Most business owners carry a rough estimate of what their company is worth, but that mental number is not a valuation, and the gap between the two can be costly. A formal, methodology-based business valuation is required in a wide range of situations, including selling or transferring a business, estate planning, lending, divorce, equity compensation, and shareholder disputes. Working with a credentialed valuator and involving your CPA early ensures the resulting number is defensible when it matters most.

A divorce settlement divides assets and establishes legal rights, but it does not resolve every tax question that follows. Filing status, child-related benefits, property basis, retirement transfers, and prior joint return liability all require a separate tax review. Understanding where the settlement ends and tax law begins can help you avoid costly surprises after the divorce is final.

Construction businesses can stay profitable on paper while margin quietly slips away on individual jobs. This article explains how job costing, change-order management, and work-in-progress reporting work together to surface problems early. Learn what to look for in each system and how to keep all three telling the same story before issues become year-end surprises.

The IRS raised the standard mileage rates for the second half of 2026, effective July 1, with the business rate increasing from 72.5 cents to 76 cents per mile. Taxpayers who use their vehicle for business, medical, or qualifying moving purposes will need to track mileage separately for each half of the year. Learn what the new rates mean for your deductions, reimbursement policies, and recordkeeping.

Your first profitable year in business is worth celebrating. But it can also bring expensive tax surprises, especially if you’re still managing the business like you did when revenue was lower. Here are the most common mistakes new business owners make and what to do instead.

Most business owners rely on backward-looking financials that tell them where they have been, not where they are going. A cash flow forecast fills that gap by projecting future inflows and outflows, helping leaders spot problems early and make smarter decisions about hiring, investing, and financing. Updated consistently and tied to real business decisions, it shifts leadership from reactive to proactive.

If your business sells online, has remote employees, or uses third-party fulfillment, you may owe taxes in states where you’ve never filed a return. Learn how physical presence and economic nexus rules work, what triggers an obligation, and what to do if your business has unexpected exposure.

As home values rise, the federal home sale exclusion may no longer be enough to eliminate capital gains tax when a property is sold or inherited. The difference between a large tax bill and a smaller one can come down to how well a homeowner documented capital improvements over the years. Keeping a permanent record of qualifying expenses is one of the simplest steps homeowners can take to protect themselves.

Selling a business, rental property, or other large asset triggers a range of tax consequences, including capital gains tax, depreciation recapture, and the net investment income tax, that can result in a significantly larger bill than most sellers anticipate. Tools like installment sale elections, deal structure adjustments, and strategic closing timing can reduce that exposure, but most of them require action before the transaction is finalized. A conversation with your CPA before you enter active negotiations is the most reliable way to protect your after-tax proceeds.

The IRS just made it easier for families to fund Trump accounts without triggering an unexpected gift tax filing requirement. In Revenue Procedure 2026-25, the IRS established a safe harbor that allows qualifying donors to contribute cash to a child’s Trump account and skip Form 709 entirely, as long as key conditions are met. Here’s what you need to know before making contributions.

Your dashboard should do more than confirm what already happened. It should warn you before problems arrive. Learn how to identify the leading indicators that give you time to act, not just a record of what went wrong.

Financial scams are more sophisticated than ever, and the people most at risk are often the ones least likely to see it coming. A few simple safeguards could be the difference between your family staying protected or losing tens of thousands of dollars. Here’s what you need to know.

Most business owners assume buyer scrutiny begins when due diligence starts. It doesn’t. The decisions you’re making right now, years before a sale, are already shaping the price a buyer will pay and the deal structure they’ll offer.

Your aging AR report isn’t just a list of late invoices. It’s an early warning system that reveals two very different cash flow problems: a system-wide slowdown in collections or a dangerous concentration of overdue balances. Learn how to read the pattern and respond the right way.

Retirement isn’t the end of financial planning. It’s where the real complexity begins. From building sustainable income and managing tax-efficient withdrawals, to preparing for healthcare costs, coordinating Social Security, and protecting your legacy, retirement calls for a more deliberate and connected approach to managing wealth. Read on to learn how to bring all of these pieces together into a strategy built to last.

The years leading up to retirement are one of the most critical windows in financial planning, offering opportunities to maximize savings, reduce future tax burdens, and position your portfolio for what comes next. From Roth conversions and catch-up contributions to Social Security timing and healthcare planning, the decisions you make now can have a lasting impact on retirement readiness. Read on to learn how a coordinated pre-retirement strategy can help you make the most of the time you still have.

Mid-career success often brings a more complex financial picture, and the strategies that worked early on may no longer be enough. From managing higher tax exposure to protecting the wealth you’ve already built, peak earning years come with both greater opportunity and greater risk. This article breaks down the key planning moves to make now so you have more choices later.

The early career and young family years bring a rapid increase in financial complexity, as growing income, expanding responsibilities, and long-term decisions around saving, investing, and taxes all converge at once. Read on to learn how a coordinated financial strategy now can create meaningful wealth-building momentum for years to come.

A recent federal court decision, Kwong v. United States, has created a potential refund and abatement opportunity for taxpayers who were assessed IRS penalties or interest on federal tax obligations during the COVID-19 federal disaster period (January 20, 2020 through July 10, 2023). The decision remains unsettled, as the government has appealed, but many affected taxpayers cannot wait for the outcome: a formal refund claim or protective refund claim may need to be filed by July 10, 2026 to preserve their rights.

Effective financial planning isn’t a one-time event, it’s an ongoing process that must adapt as your life, income, and goals change over time. From building early savings to navigating tax strategy in peak earning years to preparing a sustainable retirement income, each life stage brings new challenges and opportunities that a static plan simply can’t address. Read on to learn how a lifecycle-based approach to financial planning can help you make smarter, more coordinated decisions at every stage of the journey.

Hiring family members can create real tax advantages for small business owners, but the rules depend on entity type, relationship, age, reasonable compensation, and payroll compliance. Here’s what to know before putting relatives on payroll.

If you are self-employed and contributing to a SEP IRA, SIMPLE IRA, or solo 401(k), you may be deducting your retirement contributions in the wrong place on your tax return without even knowing it. This common mistake doesn’t just misplace a number; it can distort your self-employment tax calculation, throw off your allowable contribution amount, and cost you money. Read on to learn where the deduction actually belongs, why the distinction matters more than most people realize, and how choosing the right plan could potentially double your tax-sheltered savings.

Summer jobs and side hustles can feel like easy extra money, but without the right planning, that income can turn into a surprise tax bill next April. From W-4 mistakes and self-employment taxes to new 1099 reporting thresholds, there are more ways to get tripped up than most families realize. Read on to learn the most common summer tax pitfalls and exactly what you can do right now to avoid them.

Getting married triggers significant tax changes that catch many couples off guard, from a new filing status that takes effect the moment you say “I do,” to withholding gaps that can result in an unexpected tax bill in April. Beyond filing and withholding, newlyweds also need to address name and address updates, healthcare coverage decisions, HSA eligibility changes, and dependent-related credits before year-end. Tackling these adjustments proactively, rather than waiting until tax season, helps couples avoid penalties, protect their refunds, and start their financial life together on solid footing.