What if homes could be created dirt-cheap?

In Austin, Texas a small home for the homeless was created out of a 33-foot machine. But an Italian architecture firm is taking this even further and is conducting experiments to make the process cheaper and more eco-friendly. Instead of making the home with typical building materials, they are using local soil.

Using multiple 3D Print technology, they have created dome-shaped houses out of clay, like adobe, in Ravenna, Italy. Concrete, which is commonly used in home building has a deep carbon footprint, but a soil-built home is environmentally conscious.

The process reduces the transportation needed to make cement because the material is sourced directly on location. The only equipment needed is the 3D Print machine, which is light and can analyze the soil on site.

The soil is excavated and sifted to remove gravel and stones and blended with water and rice husks in a concrete mixer. This makes it solid enough to form viable walls. The mixture is then squeezed out through a nozzle in the printer stacking thin layers that become walls.

Each home is approximately 645 square feet, and the process takes roughly 200 hours to print. There are hopes that it will be an even quicker process in the future.

Watch this video to see how 3D Print homes are built

The walls created by 3D Print technology are strong, and their thickness keeps the homes sufficiently insulated. Light is brought in through a skylight at the top. The team is currently experimenting with new designs with some being adapted to different climates and soil composition.

Where does this technology end?

Although 3D Print homebuilding is futuristic and clever, what type of impact will this have on business and the labor force? Using soil as the primary building material makes it dirt-cheap for sure.

Contractors and craftsmen who design homes may find their jobs becoming eliminated. This will have an impact on the job market, business, and possibly tax collections.

Will payroll tax laws start asserting a fee on equipment used to replace the labor force lost? We will have to see.

The post Is the Future of Housing 3D Print Homes? appeared first on Action Tax.

• Single Filers and Married Filing Separate: $75,000 – $80,000
• Head of Household: $112,500 – $120,000
• Married Filing Joint: $150,000 – $160,000

Reach to Kevin@kevinthompsoncpa.com for more information and guidance on these and other matters affecting your business.

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This may involve more audits for businesses that range from traditional brick and mortar family businesses as well as the influx of newly formed online retail sites launched to offset the pandemic.

The IRS is hiring more auditors who specialize in these types of businesses and will begin enforcing compliance by Feb 2021. Below are tips recommended by ICPAS that you need to be aware of to avoid a costly audit.

1. Make sure your records are accurate and report all income, deductions, credits, expenses, and other items as detailed as possible.
2. Stick to standard deductions. Anything unusual will raise red flags for auditors. If you believe uncommon deductions are warranted, check with your CPA first for guidance. For instance, reporting losses for three years or more may cause suspicion and activate an audit.
3. Go for estimated tax payments. If you believe you will owe more than $500 in taxes for your business, make quarterly estimated tax payments. If you fail to make those payments, you could be risking an examination and penalties.
4. Take advantage of digital bookkeeping. There is advanced software available to keep your records secure as well as accurate. This can save time and help your CPA prepare and file your tax returns electronically. It prevents mistakes that could put you at risk for an audit.
5. Know what the rules are. If you have a partnership, find out if yours is subject to the Centralized Partnership Audit Regime. It was introduced by the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015, which changed IRS partnership audit procedures dramatically.

It is always best to involve your CPA to help you navigate recent tax laws and audit complexities to make the best decisions for your business. They are trained to help small business owners plan ahead for the future. Reach to Kevin@kevinthompsoncpa.com for more information and guidance on these and other matters affecting your business.

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However, it’s important that landlords know their rights and how to deal with the moratorium to stay afloat.

As a landlord, you can still file evictions

Just because it is a “moratorium” doesn’t mean that filing evictions is illegal. Legal aid societies will provide copies of affidavits for tenants to sign.  They will be asked if they are the tenant and will hand them a form to sign. They will tell the tenant they do not have to vacate their residence or pay rent for multiple months as long as they sign. As soon as the tenant signs the form the court has to stop the eviction.

These affidavits can be challenged in court so it’s important that landlords and property managers document evidence that can be used in court to help their attorneys. Make sure to ask your attorneys questions as to what your rights are in your individual cases.

Should you lease month to month?

It’s suggested that it may be better, considering current circumstances, to have tenants sign short leases rather than standard 1- year rental agreements. This may depend on what state you live in so check with your attorney before you execute an agreement with a tenant. Be aware that the CARES act is still in place and may affect your decision.

You can sue for rent which is not an eviction

The moratorium only concerns kicking your tenant out but does not prevent you from suing them. You can do this in small claims court but restrictions may depend on your city or state. You can take a judgement against your tenant and when they are working again, you can take a wage garnishment or go after their bank accounts.

Clearly communicate with your tenants in a decided way

Be proactive with your tenants. You may want to clearly state in your rental agreement that if the tenant fails to communicate with you, there will be evidence of a non-monetary fault in the lease.

Make sure to determine the best way this communication will be done. For instance, a millennial tenant may prefer to communicate via text message while an older tenant may prefer written or verbal communication.

In court, don’t depend on your phone for evidence

Unless you want your phone taken away from you do not attempt to show a judge text message communication between you and your tenant. Print out evidence and make duplicate copies.

The moratorium only affects tenants not paying their rent

A tenant is only protected from the moratorium if they are unable to pay the landlord what they owe for rent. However, if they breach their rental agreement for other reasons, you can still evict them.

According to the CDC, a tenant must make payments to the best of their ability up to the full amount of the rent if they can.  They must show they are making their best effort to do so. You can ask them to show them how they are spending their money or how much is in their bank account if they cannot pay.

The affidavit a tenant signs asks them to assure that they have attempted to obtain all available government assistance for rent or housing. All adult and able household members must also sign.

It may make sense to file your eviction case before the tenant signs their affidavit, but make sure to consult your attorney before proceeding.

Do not do evictions by yourself

Consult your attorney and know the rules. There is a $200,000 penalty or fine if you violate the order.

Voter Voice has resources for landlords concerning evictions.

The post What Landlords Need to Know About the Federal Eviction Moratorium appeared first on Action Tax.

Applications will be accepted by the SBA on a limited basis through community financial institutions. The timing has been confusing causing stress on small business owners and their advisers.

AICPA President and CEO Barry Melancon says he believes the full program will go live ASAP. CPA firms need to be prepared and ready. It’s expected that there will be enough funding to meet first and second draw PPP applications.

The CPA Business Funding Portal platform was launched for CPA firms by AICPA, CPA.com, and BIZ2Credit in September to help assist small businesses with PPP loan forgiveness. Thousands of firms have been using it and it has been recently updated to handle PPP2 applications with over 3,000 applications processed.

Know that small businesses should expect more scrutiny in this next round. The SBA will be doing more vetting for potential fraud and may require further validation.  It is advised that businesses as well as their financial advisers get it right to avoid delays that may cause them to resubmit.

A free service is available through the portal as well as tiered subscription services for CPAs that provides a direct path to fund SBA approved loans that will allow them to receive their agent fees.

Business owners are advised to work closely with their CPAs to ensure they qualify and receive the maximum loan amount they are eligible for and to make sure the correct documents are in order.

Original Source

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What is worse than high taxes on your income? NO income!

And no income is what you might have should you become disabled. What if you suffer a serious accident or succumb to a devastating illness? Will your income continue? From where?  And how much will it be?

Probably the most overlooked part of one’s overall financial plan is this issue of Long-Term Disability. It is confusing. It changes when we change jobs. If we have coverage at work, we often have very low amounts of coverage.

Let’s look at the basics. First, if you are sick or injured and out of work for a week or two, or perhaps even a month, you probably have sick pay and personal days off that can be used to provide your income. And, if you are paying into your state’s short term disability program, you will have some minimal coverage there, for a minimal amount of time. *  By the way, if you are NOT paying “SDI” through your paycheck, then you don’t have this short term state coverage. This often happens with self-employed individuals. They don’t know they have to deliberately select it, and pay into it!  (See bottom of the page for help on this.)

But this is all short-term. What if you are disabled for 3 years, 10 years or for the rest of your working life?! Will you have enough income to maintain your lifestyle? This is a huge gap for most working people. They don’t know what they have or don’t have. They often have little or NO long term disability coverage. And unfortunately, their advisors are not looking deeply into this and providing advice. What are the most common reasons people become disabled for long periods of time?

• Arthritis and other musculoskeletal problems. …
• Heart disease. …
• Lung or respiratory problems. …
• Mental illness, including depression. …
• Diabetes. …
• Stroke. …
• Cancer. …
• Nervous system disorders.
• Accidents (automobile, sports, home, etc.)

Here, let me state this clearly and simply: you need the maximum amount of disability insurance that you can obtain from an insurance company (the maximum they will usually issue, is about 75% of your current income). If you have the standard 60% of base income at work through your employee benefits program, great. But that is almost always not enough. Did you know this coverage does not go with you when you change jobs? Did you know it does not cover bonuses, stock options or 401(k) matching. It only covers your “base” income, and usually only at 60%. Worst of all, if your company pays for it, that seems nice now, but if you collect, that 60% will be fully taxable. If YOU pay for it, the income will be fully tax free. Do you know how yours works?  

What about Social Security Disability Income (SSDI)? Can’t I just count on this? You may, or may not be able to collect this insurance. Many people need to hire attorneys to seek these payments, as they are often hard to obtain, even if you are legitimately disabled.  Even if you are found eligible, the average monthly payout is only $1271/month. Can you live on that? The good news is that SSDI will continue to pay (assuming your disability is ongoing) until your Social Security retirement is available.

This, as you can tell, is an ongoing planning issue, one that needs to be evaluated and dealt with every year (as jobs change, incomes change, spouses’ incomes change, etc.). If you don’t have someone to have this conversation with you annually, I can introduce you to good people who WILL have the right conversations with you. Send me a note.

I probably should add here that we are talking about Long Term Disability insurance, which pays you income if you cannot work. This is different than Long Term Care insurance, which pays for your cost of care, should you need someone to come into your home to provide care (usually as we get older), or for a home-care facility. I will cover this in an upcoming blog.

• California Short Term Disability will pay for a maximum of 52 weeks. If you make $128,298 or more, you can collect up to $1357/week. SDI is usually not taxable.
• If you are self-employed and would like to enroll in CA State Short Term Disability, here is the form: https://www.edd.ca.gov/pdf_pub_ctr/de1378di.pdf

Let’s make 2021 the year where we all take personal responsibility for our life insurance, disability insurance, and for long-term care. We can help you.

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