For business owners, it’s like being a kid in a candy store as far as tax write offs go. The key is keeping great records of your expenses. But even if you don’t own your own business, don’t pay higher taxes because you don’t know any better.

You might have heard the familiar phrases like ‘deductible expenses’ and ‘tax write off’ a hundred times, but are not sure what these phrases mean. Simply put, these phrases pertain to tax deductions which can lower your taxable income, which can decrease the amount of tax that you have to pay.
Do you know that in the United States, more than 4 million people don’t claim tax deductions that they are eligible for? Let’s look at some real-life examples as illustrations.

You can also qualify for up to $4,000 tax deductible for any tuition-related expenses that you, or your spouse or dependent incurred in the past year.  In case you were looking for a job in the past year, you can also deduct expenses related to your job searching. These expenses may range from the costs of printing and mailing your resumes and cover letters, travel expenses for interviews, and employment agency fees.

Did you know I write off my 12 year son’s private school tuition?  The costs of private school is not a small chunk of change but I decided to use the tax code to my benefit.   When I pick up Karrington from school, he loves hanging out with mom at the office.  I asked my staff if they can use a helper. Karrington now makes copies for staff, answers the phones and he even knows how to scan data to our electronic file cabinet.  He is my youngest employee and gets a payroll check every two weeks.  Yes, he pays his own private school tuition and I get a business write off while hanging out with my son!  I love that kid.

If you had a lot of medical expenses last year, you can apply these as tax deductibles. In order to qualify for tax write off, your medical expenses should be more than 10% of your gross income in the past year. Medical expenses like surgeries, doctor’s fees, fertility treatments, prescription medications, and even costs of travel may all be deducted from your taxes.

If your house was damaged by an unexpected natural disaster like heavy snow, then you can apply for a casualty loss deduction. However, you should be able to prove that the damage was something you could not have prevented, so water seepage in the basement won’t qualify you for this deduction.

There are so many business write offs available to you. You just have to ask how you can tie this back to a basic business need, you then are eligible for the write off. Ask one of our Practical Tax Specialist today about Simple Write off‘s Here.

Karla Dennis

As seen in Forbes Magazine, Karla Dennis is an expert tax and business strategist. As an enrolled agent, Karla is licensed to represent taxpayers in all 50 states. She holds a Masters in Taxation and Business Development and is the author of two books, Tax Storm and Against the Odds.

Karla, CEO of consultancy firm Karla Dennis And Associates, Inc.™, has saved her clients thousands of dollars and has been featured in various media outlets such as Forbes, MSNBC, KTLA, Yahoo! Finance, and SmartMoney, marking her as the ultimate tax expert.

As of 2014, Karla became the new host on the “Mind Your Business” radio show, KTLK AM 1150, sharing her financial and business knowledge with the greater Orange County and Los Angeles areas. As a supporter of women’s rights and issues, Karla is part of the Women Network, an organization built to educate and mentor women. In addition, Karla is the radio host for Women Network Radio, a show that aims to uplift and empower women of all walks of life.