Embarkment Tax Services

01/09/2025

For almost 20 years, Embarkment Tax Services was a "side hustle". It has taken up more and more of my time the last several years, but I have continued working for my old employer in some capacity as well. Effective 1/1/25, that is no longer the case. My business will be my full-time focus in 2025 and beyond. 2025 will also likely see some significant tax law changes, which will impact things when you file your tax returns next year.

If you or anyone you know could benefit from establishing a relationship with an experienced tax nerd, feel free to contact me or pass my name along.

Thanks to all of my clients who helped me get to this point.

-Howard

02/04/2024

Federal government at it again, making it very difficult for practitioners in my profession.

In mid-January, they introduced a tax bill that would make changes to tax laws retroactive to 2023. One of the items in the bill changes things retroactively to 2022. Unfortunately, the practice of making retroactive changes to tax laws during "tax season" has become way too common in recent years.

This tax bill was voted on and passed by The House on 1/31. The items in the tax bill won't impact most of my Embarkment Tax Services clients, but does impact many clients at the firm I still do contract work for.

The issue is that it still needs to be passed by the Senate to become law. Partisan politics are now holding things up. Members of Senate are in negotiations and introduced another bill that would have a much greater impact for 2023 only. This newly introduced bill is to make one change, but it would impact a lot more taxpayers and my married individual clients. The goal with this bill is to increase the limit for state and local tax deductions from $10,000 to $20,000 for married couples. It would be a reasonable tax bill if it weren't retroactive and only for one year. The current law penalizes married couples on this deduction and this bill seeks to remedy the issue. The problem is that it is retroactive, would only be effective for one year as currently proposed and it is being introduced and debated in February of the following year. It may be several weeks before there is resolution on both bills.

This post is partly to vent and partly to inform my clients and friends that if you are a middle class, married taxpayer, you may need to wait longer to file your tax returns this year. I've heard whispers that this may not be resolved until the end of March, but I don't know if that is true. Frustrating regardless.

01/17/2022

Interested in finding out more about Embarkment Tax Services or want to become a client? Watch this short video. Then head over to www.embarkmenttax.com to find out a little more about me and the services I offer and fill out a short new client questionnaire (link in comments) to get the ball rolling.

01/17/2021

My annual client email has been sent out to everyone I worked with last year. If you did not receive it, let me know.

I am encouraging those who don't already work with me remotely to consider doing so for 2021. The portal system I started using in 2020 has received positive feedback and has made some great improvements over the last 12 months, including the ability to easily and securely scan and send me your tax docs with your smartphone. I am also happy to meet with any clients virtually using Microsoft Teams for those looking for an alternative to meeting face to face. At this point, I am only planning to be in MD for one weekend (Feb 13-14) to meet with my MD and PA clients who still prefer to meet in person.

There were some big changes to tax laws in 2020 and, with a new administration taking over this week, there are likely to be more in 2021. If you have any friends or family in need of a tax pro who is staying on top of all of it, please feel free to pass on my info. I recently created a one page website with a little more info about me and the services I offer. Feel free to share www.embarkmenttax.com

Some of the 2020 tax changes that will impact a lot of individuals and small businesses:

-Any small businesses that took advantage of stimulus funding or were otherwise impacted by Covid should be working with an experienced tax advisor. There were some changes to the handling of some of these items up until just a few weeks ago. There are also some tax credits available to self-employed individuals that you may not be aware of.
-If you didn't receive your full stimulus payments, you can correct this and get any remaining amount owed to you with the filing of your 2020 tax return.
-A $300 charitable donation deduction for cash donations is available for taxpayers who do not itemize . Most taxpayers no longer benefit from itemizing since the standard deduction was drastically increased in 2017.

Please reach out with any questions.

01/31/2020

If you're a small business owner and need guidance or help accounting for your business income and expense, I've created a free tool for you.

It will guide you through what types of expenses small businesses typically deduct and help you keep track of everything throughout the year.

Watch this video and access the free tool using the link in the comments.

Check out a video I made via Loom

01/19/2020

I moved to Charlotte, NC about a year ago.

Most of my clients are still back in MD and PA where I lived all my life before that.

Potential clients often ask how I work with my existing clients who are so far away.

Technology has always made it fairly easy, but this year I have invested in an online portal to make working with clients even easier (and safer).

It's now easy and convenient for clients anywhere in the country to work with me.

Check out a video I made via Loom

01/10/2020

For over 10 years, I've slowly built a small business helping friends and family prepare their tax returns each year and guiding small business owners on their journey to building businesses worth being proud of. It was always a "side hustle" while I continued working for another accounting firm. This year, I am committed to making my small business more of a priority. With that, the business now has a name (and page!). Please like the page and share it with your friends and family who may need a trusted, experienced tax adviser in their life! Thanks.