 10, 2022 14:00 - 1 minute - 1.09 MBColorado voters approved Proposition 118 in November of 2020, creating a state-run Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) program. FAMLI will start providing benefits to employees beginning January 1, 2024. Eligible employees will receive up to 12 weeks of paid leave in order to take care of themselves or their family during life changes such as the birth or adoption of a child or taking care of a family member with a serious health condition. Both employers and employees will pay a...
What is a conservatorship?
June 03, 2022 14:00 - 1 minute - 1.14 MBA conservatorship is a court-ordered guardianship over an individual's financial life. These are set up when an individual lacks the capacity to manage one or more areas of their own finances. An interested party such as the adult child of an elderly person will bring the case to the court, and a judge will determine whether a conservatorship is necessary, and will appoint a conservator. Conservatorships can be limited, which applies to only specific matters, or full, which grants a conserva...
IRS Notices
May 30, 2022 14:00 - 1 minute - 1.21 MBCorrespondence from tax agencies are on the rise. What should you do if you receive a letter or a notice from the IRS or a state tax agency? First of all, don't panic, but don't ignore it. Many of these issues are relatively easily resolved. Don't assume the notice, including any balance due, is correct. If you prepared your own return, carefully review the notice against your records to ensure that you understand what the agency is changing or what they are requesting of you. If you do not ...
Losses on Crypto
May 27, 2022 14:00 - 1 minute - 1.17 MBThe cryptocurrency market, just like the stock market, has been on a rout recently. You may be wondering if you sell or dispose of your crypto at a loss, how does that affect your taxes. The IRS has deemed cryptocurrency as property, so gains and losses on it are generally considered capital, similar to holding a stock or a bond. Capital gains and losses are taxed differently than other types of income. Long term capital gains are generally taxed at 15% for most taxpayers. Capital losses can...
Fed Interest Rate Hike
May 23, 2022 14:00 - 1 minute - 939 KBThe Fed raised interest rates this month again, from 3% to 3.5%. How might this impact you? You will likely see higher interest rates on borrowing, such as home mortgages and car loans. Rates are expected to continue to increase, though, so if you're considering taking out a loan do so sooner rather than later. HIgher interest rates will also likely put some additional downward pressue on certain types of investments. However, you will likely be able to eek out a bit more interest on your sa...
Tax Loss Harvesting
May 20, 2022 21:00 - 1 minute - 1.04 MBWatching the market tank can be anxiety-inducing. However, there can be a tax silver lining to the market downturn. Tax loss harvesting is selling positions within your portfolio at a loss in order to capture or harvest that loss for use against a capital gain. You shouldn't sell losing positions solely for the tax benefits, however you can use this strategy to reduce your capital gains from sales of other positions or real estate, or even reduce your ordinary income by up to $3,000. Conside...