Spring 2009

Enjoy Tax Breaks for Vacation Homes
If you own a vacation home, you undoubtedly derive personal pleasure from this valuable asset. But the current economy could be putting a strain on your resources. Know that special tax rules apply if you decide to rent out the home for part of this year. These rules affect longtime landlords, as well as those renting for the first time. Read more...

Overview of the New 2008 Pension Law
The Worker, Retiree and Employer Recovery Act of 2008 was passed by Congress late last year. It was promptly signed into law on December 23, 2008. This new federal legislation includes several important changes affecting qualified retirement plans and IRAs and clarifies provisions in the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA). This article is a brief summary of several key provisions in the new pension law. Read more...

Key Provisions in the New Recovery Act
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 includes numerous tax breaks for both individuals and businesses. In general, the changes are retroactive to January 1, 2009. This article is an overview of several key provisions, including alternative minimum tax, new car deductions, S corporation conversions and much more. Read more...

Keeping Your 401(k) Plan in Motion
The recent economic downturn is taking its toll. Case in point: Some employees are having second thoughts about the viability of their 401(k) plans. According to a recent report by an independent consulting firm, 4% of plan participants stopped making 401(k) contributions at the end of last year. Also, the percentage of 401(k) savings traded jumped to 5.3% in 2008 from 3.5% in 2007. Read more...

Locking in Deductions for Moving Expenses
Are you pulling up stakes at your principal residence? If you are moving to a different location because you found a new job or you are being transferred by your current employer, you may qualify for a moving expense deduction on your tax return. On the other hand, if you are making the move strictly for personal reasons, you are completely out of luck--you cannot deduct any of these expenses. Read more...

Facts and Figures
In a new case, a couple claimed charitable deductions for tuition and fees they paid for their children to attend a private school affiliated with a specific religion. But the Ninth Circuit Court said that the parents received a benefit from the education provided to the children. Therefore, they cannot deduct any school expenses as a contribution to charity. Read more...

SCHIP and COBRA Amendment
There are new laws requiring changes in cafeteria and self-funded plans. To comply with the provisions of the Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009 (State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP)) and the COBRA provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), plan amendments may be necessary. Read more... 

Somerset CPAs News

2009 Seminars - We recently added Organizational Deadly Sins training, What Does Not Kill Us Makes Us Stronger: Strategies for Individuals to Survive and Thrive in a New Reality, the 2009 Financial Seminars for Women series and much more. Please go online to see the schedule and register.

Somerset Blogs - On April 11, 2009, Howard Cox, our Director of Business Consulting, posted 'Take a Dose of Community and Call Me in the Morning' to our Somerset Success Strategies blog. Following is an excerpt: "We will likely spend from 1/3 to 1/2 of our adult lives at work and so the type of culture we create there will have an indisputable and significant impact on our overall quality of life." Read more of this post and visit our other blogs--Successful Tax Strategies, The Business of Medicine, Driving Successful Dealerships and Women's Guide to Financial Success--at www.SomersetBlogs.com.

Somerset Client Satisfaction Survey - If you are a Somerset client, please take our survey concerning the services we have provided to you. Our goal is to improve our overall relationship and better serve you. Go to survey.

In Other News - Somerset publishes a variety of newsletters in addition to Wherewithal--such as Litigation Support, Real Estate Focus, Tax Times and several others. Please visit the Newsletters page of our web site to read the archives and sign up to have new issues delivered to your email inbox.

Somerset MBA and CEO Programs - To learn more about these programs, click the images below.

Wherewithal is provided by Somerset for our clients and other interested persons upon request. Since technical information is presented in generalized fashion, no final conclusion on these topics should be made without further review.

For additional information on the issues, please contact a member of the firm. Somerset provides total financial solutions, including accounting, assurance, information solutions, litigation & valuation, tax, wealth management and management consulting to entrepreneurs and their businesses. This document is not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, for the purpose of avoiding tax penalties that may be imposed on the taxpayer.