Tax

TAXES

 

Our tax services are designed to meet a variety of your planning and compliance needs. Our tax professionals are aware of current tax law changes and tax court rulings and can put them to work for you. In addition, our professionals can apply practical knowledge to your situation. With privately-owned companies, we concentrate our tax planning efforts on minimizing taxes in total for both the company and the individuals involved. This results in the most value to our clients.

SPECIALIZATIONS

  • Alternative Minimum Tax
  • Cost Segregation Studies
  • Depreciation Methods and Lives
  • Estate and Gift Tax Planning
  • Fringe Benefits
  • IRS and State Agency Audits
  • LIFO-Inventory
  • Michigan’s Business Tax
  • Multiple State Tax Issues
  • Partnerships and LLCs
  • S Corporations
  • Succession Planning
  • Tax Planning Strategies to Eliminate, Reduce, or Defer Taxes

SPECIFIC SERVICES

Tax preparation services for corporations include preparation of Federal Form 1120 and the Michigan Business Tax return. Planning services can include developing strategies for planning compensation, year-end bonuses, estimating annual income or expenditures, computing quarterly estimate payments, and managing taxable income and deductions.

BENEFITS:

  • Ensures compliance with IRS and state regulatory requirements
  • Manages taxable income
  • Provides opportunity for tax planning

We can prepare the annual Form 5500 for your employee benefit plan (including pension, 401(k), 403(b), and health and welfare plans). The filing deadline for Form 5500 is seven months after the plan’s year end. For a calendar year plan, the deadline is July 31. An approved extension to file extends the deadline by two and half months (October 15 for calendar year plans).

BENEFITS:

  • Ensures compliance with federal DOL regulatory requirements.

We can assist with estate planning to reduce the impact of estate taxes. The service includes recommendations for planning lifetime transfers and the eventual preparation of an estate tax return.

BENEFITS:

  • Plans for the transfer of assets
  • Manages estate taxes
  • Prepares estate tax return
  • Preserves wealth for future generations

Tax return preparation can include all forms you need to file for federal, state, local, or out-of-state returns. We can also help estimate your taxable income before the end of the year so you can plan for changes needed in your withholdings or estimated tax payments. Since your tax concerns are not limited to once-a-year filing, we are available year-round to answer your questions. Individual tax preparation services can also include preparation of children’s returns, tax return extensions, and computation of estimated tax payments.

BENEFITS:

  • Ensures compliance with IRS and state filing requirements
  • Provides opportunity for tax planning
  • Saves taxpayer time
  • Helps to avoid mistakes on tax forms

An IRS examination may be a desk review (when the agent requests additional information or documentation) or a field review (when the agent examines significantly more information). An examination starts with a written IRS request. Our service can include helping you assemble any needed information, acting as your representative before the IRS agent, researching technical issues, responding to IRS inquiries, and advising you about pertinent matters that may arise during the examination.

BENEFITS:

  • Ensures compliance with IRS or state tax notices
  • Provides information on IRS and state agent procedures

Our service includes preparation of federal Form 990, Form 990PF or Form 990T, along with related state forms. In addition, we can assist with preparing year-end closing entries and can advise on other matters, such as taxability issues on unrelated taxable income. For more information see our Not-for-Profit Entities experience page.

BENEFITS:

  • Ensures compliance with IRS and state regulatory requirements
  • Assists in identifying UBI (unrelated business income) issues

Tax preparation services for partnerships include preparation of federal Form 1065. Planning services can include developing strategies for planning partner compensation and distributions, year-end bonuses, and expenditures. Our tax professionals can assist with managing taxable income and deductions that flow through to the partners.

Instructions for Schedule K-1: Partner l Shareholder l Beneficiary

BENEFITS:

  • Ensures compliance with IRS and state regulatory requirements
  • Helps to avoid common pitfalls and reporting mistakes

Payroll services include preparation of federal and state quarterly and annual returns for employee withholding and employer taxes as well as year-end W-2, W-3, and 1099 forms. If you prepare your own returns, we can answer questions you may have. We can also help you evaluate the merits of using an outside payroll service.

BENEFITS:

  • Ensures compliance with state filing requirements
  • Assesses payroll services

Property tax services can include the preparation of, or assistance with, the annual business property tax returns.

BENEFITS:

  • Ensures compliance with annual filing requirements

Tax preparation services for proprietorships include preparation of federal Form 1040, Schedule C, and related forms. The service can also include assistance with year end accounting. Planning services can include developing strategies for planning compensation, year-end bonuses, expenditures, and managing taxable income and deductions.

BENEFITS:

  • Assists with sole proprietor accounting
  • Prepares federal Schedule C
  • Provides for tax planning

Tax preparation services for S corporations include preparation of federal Form 1120S and related state and local returns. Planning services can include developing strategies for planning compensation, shareholder distributions, year-end bonuses, expenditures, and managing taxable income and deductions.

BENEFITS:

  • Ensures compliance with IRS and state regulatory requirements

Our sales tax services can include helping you prepare monthly and quarterly returns, advising you about taxability issues, and helping you respond to any sales or use tax audit issues that may arise.

BENEFITS:

  • Ensures compliance with state filing requirements
  • Assists with audit inquiries

Succession planning is the process of identifying and developing a strategy for transitioning your business to the next generation, key employees, or a third party. This may include preparing family members or key employees for new roles through mentoring, training, and job rotation. It also generally includes assistance with transaction planning and deal structure to accomplish goals of tax minimization, wealth transfer, and business continuity. Effective succession planning can take several years to develop and implement. It is important to include your business advisors in the process so they can help you effectively meet your goals.

Tax planning typically takes two forms:

I: Project your year-end tax liability based on expected annual income and deductions or on “what if” scenarios for income and deductions. Using this information, we can advise you how to adjust, if necessary, your estimated income tax payments or your wage withholdings.

II: Advise you about the taxability or deductibility of transactions you may be considering but have not yet completed. For example, the purchase or sale of investments, a home, business, or tangible property has tax implications. We can advise you about the taxability of these matters so you can make informed decisions.

Tax planning is important to all individuals and organizations. Since tax planning is most beneficial during the year, a great time to consider planning for the current year is when you are having your annual tax return completed while related issues may still be fresh in your mind.

BENEFITS:

  • Estimates annual income
  • Estimates annual expenses
  • Estimates annual tax liability
  • Structures taxable transactions to maximize allowable tax benefits
  • Provides planning opportunities

The basic tax return for a trust is IRS Form 1041. Information used in preparing the trust return (and the equivalent state return) often comes from 1099 forms received by the trust, from investment transactions summaries provided by a trustee or an asset custodian (such as a bank, trust company, or brokerage firm), or from other sources. If your trust does not have a way to assemble this summary of trust activity, we can provide this service in addition to preparing the tax return.

BENEFITS:

  • Ensures compliance with IRS and state regulatory requirements