Fortunate Fields, Inc

Introducing Liscio. Fortunate Fields, Inc is moving away from email and into a secure, encrypted environment. Safer for you, easier for you, better all around. Win-win!

Our office isn't moving anywhere, but our connection to YOU will soon be easier, quicker, and more secure for you - right in the palm of your hand. Coming soon... Stay tuned...

Coming soon to Fortunate Fields, Inc. We're moving out of email and into a secure, encrypted environment. Stay tuned...

Tax Tip Tuesday - A lot of folks have a smaller tax refund than they expected, or even end up owing tax for the first time. This, in spite of lower tax liability overall and higher take-home pay during the year, makes folks unhappy. Here's the solution. Turn in a new W4 to your employer and have them take an additional amount each paycheck (or, reduce the number of exemptions you claim.) That way, your take-home pay will go down, and you will see more coming back at tax time. Happy Tuesday, Folks!

Tax Tip Tuesday (yeah, on Thursday...) Here's a basic illustration of the new tax law. Your mom gives you $20 and says, "go to the store and buy milk, bread, eggs, and apples." So, you do. Your total expense is $8 and the clerk gives you $12 in change. Right? Easy enough. The following week your mom gives you $10 and makes the same request, only this time milk is on sale and your total is $7. Your change? Right, $3. So, when you get back home your mom is upset with you because "How come this time I'm only getting $3 back and last week I got $12??" Think about it... Happy Thursday Folks!

Tax Tip Tuesday - back on track for the new year! As you prepare your various tax-related documents to send to the folks who do your taxes, please keep in mind that email is not a secure way to send information. Identity theft is still rampant, and emails that contain tax documents (so, W2, 1099) are easy targets. Be proactive. Ask your tax advisor for a secure, encrypted method to send stuff in. We who do taxes all have something we can offer. If not, either meet in person only, or find somebody new. Happy Tuesday Folks!

Tax Tip Tuesday... Know your abilities and limits. DIY isn't always your best choice. I just finished amending a return that was done by my now-new-client on Turbo Tax. This client's mistakes cost about 9K in additional taxes that will now be refunded to them. If you understand what you see when DIY software generates the results, great. If not, tho, save yourself some heartache and some real cash and hire out. Happy Tuesday, Folks!!

Tax Tip Today - I was on vacation and missed a few of these, so here goes... IRS has announced the 2019 mileage rates - 58 cents for business, 20 cents for medical, and still 14 cents for charity. Nice bump to the business rate!

Tax Tip Tuesday - California's Attorney General just got a judgment against two "charities" for raising money from folks and then keeping it for personal reasons. Be careful when you give donations and be sure that you know the organization you're giving to. You can look at https://apps.irs.gov/app/eos/ to learn if the organization you want to donate to is, in fact, an actual tax exempt organization. Be careful of the scams, folks!

Tax Tip Tuesday (ON TUESDAY!!) Good news from the world of retirement savings contributions. For 2019, the amount you can contribute to a retirement plan is going up! For IRAs and Roth IRAs, the limit is going up to 6K from 5,500. For your 401K and 403b accounts, the limit increases to 19,000 from 18,500. For your SIMPLE IRA, it goes up to 13K. If you're 50 and up, you can add a little to these amounts as well. Learn more here: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-18-83.pdf. Thanks, and have a great day (AND VOTE!!!)

Tax Tip Tuesday (yeah, yeah.... I know... late...) Your marital status for the purpose of filing a tax return is determined as of the last day of the tax year, or, 12/31. So, if you say "I do" before the ball drops, you're married this year for your taxes. If you wait until the wee hours of 1/1, then this year's return goes in with a single status and you're not tax-married until the next time around. Ain't love grand :)

Tax Tip Tuesday (ugh... late...) Take a look at how much income tax you have had withheld from your paychecks as of today. Are you on track to come out OK on your 2018 return? You know how much you've made already and you know how many times more you'll be paid during the year, so you can arrive at a basic sense of income and withholdings. Your 2017 tax preparer (or, software if you did your taxes on your own) can give you a worksheet that shows what you might expect as far as tax liability, given similar income/deductions. If you're short of that predicted liability, you can still make estimated tax payments to mitigate the imposition of penalties. Happy day-after-Tuesday, folks!

Tax Tip Tuesday... So the mega jackpot lotto thingy is at some incredibly high amount. If you bought a ticket, I hope you win the whole thing. Just a note, tho, that when you win a prize like a lottery or a trip or a new car on a game show, you also win a tax bill. I'd certainly be OK with what's left after winning 600 something bazillion dollars, but sometimes people win a nice car and then can't afford the tax, which takes away the fun of it all. Anywho, have a fantastic Tuesday and GOOD LUCK out there :)