Questions tagged [small-business]
Questions specific to small businesses, generally under 100 employees and revenues less than $1,000,000.
487
questions
52
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4
answers
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On paper I have 1 share in my company. How can I sell a smaller percentage of my company to another party?
To be specific, my wife and are equal partners in our limited company. On paper it says we have one share each. We now want to sell 10% of our company to a third party. How does that work in terms of ...
- 451
52
votes
6
answers
9k
views
Determining fair price for profitable mobile app business
I have been developing iOS apps for a few years now. They do pretty well, and yesterday I was approached with an offer to buy one of them. The offer was for $40,000 dollars for an app that generates ...
- 625
51
votes
2
answers
12k
views
Can I hire my kid and start a Roth IRA for him?
I own an LLC, of which I am currently the sole member. It's my main source of income.
I am wondering if there is a reason why I could not do the following:
Hire my child as a part-time employee of ...
- 2,761
45
votes
10
answers
21k
views
I won USD 50K! Now what should I do with it?
I won a sweepstakes and will be getting USD 50k...it is verified that it is legitimate although no taxes have been taken out so I will have to claim this income on my taxes next year, they will send a ...
- 460
41
votes
5
answers
13k
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Every month I make money from Patreon. I want to split my income with a partner. How do I avoid paying taxes on 100% of the income?
Let me start off by saying I have no idea what I'm doing here. The context is, I am making a game, and every month I make $400 or so from Patreon (people are my patrons, and they are paying me because ...
38
votes
3
answers
12k
views
How to prove that invoices are really unpaid?
When it comes to official business documentation (USA) between a company and a client who is either another company (B2B) or individual person (B2C), how can the company providing the invoices, prove ...
- 381
32
votes
4
answers
7k
views
Should my husband's business pay my business?
My husband and I are each starting our own private enterprises--me as a web developer. I'm building a website for his company. Is it worth it for me to "charge" him? At the end of the day the money ...
- 1,264
32
votes
4
answers
18k
views
When should I start an LLC for my side work?
I am doing quite a bit of sidework this year and wondering at what point would it be a good idea to "start a business" and bill through that.
- 809
22
votes
12
answers
7k
views
Pay off Loan With Savings or Keep Emergency Fund
A year and a half ago I took out a Career Development Loan(£7000, 9.9% interest). Which is currently around £4900 now. I have been saving for no particular reason, and I now have over £5000 in savings ...
- 332
21
votes
11
answers
6k
views
Why can't my LLC get a credit card when the owner has credit history and a good credit score?
I've started an LLC (US-based) and have an EIN that I'm bootstrapping myself and self-funding. All my addresses and details are registered in the US. I'm the sole employee, but have zero revenue as it ...
- 319
21
votes
3
answers
6k
views
Is money from the sale of an asset considered income?
Is money from the sale of an asset, like a pickup truck, considered income? For example, let's say I am a carpenter and I buy a new pickup truck for $40,000. I deduct $18,000 in depreciation for the ...
- 9,775
20
votes
3
answers
17k
views
What to ask for on a business partnership?
I am being asked to provide technical expertise on a technology entrepreneurship. They are offering me equity of the business, in exchange of my work/commitment.
I know they will require a capital ...
- 5,825
18
votes
4
answers
25k
views
Will depositing $10k+ checks each month raise red flags with the IRS?
I am a freelancer that runs a small design business (LLC) and I have one client in particular that I regularly do more than $10k per month worth of business with. Sometimes I'll deposit a check for $...
- 189
17
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Will I owe any taxes if I can write off every cent?
Does anyone know if I will owe any taxes for my small business if I can write off every cent? My business is based in the United States.
I started a small web design business this year and anticipate ...
- 281
15
votes
5
answers
27k
views
A merchant requests that checks be made out to "Cash". Should I be suspicious?
My barber accepts only cash or checks made out to "Cash".
Is there a likely legitimate reason she might want the checks made out to "Cash"? Or am I helping her hide her revenue from the IRS?
- 432
14
votes
2
answers
3k
views
Can I claim/deduct my expenses for a part time recipe tester on my taxes?
I manage an app that generates income. It is a food recipe app and I would like to hire someone a few hours, once a week, for the next two months. I want them to test the recipes. In that two months ...
- 141
14
votes
5
answers
43k
views
Any practical difference between "personal checks" and "business checks"?
I need to order checks for my LLC. I wrote maybe 5 paper checks last year (by hand, not printed). So it doesn't make sense for me to spend $30-40+ on "business checks" if I can spend $5-10 on "...
- 10k
14
votes
6
answers
18k
views
Why use accounting software like Quickbooks instead of Excel spreadsheets?
Some friends and I are starting a small landscaping cooperative, and are thinking about how we will manage accounting. Places we've worked in the past have used Excel spreadsheets to manage all of ...
- 241
14
votes
5
answers
40k
views
Deductible expenses paid with credit card: In which tax year would they fall?
If I paid my business expenses with a credit card during the month of December, which year can I deduct them from my taxes? 2011 (when the purchase was made) or 2012 (when I paid off the credit card)?
...
- 166k
13
votes
2
answers
14k
views
Indian citizen working from India as freelancer for U.S.-based company. How to report the income & pay tax in India?
I am an Indian citizen and I work from India as a freelancer for an U.S.-based IT company. I am getting monthly payments directly into my Indian bank account. My colleagues' monthly payment come to my ...
- 131
13
votes
3
answers
1k
views
Can I withdraw from my Roth IRA retirement account to fund a startup?
I'm 24 years old and have $10k in my retirement accounts (Roth IRA) after about a year with a real job. I'm considering withdrawing the entire balance to support myself for a few months while I ...
Dustin Getz
12
votes
4
answers
2k
views
What's a Letter of Credit? Are funds held in my bank for the amount in question?
Can someone easily cash one? Is it used for business only, or is there an advantage to consumers using them as well?
- 8,683
11
votes
8
answers
11k
views
UK - Can I buy things for myself through my company?
this is a UK-based question.
I understand that there are certain purchases that you can make using the revenue of your limited liability company, and this is beneficial as you are using money that has ...
- 349
11
votes
3
answers
10k
views
Why do banks require small businesses to open a business bank account instead of a cheaper personal one?
I understand the need to separate personal finances and the business finances, be it sole-proprietorship or incorporation. I also understand that in the former it's optional, but in the latter it is ...
- 319
11
votes
5
answers
924
views
Should I start my own company so I can claim against tax?
I live in the UK and I'm an employed web and mobile phone developer and very occasionally do some work on the side. I've been recently advised by a family member that I should look at starting my own ...
- 213
11
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Sole proprietorship or LLC?
At what point in the life of a small business would you choose to do a LLC over a sole proprietorship? What's the advantage, and what's the cost of doing an LLC?
- 7,856
11
votes
4
answers
1k
views
LLC with $100K Profit - How to Reduce Taxable Income via Spending and Investments?
I'm a US citizen with a US-based single-member LLC operating in the internet space that will have $100K of profit / taxable income this year. I'm looking for ways to creatively (and legally) spend/...
- 111
10
votes
5
answers
3k
views
Is there any way to form an anonymous General Partnership?
Update: When I say anonymous, I don't necessarily mean from the IRS (although that would be ideal). I mean anonymous from the general public. I don't want anyone to be able to look up my real name and ...
10
votes
3
answers
384
views
Does that mean I'm fooling the US gov?
I'm a foreign student studying in the US. Soon, I'm a launching a website where an American ad agency will handle posting the ads on it from American advertisers and the revenues are supposed to go to ...
- 101
10
votes
2
answers
4k
views
Can my US company buy my foreign company for $1 USD?
I'm a non-US resident and I'm the owner of a Delaware C-corp Inc.
I also own a company (equivalent to LLC) in the EU.
Although I could "sell" or transfer ownership of my EU company to my US company ...
- 203
10
votes
3
answers
1k
views
How high should I set my KickStarter funding goal in order to have $35,000 left over?
I'm creating a KickStarter to raise enough funds to take 3 months off from my full-time job and finish an iOS game that I've been working on for about 3 years now. Put simply, all I need is about $35,...
- 203
10
votes
3
answers
7k
views
Full-time work + running small side business: Best business structure for taxes?
Currently I have a full time job (IT industry) but from time to time I do a side project.
Most of the times my clients agree to pay me cash as the amounts are not large.
However, last year there ...
Frank
10
votes
4
answers
331
views
Do I need a business credit card?
Do I need to have a business credit card for my own company or can I use my personal credit card and just make sure I keep the records. I don't have a lot of expenses so keeping the records is not a ...
- 5,453
10
votes
3
answers
587
views
Help: Being charged interest on a loan for which I received no statements telling me of this debt for the past 15 years. Surprise!
Is this legal? This was a private loan within a small business. I was under the assumption that the bill was paid in full 15 years ago. My only drawback is that I never got them to sign to verify the ...
Dan
10
votes
1
answer
7k
views
I'm self-employed with my own LLC. How should I pay myself, given my situation?
I do a ton of freelance web design and decided to setup a simple LLC so I could have a credit card to make business purchases with. From my limited understanding, I can choose to be taxed as an S-corp ...
- 1,858
10
votes
4
answers
2k
views
I am the sole owner of an LLC. Does it make a difference if I file as an S-Corp or a sole-member LLC?
As an LLC with one owner, I had the option of filing using Schedule C on my household taxes, effectively treating business income (in this case, losses) as I would a sole proprietorship. My plan had ...
10
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Determining the minimum dividend that should be paid from my S corporation
I am the sole shareholder and only employee of an S corporation. I understand that all profits of the corporation are passed through and taxed as income to me. I also understand that all dividends ...
- 203
10
votes
2
answers
710
views
My Boss owes money but I am named on letter from debt collection agency (UK)
My employer has an outstanding debt with a company he aked me to speak with a couple of years ago. Now that company has my name listed as a "contact". He received a letter from a debt collection ...
- 101
10
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Can I use my Roth IRA to start a business?
I've recently been reading up on Roth IRA to Self-Directed IRA plans. And I've seen a few places that mention their use as a seed-fund to start your own business.. Where can I find the parts of the ...
- 319
10
votes
1
answer
184
views
Can we amend last year's Schedule C to indicate reduced income due to a customer refund this year for a product we sold last year?
If a customer gets a refund this year for a product sold last year, can I amend last year's Schedule C to indicate the reduced income and get a refund for tax paid that year?
We have a small business ...
- 101
9
votes
3
answers
4k
views
Bank claims I'm personally liable for small business fees; despite leaving the company?
I opened a small business (partnership) a while ago and was a signer on a company account. I later left that company, with the other partner being responsible for whathaveyou, but was apparently never ...
- 193
9
votes
1
answer
2k
views
Are real estate taxes deductible if I use home for business?
I use home for business - work as a contractor from home, on my home computer, but there is no area for exclusive use - desk and computers are also used for personal purposes. So I do not qualify for ...
- 201
9
votes
2
answers
3k
views
Am I required to file taxes on an LLC that made no money?
I live in NY and created my LLC in November 2017. I didn't have any revenue for the two months of activity. Am I required to file taxes for 2017 on that LLC?
I can't imagine that they would want to ...
- 823
9
votes
3
answers
4k
views
Employer wants a key man insurance policy on me, should I agree?
Friend is working for a small company as main person in charge of operations. The president is asking them to take out a key man life insurance policy on them. The benefit would pay out to the company....
- 1,305
9
votes
8
answers
232
views
Finding a good small business CPA?
Maybe I've just had bad luck, but the four CPAs I've met so far with have been morons.
The first one I found on superpages and he couldn't help me set a structure for my LLC. Didn't know what ...
- 1,190
9
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Am I required by law to have cash register for my small business (California)?
We have a Point of Sales terminal to handle all credit card transactions. The credit card processor company sends us 1099K form that we use for tax purposes. This works fine for our small beauty salon....
- 637
9
votes
2
answers
177
views
Joint Account for Common Earnings
I've started a tutoring group with two of my peers; the three of us are minors in the state of Ohio. We charge a modest fee and generate approximately $2,000 in revenue per month.
We plan on charging ...
- 190
8
votes
3
answers
2k
views
What kind of taxes might I incur if I sell off intellectual property from my small software business?
For a little over five years (I started in fall of 2008) I've been developing an app for the iPhone/iPad, and it's been for sale in the App Store for all of that time. I'm in a position now where I ...
- 183
8
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Hiring Foreign Contractors - Is This Tax Deductible?
I have a small start-up business in the US and I'm going through freelance sites like freelancer.com to get some work done. The appeal of this is that the rates for foreign contractors is often less ...
- 243
8
votes
1
answer
3k
views
What are the benefits and downsides to an LLC vs. Sole Proprietorship vs. Individiual?
As a followup to my previous question, what benefits are there for an LLC vs. a Sole Proprietorship? What are advantages and disadvantages to both and also vs. just being paid as a person?
- 809