Journal of Accountancy articles from March 2006

Journal of Accountancy archives from March 2006

Going to the dogs.(career expansion)
March 1, 2006... What do you get when you combine a beloved hobby with a CPA credential? If you're John A. York of Royal Palm Beach, Fla., you start a dog-related company, operate it successfully and then add CPA services to the mix for your fellow dog-loving...

Planning for trouble.(Excerpt)
March 1, 2006... For all of us there's the life we're living and a potential, different life. Our normal days--filled with work, family, friends, shopping, movies, sports, books--are the ordinary way of the world. But down in the dark lies another life that we...

Taking care of small business: the institute's vice-president for small firm interests describes AICPA programs for small firms and their small business clients.
March 1, 2006... Small businesses--the fastest-growing sector of the U.S. economy--rely on their CPAs for business advice, making them a core practice area for many practitioners. In recognition of this important relationship, the AICPA provides specialized...

Two-stage deals: a sequenced transition can smooth a firm's ownership transfer.
March 1, 2006... EXECUTIVE SUMMARY * Although it's not the only way to go about succession planning, a two-stage deal offers a transitioning CPA an opportunity to imbed a practice into a successor firm's infrastructure while maintaining a considerable...

Small business software grows up: intense efforts for product improvements.
March 1, 2006... EXECUTIVE SUMMARY * Microsoft's introduction this year of its small business accounting software is challenging the two leading competitors--QuickBooks and Peachtree--to step up their efforts with products that are ever-more...

Section 404 for small caps: ease the learning curve for small-cap companies.
March 1, 2006... EXECUTIVE SUMMARY * In 2005 about 3,700 large-cap ($75 million or more) companies underwent the first wave of Sarbanes-Oxley section 404 audits. Here, a firm experienced with Sarbanes-Oxley section 404 audits for accelerated fliers shares...

Options and the deferred tax bite: just when you thought it couldn't get any more complicated.
March 1, 2006... EXECUTIVE SUMMARY * Implementation of FASB Statement no. 123(R) goes beyond selecting a method to value employee stock options. CPAs also must help companies make the necessary tax accounting adjustments to properly track the tax benefits...

Advances to S corporations.
March 1, 2006... Shareholders who lend money to an S corporation can deduct losses in excess of the stock basis. Recently the Tax Court considered how to compute the amount of deductible loss and the effect of a debt repayment. Fleming S. Brooks owned 51%...

Loans to employee-shareholders.
March 1, 2006... Unlike loan proceeds, dividends are taxable income. The IRS closely examines loans a corporation makes to an employee-shareholder--and scrutinizes the transaction even more carefully when the employee-shareholder owns a controlling interest in...

Deducting S corporation losses.
March 1, 2006... When an S corporation incurs losses, its shareholders can directly deduct their share of them in accordance with the flowthrough rules of subchapter S. A shareholder's aggregated amount of losses and deductions for any taxable year can't exceed...

Tax consequences of home purchase programs: home sales for job moves.(from The Tax Adviser)
March 1, 2006... When employees are asked to relocate to a new job site, employers often offer various benefits--including home purchase programs--to ease the transition. Using three examples, revenue ruling 2005-74 explains the tax con sequences to employees...

Business Valuation and Taxes: Procedure, Law, and Perspective.(Book review)
March 1, 2006... Business Valuation and Taxes: Procedure, Law, and Perspective by David Laro and Shannon P. Pratt 450 pages; hardcover; $85.00 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Hoboken, New Jersey, 2005 Any CPA/ABV preparing a business valuation (BV) has undoubtedly...

Directory of AICPA selected services.(Directory)
March 1, 2006... Address and employment information can be changed online through www.aicpa.org/about/dues.htm. Or, members can e-mail, mail or fax the information to the Member Service Center in New Jersey (see Member Service Center for additional services...

The last word.(accountant's way of networking and mentoring to succeed on the job)
March 1, 2006... AFTER HIGH SCHOOL I HELD SEVERAL JOBS that gave me the opportunity to get into the trenches and understand the operations of a business. The diversity of that experience was a great help in my career. Two kids and a failed marriage later, I...