When Is a Foreign Tax Creditable Under Sec. 901? The Tax Adviser’s James A. Beavers, J.D., LL.M., CPA, CGMA, reports that The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case that delves into the contentious issue of when taxpayers are eligible to claim a foreign tax credit under Section 901 of the U.S. tax code. A ruling by the court would clarify part of the provision that has been litigated for decades.
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There’s good news and bad news. Here’s the low-down. Dean Zerbe offers his take at Forbes on how the current deal will affect small-business owners:
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Health Costs on His Mind, Small Factory Owner Looks for Ways to Cope With New Law Emily Maltby and Sarah E. Needleman at The Wall Street Journal talk with a small business owner outside of Chicago who’s considering ways to manage growth, preserve profit, and comply with the new healthcare law. Automation Systems, with with sales of about $1.6 million for 2012, currently employs 40 full-time workers, mostly low-paid employees who monitor the factory equipment. If sales were to continue to rise, the plant could, conceivably, employ 50 full-time workers in 2014. Under the new health-care law, the Affordable Care Act,…
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Owners Can Improve Cash Flow, Reduce Risk, and Generate Growth Successful exit plans require building long-term value, and Ron Stacey explains how business owners can begin to do that today by improving cash flow, reducing risk, and accelerating growth.
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Organizations with a Market Capitalization of Less than $300 Million may be Paying Higher Insurance Premiums Catastrophic risk is of increased concern to insurers, and small businesses without losses will likely face increased premiums of 10-20 percent on renewal next year. Why? Wildfires, cyber-crime, cloud computing risk, and workers compensation rates are some reasons insurers cite.
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The recession is over and entrepreneurs are looking for cash, but are banks willing to lend? The answer is a resounding yes, according to reports at OPEN Forum. OPEN Forum’s Katie Morell talks to lending and credit experts to get the tips you need to get that loan application approved. Here’s what she found out: Bankers emphasize that borrowers need to present a solid picture of their business and themselves. Here’s what they’re looking for in potential lendees. Your Posse Come into a lending meeting with your accountant or lawyer in tow to immediately establish a degree of credibility.…
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Far fewer small employers claimed the health insurance tax credit for small businesses in the health care reform law than were eligible, according to a new government report. So reports Michael Cohn at Accounting Today: The Small Employer Health Insurance Tax Credit was included in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 as a way to help small businesses pay for the cost of health insurance. But the complexities of claiming the credit contributed to a relatively low popularity for the tax credit among both small businesses and their tax preparers. While 170,300 small employers claimed the…
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The company culture you build has a major impact on how successful the business will be as it grows, writes Dan Schawbel, personal branding expert, at American Express OPENForum, a small business media hub. One of the biggest trends in the past few years is workplace flexibility. A new study by the Families and Work Institute shows that more than 75 percent of employers now offer some form of flex time. This number is up from two thirds in 2005. In addition, 63 percent of companies allow employees to work from home at least sometimes, which is up from 34 percent. Schawbel…
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The Wall Street Journal’s Small Business Blog featured recently a guest column by Antone Johnson on the use, misuse, and misvaluation of intellectual property. It’s probably of interest to valuators and financial consultants who are working with small business owners to value and growth their businesses. Venture capitalists, angel investors and start-up lawyers these days tend to be obsessed with “intellectual property,” or IP. And for good reason: In the information economy, the core assets of a new venture are likely to be talented people, the IP they create, and little else. To maximize future value, founders should…
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A relatively unexplored area of family business research is the role that an active, independent board of directors can play in perpetuating the family business from one generation to the next. David Thayne Liebell reports at Trusts & Estates that a recently published book, Building A Successful Family Business Board, seeks to close that research gap. In fact, according to the book’s authors, an active, independent board can serve as an objective steward, overseeing the creation and execution of a leadership succession plan that works for both the business and the family. Even in the healthiest of families, the leadership succession…
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Lessons from a Dying Business Redbox has built a successful DVD kiosk business, but its days are numbered. Here’s why that’s not such a bad thing, report Karl Stark and Bill Stewart at Inc.com. You’re probably familiar with Redbox, owner of those DVD-rental kiosks that you see parked outside of just about every neighborhood grocery store or pharmacy. Redbox is an excellent example of how to create growth from a business that will ultimately die. All growing companies can benefit from thinking more like Redbox. Redbox has grown over the past decade by offering the convenience of DVD rentals…
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A Rogue Employee Might be On Your Payroll, Too So writes Sarah E. Needleman at the Wall Street Journal Law Blog, where she points out that small businesses tend to be more vulnerable to fraud than large firms: If a business as established and well off as UBS can suffer at the hands of one bad apple, could the same can be true for any business, even a small firm? According to various media reports, an alleged trading scheme at the Swiss investment bank went undetected for three years before it was finally discovered last week that a 31-year-old trader was apparently…
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The 7 Biggest Financial Mistakes Businesses Make Running a business should earn you an honorary degree given all you will learn, writes Brian Hamilton, co-founder and CEO of Sageworks, over at Inc. We live and we learn. In the time it’s taken me to build two companies, I have learned and more importantly, lived, these mistakes. I hope these pieces of advice can help both aspiring and existing entrepreneurs succeed in starting and running their own businesses. Here are the CliffNotes, the mistakes you should hear now and avoid. 1. Hiring in advance of revenue. There is a common expression: “Don’t…
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IT Guru Turns Out to Be Security Hole Roger Kay reports at Forbes: Small businesses have become a choice target for hackers, but by far the most common — and devastating — attacks on small businesses are inside jobs. This is the story of one such assault. The target (we’ll call him Peter) trusted his IT guy (Joe, for our purposes) because Joe worked magic. Peter didn’t understand exactly what Joe was doing, but had to trust him anyway because Peter couldn’t perform those functions himself. Ironically, in his former life, Peter was CFO at a large oil company and…
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Wild Market Quiets the Buzz for I.P.O.’s Evelyn M. Russli and Michael J. De La Merced at New York Times’ Dealbook: As stocks swing violently, a chill is beginning to settle on the initial public offering market. A small number of companies have already retreated on their offering plans. WageWorks, an employee benefits provider, pushed its offering, originally scheduled for Friday, to next week and dropped its target price range by as much as 43 percent. Two real estate investment trusts, Orchid Island Capital and Eola Property Trust, have withdrawn their filings. And Old Mutual, a big South African insurance…
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S Corporation Rental Income Not Passive Except When It Is Peter J. Reilly reports at Forbes: Private Letter Ruling 201118011 A C corporation is a taxable entity. Distributions that it makes to its shareholders are also, generally, taxable to them. People who don’t want to pay tax twice on the same income will make an S election. The shareholders are taxed on whatever the earnings are regardless of distributions. Distributions of those earnings will generally not be taxable. It’s pretty easy if the corporation made the election effective day one of its existence. Former C corporations have other problems. If…
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Buying an Established Business The Wall Street Journal’s “Running a Business” blog analyzes the benefits of buying vs. building: If you’re interested in entrepreneurship, but lack ideas or time to create a new business, buying an established company may be a wise alternative. You’ll inherit a working infrastructure complete with resources you’d otherwise have to secure on your own, such as equipment and employees. You’ll also ideally be taking over a known brand built on a positive reputation over many years’ time. Buying a business typically does require more capital upfront than if you were to build one anew. But…
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Lending Improves The Wall Street Journal reports that Small Business Lending Has Improved. A Braun Research survey performed for Capital One Bank found 85% of owners polled in March said they’re able to access the financing they need, up seven percentage points from the fourth quarter of 2010 and 15 percentage points from a year ago. . . . but Owners Fear Economic Uncertainty Economic Uncertainty, Spending Decline Top Owner Concerns. Respondents say the dearth of credit isn’t their most pressing concern. Sixty-eight percent cited economic uncertainty as the No. 1 challenge facing their business, followed by a decline in…