A condominium is different from a house in many respects. For instance, condos typically do not have a yard or basement. Instead, condo owners share land, lobbies, elevators, stairs, pools, and other service areas. As such, owners generally pay dues or assessments to a special corporation that is organized to manage the common areas.

Are condo common area expenses deductible?

The short answer is that common area expenses are not deductible if the condo is being used as personal property. However, if the condominium association makes a capital improvement to the property, the owners can add their pro-rata share of the expense to their cost basis. It is important to save the supporting documentation detailing the nature of the improvement since it will be incorporated in your capital gains tax calculation when you eventually sell the condo.

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Question:
I’m not sure about the weight issue for depreciating a van or truck. Does the 6,000 pounds of “gross vehicle weight” mean loaded or unloaded weight for trucks and vans? Is that the same as GVWR (gross vehicle weight rating)?

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Question:
My now deceased spouse owned several investments that were sold during the year prior to her passing at substantial capital losses. Can those carryforward capital losses be applied to my tax return or are they lost?

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We recently spoke with Bianca Wright of Nearshore Americas to discuss how best to navigate the murky waters of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA). As you may be aware, U.S businesses and individuals transacting overseas need to adhere to the requirements and regulations imposed by the Act. Below is an excerpt from the article.

Four Things You Need To Know About FATCA

Differentiating Between Business and Contractors

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Estimated personal taxes for the 3rd payment of the 2015 tax year are due on September 15th.  This also applies at the state and local level. These taxes must be paid by the due date to avoid interest & penalties. Below are the specific details.

Requirement: Make a payment for your estimated tax for the current year if you are not paying your income tax through withholding as part of payroll. This includes self-employment income, interest, dividends, alimony, rent, gains from the sale of assets, prizes and awards.

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Estimated corporate taxes for the 3rd payment of the 2015 tax year are due on September 15th.  This also applies at the state and local level. These taxes must be paid by the due date to avoid interest & penalties. Below are the specific details.

Requirement: Deposit the third installment of your estimated corporate income taxes to avoid interest, penalties & a big tax bill at the end of the year.

Who Must Pay: Corporations must generally make quarterly estimated tax payments if it expects the estimated tax for the year to be $500 or more for the tax year.

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Excel is a powerful tool used by accountants to summarize financial information. Join accountant Greg Freyman as he reveals the steps involved in summarizing financial information accounting in excel. If you have any questions, please contact us.

Question:
We purchased personal use foreign property in July 2012 for $300,000. On 1/1/14, the property was converted to rental use. It was rented out for three months in 2014. For purposes of setting up this rental property to calculate depreciation, should I use the exchange rate as of July 2012 or 1/1/14? Also, can you confirm that foreign rental property should be using ADS depreciation method with mid-month convention.

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Question:
We are married and earn about $300,000 per year. My wife is trying to become pregnant and we have already spent $24,000 in fertility treatment. Now we are considering using donor eggs which will cost an additional $42,000 Thus $66,000 in expense in 2015 or we can break it up to $24k this year and $42k next year. Is this type of expense deductible as a “medical expense?” Secondly, would the use of a FSA or HSA have been wise? Third, would it benefit to wait until 2016 to do this procedure and use a HSA or FSA? Fourth, assuming that we would receive some benefit by waiting until 2016, can they have the procedure done now and pay later to move the expense to 2016.

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Question:
We borrowed $100,00 from our LLC, which is taxed as a partnership. We now have a new partner and we have forgiven the loan. How is a forgiven partnership loan treated from a tax perspective on the 1065 and 1040?

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