Posted in Tax Law & IRS Defense
What is Cryptocurrency? Cryptocurrency is a virtual currency or representation of money or value. However, it is not legal tender of any government. Cryptocurrency is similar to the U.S. dollar in that it can be used to purchase goods and services, and it can also rise and fall in value depending on supply and demand. Bitcoin, for example, is set to produce a limited supply. In addition to Bitcoin, there are several other types of cryptocurrencies such as Ethereum and Ripple.
Posted in Tax Law & IRS Defense
Are you concerned about being audited by the IRS? An IRS audit takes place when the Internal Revenue Service chooses to review a taxpayer’s accounts to verify that tax laws are being followed. As a preliminary caution, beware of phone scams as the IRS will always initiate a tax audit by mail. The IRS will not call to demand immediate payment or ask for a debit or credit card number over the phone, nor will they threaten to bring in local law enforcement to arrest people. Threats like these are common tactics scam artists use to trick victims.
Florida is leading the way in estate planning as a new bill is revolutionizing the way Floridians execute their last will and testaments. The Florida Legislature passed House Bill 409, which allows for electronic wills and electronic signatures starting January 1, 2020. Like a traditional will, an electronic will must be signed by the testator in the presence of two witnesses. An electronic signature is defined as “an electronic mark visibly manifested in a record as a signature and executed or adopted by a person with the intent to sign the record.”
Your local Florida County Property Appraiser mails out the Notice of Proposed Property Taxes (Truth in Millage or “TRIM” form) in August or September of each year.
Property owners or taxpayers who wish to contest or appeal their property value to the Value Adjustment Board must file a petition (one of the DR-86 forms) with the clerk of court within 25 days of the Notice of Proposed Property Taxes:
Posted in Wills, Trusts & Estate Planning
Transferring the title of a decedent’s vehicle is relatively easy in Florida, courtesy of Florida Statute 319.28. The initial step in transferring a vehicle title is assessing the ownership. If the vehicle is owned jointly, then it automatically passes to the co-owner by operation of law at death.
For example, a vehicle titled John Smith and Mary Smith automatically passes to Mary Smith upon John Smith’s passing and vice versa. Contact the DMV to update the title along with a death certificate. Form 82152 can be used by surviving spouses. The DMV’s website is here: FL DMV
Posted in Business & Corporate Law,Real Estate Law
Good news for Commercial Landlords, the reduction on state level sales taxes continues to decline. Florida is reducing the state-level sales tax rate on commercial leases for occupancy periods beginning on or after January 1, 2020 down to 5.5%.
However, counties are still imposing the local option surtax so be careful to check your county’s guidelines. The local option surtax varies between 0.5% to 1% for those counties that impose it. Currently, for 2019 St. Johns County has an additional 0.5% surtax.
The St. Johns County and surrounding areas have seen a recent boom in the housing market and work by building contractors. The complexity of the sales and use tax rules has led to erroneous and misapplication of the taxes, making this area ripe for Tax Audit with the Florida Department of Revenue (“DOR”).
Baby Boomers who have worked hard to manage their finances have children who are of the age to either carry on their financial success and hard work or lose it all. The best gift a parent can give to themselves and their child is to help their children organize and manage their affairs.
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