Archive for October, 2009

• Tax Help – What do you really need? (Part 4 of at least 3) Enrolled Agents
  IRON100, October 30th, 2009 at 2:45 am, Comments: 0

  In this post, let’s deal specifically with what an enrolled agent is.

• Budget is Not a Four-Letter Word, or, Cutting Back Creatively
  barrieabalard, October 29th, 2009 at 12:01 am, Comments: 0

  Budget. For a lot of us, it’s a difficult, joyless word that means deprivation and pain. It’s human nature to avoid things that bring us pain, so we often don’t take a hard look at our finances when the money is plentiful. But when a setback such as a job loss, a pay cut, or [...]

• While Nero Fiddles in Washington
  tamelarich, October 28th, 2009 at 1:09 am, Comments: 0

  When politicians pay homage to all the "right" constituencies on the campaign trail, small biz is in line right behind motherhood and apple pie. Then they're elected. Last October I actually took the time to write to my representative suggesting Congress should focus its attention on programs for banks whose business models hadn't been sidetracked [...]

• Tax Help – What do you really need? (Part 3 of at least 3) Tax Attorneys
  IRON100, October 23rd, 2009 at 3:35 am, Comments: 0

  In thinking about this post, I decided that I would invest most of my effort in defining what the tax attorney does and then in the next post defining what an enrolled agent does.

• Buying Your Own Health Insurance, Part Three
  barrieabalard, October 22nd, 2009 at 12:01 am, Comments: 0

  (Note that explanatory material provided via links in this post does not imply a guarantee of complete accuracy, nor does it imply I endorse the provider of the material.) In part one of this series, I provided some definitions and basic information you’ll need to buy your own health insurance. In part two, we tackled [...]

• Tax Help – What do you really need? Part 2 of 3 (or more) Me, Software, or a CPA?
  IRON100, October 16th, 2009 at 2:36 am, Comments: 0

  I still believe, however, that because YOU are responsible for all the information provided on the tax return (and not your tax professional), you must take responsibility for understanding the liabilities you face if you make an error (willfully or negligently).

• My Two Favorite Penny-Pinching Resources
  barrieabalard, October 15th, 2009 at 12:01 am, Comments: 0

  I was traveling from October 6 through 13, and am traveling again starting today, this time for a college reunion. So, Part Three of my continuing series on health insurance must be postponed until next week, October 22. In the meantime, I hope the following resources will help you if you need to restrict your [...]

• Don’t Write “The Note”
  tamelarich, October 14th, 2009 at 1:53 am, Comments: 0

  Two years ago I succumbed to macroeconomic forces and closed my industrial cleaning business. My customer base was caving in all around me, going bankrupt, offshoring and closing for good. In 2008 the Alliance for American Manufacturing reported that in the prior six years 91,400 jobs were lost in South Carolina and 211,600 in North [...]

• Tax Help – What do you really need? Part 1 of 3 (or more)
  IRON100, October 9th, 2009 at 1:01 am, Comments: 0

  I certainly realize that I have been shot-gunning topics in these first three weeks, but for now, since the final calendar quarter draws nigh and we must prepare for the end of the tax year, I figured it might not be a bad time to discuss the various forms of tax help you may need to 1) just GET your taxes done properly and 2) not cost you an arm and a leg (unless, as in some cases with my business, you at least need to pay a couple of fingers to assure that you stay out of trouble with the Internal Revenue Service).

• Patience, Prudence & Aussie Jobs
  Tickerville, October 8th, 2009 at 8:53 am, Comments: 0

  Most of the major media will point to the excellent quarter from Aloca (AA) as to why our futures are ramping as much as they are. The initial bump after hours is in fact to the Alcoa report however the monster move we saw as evening turned to night was on the heels of a [...]