How Hurricane Sandy Prepared us to Work During the COVID-19 Pandemic

This video is a portion of a recent panel discussion with Andrea and other tax professionals on how they set up their offices and were able to support their clients during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Andrea also discusses how cloud software, payroll portals, and document portals enabled her team to support their clients’ grant applications. We are not sure what the new normal will look like once we “open our doors”…  Read more

How do you Draw the Line Between Work and Home?

It seems appropriate to discuss this topic as the news this week is focused on “returning to work”.   I wonder what that will look like for people, I believe it depends on our ability to be flexible, creative, careful, courageous, determined and considerate  as we  continue to work remotely or create processes for a sustainable remote/onsite system. I was asked to contribute to a recently published online article here is…  Read more

Will I Ever See the Stimulus Money I was Promised?

Here’s hoping that this email and my “not so short video” answers your questions about the stimulus checks or at least clears up some of the confusion. Remember: The amount you get in your stimulus check in the coming months is determined by your 2019 or 2018 tax return (whichever tax return was most recently filed).  Next year, when we prepare your 2020 tax return we will complete a reconciliation…  Read more

Sunday Morning Briefing, the Next Wave of Funding…

We are looking forward to the starting of the next wave of PPP application submissions and hoping that more of our clients will be funded. We have created a specific process for our clients to follow so that they can comply with the rules and conditions for each of the loan/grant programs.  Please follow our blog posts and email blasts for companion videos as well. and  on to this morning’s NYT…  Read more

Bank PPP Loan Emails, Open at Your Own Risk…

Posting this a bit later in the day, I wanted to make sure that I had the most up to date information to share. I have attended 3 webinars today, including a U.S. Chamber of Commerce Town Hall meeting where the discussion was focused on potential additional funding for both the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and EIDL, other small business grants. “The PPP is out of money:  On Thursday morning,…  Read more

The Morning Briefing, So Where’s My Money…

I am so glad to share this photo from another beautiful morning run on the beach today, I hope you are all doing something for YOU each day, it really does help.     The reports are coming in about the stimulus checks.  It seems that only those eligible individuals who had an over-payment direct deposited into their (current) bank account when they filed their 2018 or 2019 tax returns…  Read more

Your Morning Briefing, It’s Tax Day, or is it? Updates on Loans, Grants & Stimulus Funding…

It was overcast this morning on the beach, but I was glad to get out to clear my head on #TaxDay?  Yes it’s April 15th but the only extensions we are filing are for our self-employed clients who operate in NYC (there was only a minimal extension of time to file the Unincorporated Income Tax Returns (UBT). EIDL And PPP Applications and Funding I am hearing from others in the…  Read more

New Information Post Passing of the C.A.R.E.S. Act…

You may have missed our announcement about our CARES Act Overview and Resource Center This post has many critical resources that are also in our resource center which I wanted to highlight, as well as updated information we have put together from all of our research. We believe that the “PPP loan to grant” program is worth reviewing.  We have gotten word that our banking partners do not have complete…  Read more

The C.A.R.E.S. Act overview and other useful resources…

Over the course of a few weeks nearly everyone’s business and life has been turned upside down. It’s been a crazy time with businesses forced to close, an overload of information (and mis-information on social media) and people risking their lives to save others. With the recent disruption in mind, we have been working to help support you however we can. We’ve seen a number of our clients already impacted…  Read more

Your Morning Briefing – Wednesday March 25th…

I have been checking the New York Times Morning Briefing daily as well as my online accounting and business newsletters, the IRS and NYS website, et al, to see what’s going on with our country, our government, our economy, taxes and of course, the Coronavirus.  Here’s the link for today’s NYT briefing My team and I have also been researching valuable resources for loans, grants, and best health and business…  Read more

Changes for Paying Taxes and the NYT Morning Briefing …

On Tuesday, March 17, the Treasury Department announced that taxpayers will be able to defer paying their taxes for 90 days past April 15th. BUT…there are some things you need to know: The filing deadline has not changed, it is still April 15, 2020. An extension is required to extend the filing of your 2019 tax return. Income tax payments for returns with a due date of April 15, 2020,…  Read more

Remote Life and Taxes Our New Normal…

Even with our “new normal”, life and taxes go on with a slight shift in our process. It’s a rainy Tuesday morning in NYC but I wanted to share yesterday’s sunrise from Rockaway Beach which is right down my block. Take a deep breath as you start your day and try to stay calm as we head into what will probably be another challenging day. Yesterday our firm met the…  Read more

Tech Forward Offices Still Function While Following Preventive Measures Against the Spread of the Coronavirus

Do you have a policy regarding the Coronavirus in place in your office yet? We lived through hurricane Sandy and now the reports of food shortages due to the outbreak and spreading of the coronavirus (COVID-19) are feeling a bit like deja vu.  We request that you join with us in following the preventive measures outlined below as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and World Health Organization for…  Read more

How to Make Your Child Care Costs More Tax Friendly

There are special deductions and credits which help working parents defray some of the bite from child care costs. Follow the specific rules and receive tax benefits for qualified child care while you are at work and breathe easy knowing your child is in a safe secure environment.  Interested in finding out more about this and other employment related benefits and how they can reduce your taxes, contact us,…  Read more

Elect into Employee Benefit Programs, They Make Tax Sense…

Employee benefit plans make good business and tax sense! Employees – here’s what you need to do:  Contact your human resources department and sign up for a 401K plan, child care deduction, transit check, health savings account and start saving on your current year’s taxes right now.  Watch this video for some ideas… Employers – take good care of your employees, encourage loyalty and even help employees feel good about focusing…  Read more

Caught on Tape “Why I Love Working with My Clients”…

I was asked to contribute to a feature in a short video montage at Intuit’s QuickbooksConnect conference.  Several accountants spoke about aspects of accounting. I was happy to answer “what do you love about your clients?” Any guesses as to what I replied? Here’s the gist: I love that I’m able to speak with my clients and they understand what I’m saying. At A. Parness Company CPA we believe in…  Read more

What is “Business Advisory” and How Does it Help Your Small Business or Medical Practice

The phrase “business advisory” is used a lot in the accounting industry, more now than ever, but what is it really? More and more small business owners and medical practitioners are realizing they want and need more than just an accountant to fill in the boxes on their tax returns, and frankly, they are right, they do need more than just tax compliance! What does business advisory look like for…  Read more

Why Two Factor Authentication is Critical for Safeguarding Patient Data

For medical practices and other professional practices the risk of data breaches and fraud is high, so taking all the necessary steps to protect your patient’s or client’s sensitive data is a must. Unfortunately for many practitioners the decision to increase their company’s data protection comes too late – after they’ve been victimized by a malicious hacker. The good news is, simple and inexpensive steps can be taken to avoid…  Read more

Tips on “Silencing” Email; The Productivity Killer for Your Medical Practice or Small Business

Is email the new silent killer?  At one point in time everyone thought it would vastly improve communication while freeing up time. It still is a great way to communicate and under the right conditions can help create efficiencies for medical practice or small business owners and their staff. It seems like we wade through hundreds of emails in our inbox each day; the productivity killer arises from those who…  Read more

Tips on How A.I. Can Improve Back Office Efficiency and Free-Up Your Time

These days, you can use technology to take care of almost any issue facing your business. If you have a task you don’t like to do, there’s an app or software program to take care of it for you. It might take a bit of your time to learn and understand how the software or app works, but doing so will save you valuable time and precious energy. It will…  Read more

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