November, 2008


The Eightfold Path to Pay Less Tax and Avoid an Audit

Eight basic things all business owners need to be masters of is ready and printed in book form. You can order directly from us at Tax Buddha, or if you can wait a couple of weeks, you can order from Amazon.com. We’re waiting on the process at Amazon, but we hope to provide a link in time for Christmas – order copies for your friends who are in business! Order copies for your sales team! Order copies for independent contractors you care about!

The book also contains a sections on how returns are selected for audit, when to seek professional help, and how long to keep your tax records.

The cost is $30, but if you reply to this e-mail that you want to order, we’ll pay the sales tax and shipping for a limited time, (See, it’s good to be on the mailing list!)

Andy is also available for speaking engagements on this topic.

Classes – Household Employees, Basic Payroll and Schedule C

Household Employees
Learn what you need to prepare Household Employer Payroll Taxes to protect yourself from loosing your house if a household worker is injured while working for you, or just avoid penalties when they file for unemployment. This class is scheduled for Saturday, November 15th in Alameda (not change of venue!) at 1516 Oak Street, Suite 109. Office has “Law Office of Laurence Padway on the door, which opens onto the parking lot towards the back of the building. Oak is one block west of Park between Lincoln and Santa Clara. Class will be 9 am to 1 pm. Look for our Tax Buddha sandwich board sign (space is limited, so sign up early!). Sign up sheet is at http://www.taxbuddha.com/class. The class is good for people who have household employees and need to know what to do, and this appears to be the only place to learn about both California and Federal law at the same time that I’ve ever seen.

In conjunction with the IRS and EDD, Andy's going to be doing some Basic Payroll seminars coming up in the near future.

Basic Payroll: Seminar runs 9 am – 3 pm with an hour for lunch

The next seminar will be
Basic Payroll in Oakland at Elihu M. Harris State Building,1515 Clay Street, Room 2, Second Floor,
December 3rd http://www.edd.ca.gov/Payroll_Tax_Seminars/Reserve_Space.asp?SemID=3137
January 28th link not yet available
February 26th link not yet available.

Basic Payroll in San Rafael is presented at 120 North Redwood Drive, 2nd floor, Redwood Room East Wing, Room E-212
February 4th link not yet available.

Basic Payroll in San Francisco is presented at the SBA office 455 Market Street, 6th floor (I take BART to Montgomery Street)
January 14th link not yet available
February 18th link not yet available.

These seminars have proven to be very popular, plus they’re free.

How to Prepare your Own Schedule C
Prepare your business taxes for ’07 and get ready for ‘08. Review what the IRS wants to know from you and how to report it on the Schedule C for your business. This is a class for business owners who need a basic understanding of their 1040 Schedule C tax forms. We’ll also talk about what to do with the numbers once you have them. We can’t guarantee you won’t get audited, but this class will make it less likely.

Andy will be at the US Small Business Administration offices in San Francisco at 455 Market Street, 6th Floor February 25, 6-8:30 pm. This class will be free.

For relaxation and Clear Thinking: On The Spot

To carry you through the summer, we recommend meditation and that you check out On The Spot Massage at http://www.onthespotmassage.com/corporate.html to help you relax. A relaxed mind is a clear thinking mind. Makes an excellent gift for your tax preparer or other important person in your life.

New Phone and Fax Numbers

We have moved our office to a shared commercial space in Alameda (the Berkeley address is still good, it is a PMB) and have new phone numbers. The old numbers still forward, but AT&T gets a fee for each call forwarded. New numbers are:
Phone (510) 522-2300
Fax (510) 522-2307