Erica has been writing about small business finance and technology since 2008. She joined Merchant Maverick in 2018 and specializes in researching and reviewing business software, financial products, and other topics to help small businesses manage and grow their operations. Her expertise has been cited in MSN, Reader’s Digest, Vox, U.S. News & World Report, and Real Simple. She is a Certified ProAdvisor for QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Payroll, a graduate of Limestone University, and currently resides in Greenville, South Carolina.
One form of relief offered to small businesses is the Employee Retention Tax Credit. First introduced in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, this tax credit could be claimed by eligible employers on quarterly tax returns. This program was expanded by the Consolidated Appropriations Act signed into law in December 2020, making the credit accessible to more employers.
The SBA offers a variety of loan programs that vary according to business needs. Its flagship program is the 7(a) loan program, which offers loans for most general business purposes. However, it also offers special programs such as microloans and disaster loans. Find out more about SBA loans, including who qualifies.
QuickBooks Online is cloud-based accounting software. It has the complex accounting capabilities that small business owners need and supports numerous integrations. Quickbooks Online has a lot to offer in terms of features, accounting, and usability.
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Loans expert Erica Seppala tells Real Simple why an app might help people pay down their debt faster.
Is cost segregation worth it for your property? It depends. While many taxpayers will benefit greatly from cost segregation, this tax strategy isn’t a good fit for all property owners. This may be because the property doesn’t qualify for cost segregation, the drawbacks outweigh the benefits, or for other reasons.
Cost segregation allows you to write off specific costs over five, seven, or 15 years, and this frontloaded depreciation can cut your tax bill significantly. Many costs can be written off through cost segregation — from furniture and office equipment to POS systems and drive-thru equipment.
Depreciation is a method of writing off an expense over a period of years rather than all at once with a typical tax deduction. Depreciation is used for purchases and expenses that are considered long-term assets, meaning their usefulness lasts longer than one year.
ACH (Automated Clearing House) payments are one of the oldest ways to move cash between accounts. While most payment methods, including credit cards, are ultimately settled with ACH transfers, it’s much less common for small businesses to make more direct use of them.
While there are many advantages to using ACH, this payment method won’t be a good fit for every small business or for every transaction. Let’s take a look at some of the pros and cons of ACH payments.
By knowing the basics of what tax deductions are and how tax deductions operate, you’ll be able to understand how to lower your overall taxable income and take the deductions you’re eligible for with confidence this tax season.
A tax credit is an amount of money taxpayers can claim to decrease the amount owed on taxes. Tax credits affect the total a taxpayer or business owes at the end of their tax calculations by allowing you to reduce the amount of money owed, or even in some cases, increase the amount received in a tax refund.
Tax credits are a great way to lower the amount of taxes you owe the IRS and can even increase your tax refund if you’re lucky. With over 30 tax credits available to small business owners, it can be overwhelming to learn which tax breaks you should (or are allowed to) take.
A tax deduction is a business expense you can use to reduce your total taxable income. According to the IRS, expenses that qualify for deduction must be “both ordinary and necessary.” Expenses that meet these requirements can be written off on your tax return, saving you hundreds or potentially thousands of dollars each tax season.
QuickBooks Money is a free business banking and payments app that draws much of your business finances into one easy-to-use dashboard. Like the best business bank accounts we cover, QuickBooks Money offers free banking services that will meet many small business owners’ needs.
How much does payroll software cost? It varies by business, software, and personal requirements, but in general, you can expect to pay around $44/month + $6/employee per month for payroll software that offers essential payroll software services.
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The vendors that appear on this list were chosen by subject matter experts on the basis of product quality, wide usage and availability, and positive reputation.
Merchant Maverick’s ratings are editorial in nature, and are not aggregated from user reviews. Each staff reviewer at Merchant Maverick is a subject matter expert with experience researching, testing, and evaluating small business software and services. The rating of this company or service is based on the author’s expert opinion and analysis of the product, and assessed and seconded by another subject matter expert on staff before publication. Merchant Maverick’s ratings are not influenced by affiliate partnerships.
Our unbiased reviews and content are supported in part by affiliate partnerships, and we adhere to strict guidelines to preserve editorial integrity. The editorial content on this page is not provided by any of the companies mentioned and has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. Opinions expressed here are author’s alone.
