A note from Laughlin Associates’ CEO, Aaron Young

Dear Friends,

With New Year’s weekend right around the corner, we are reminded of the many blessings we’ve received throughout 2011 and remain grateful for the things we cherish most: our families, health, and the continued pursuit of our happiness and freedom.

As we bring in 2012 and savor our time with family and friends, small business owners like you and me remember why we started our companies in the first place and just how much we appreciate the ability to control our own destiny throughout this exciting journey of business ownership.

For our team at Laughlin, this is a time where we reflect on how much we value you: our friends and clients that have motivated us to continue to serve our small business owner community over the past 40 years.

We want to take this time to thank you for your continued support and belief in all that we do here. Without you, we wouldn’t be able to touch the hearts and minds of so many entrepreneurs out there like you, working hard every day to reach their dreams.

Thank you for taking part in our continued journey to share the knowledge business owners need for success, but so often can’t get their hands on.

The last couple of years haven’t been the easiest for many business owners. By joining us this past year you have taken the right step toward building your dreams and reaching your goals.

At Laughlin Associates, our family here has grown and changed over our many years in business, and we want to thank you for being a constant reminder of what the original Laughlin family had in mind when they started this business. The goal was then and still is today, to empower you as a small business owner and to help you to proactively protect, build, and grow your business.

I know the next few years will bring real change for American small-business owners. This is our time to work smarter, not harder! I can’t wait to see all that you have in store for 2012. Thank you for continued trust and support.

Happy New Year to you and yours,

Aaron Young, CEO, Laughlin Associates

As a small business owner, you’re entitled to a lot of special privileges and fringe benefits. This holiday season is a great time to use the spirit of giving as a way to help those in need, and an advantage for you as a small business owner is that you can deduct any charitable contributions you make in the name of your business! You can do this as an individual as well, but why not use your business as a way to create awareness for a particular group that speaks to your heart? There are tons of great charities out there, so if you don’t typically make charitable contributions during the holidays or throughout the year, check out Charity Watch for an A-Z list of some of the top-rated charities in the US.

Charity Watch is a great resource because they only list the top-rated charities willing to provide you with audited financial statements and annual reports so you can get a clear look at where your dollars and cents are being put to use.

Today the IRS sent out a list of helpful insights that individuals and businesses making contributions to charity should keep in mind.  Note that several important tax law provisions have taken effect in recent years.

Some of these changes include the following: (from www.IRS.gov)

• Special Charitable Contributions for Certain IRA Owners

This provision, currently scheduled to expire at the end of 2011, offers older owners of individual retirement accounts (IRAs) a different way to give to charity. An IRA owner, age 70½ or over, can directly transfer tax-free up to $100,000 per year to an eligible charity. This option, created in 2006, is available for distributions from IRAs, regardless of whether the owners itemize their deductions. Distributions from employer-sponsored retirement plans, including SIMPLE IRAs and simplified employee pension (SEP) plans, are not eligible.

To qualify, the funds must be contributed directly by the IRA trustee to the eligible charity. Amounts so transferred are not taxable and no deduction is available for the transfer.

Not all charities are eligible. For example, donor-advised funds and supporting organizations are not eligible recipients.

Amounts transferred to a charity from an IRA are counted in determining whether the owner has met the IRA’s required minimum distribution. Where individuals have made nondeductible contributions to their traditional IRAs, a special rule treats transferred amounts as coming first from taxable funds, instead of proportionately from taxable and nontaxable funds, as would be the case with regular distributions. See Publication 590, Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs), for more information on qualified charitable distributions.

• Rules for Clothing and Household Items

To be deductible, clothing and household items donated to charity generally must be in good used condition or better. A clothing or household item for which a taxpayer claims a deduction of over $500 does not have to meet this standard if the taxpayer includes a qualified appraisal of the item with the return. Household items include furniture, furnishings, electronics, appliances and linens.

• Guidelines for Monetary Donations

To deduct any charitable donation of money, regardless of amount, a taxpayer must have a bank record or a written communication from the charity showing the name of the charity and the date and amount of the contribution. Bank records include canceled checks, bank or credit union statements, and credit card statements. Bank or credit union statements should show the name of the charity, the date, and the amount paid. Credit card statements should show the name of the charity, the date, and the transaction posting date.

Donations of money include those made in cash or by check, electronic funds transfer, credit card and payroll deduction. For payroll deductions, the taxpayer should retain a pay stub, a Form W-2 wage statement or other document furnished by the employer showing the total amount withheld for charity, along with the pledge card showing the name of the charity.

These requirements for the deduction of monetary donations do not change the long-standing requirement that a taxpayer obtain an acknowledgment from a charity for each deductible donation (either money or property) of $250 or more. However, one statement containing all of the required information may meet both requirements.

• Reminders

To help taxpayers plan their holiday-season and year-end giving, the IRS offers the following additional reminders:

• Contributions are deductible in the year made. Thus, donations charged to a credit card before the end of 2011 count for 2011. This is true even if the credit card bill isn’t paid until 2012. Also, checks count for 2011 as long as they are mailed in 2011.
• Check that the organization is qualified. Only donations to qualified organizations are tax-deductible. IRS Publication 78, searchable and available online, lists most organizations that are qualified to receive deductible contributions. It can be found at IRS.gov under Search for Charities. In addition, churches, synagogues, temples, mosques and government agencies are eligible to receive deductible donations, even if they are not listed in Publication 78.
• For individuals, only taxpayers who itemize their deductions on Form 1040 Schedule A can claim deductions for charitable contributions. This deduction is not available to individuals who choose the standard deduction, including anyone who files a short form (Form 1040A or 1040EZ). A taxpayer will have a tax savings only if the total itemized deductions (mortgage interest, charitable contributions, state and local taxes, etc.) exceed the standard deduction. Use the 2011 Form 1040 Schedule A to determine whether itemizing is better than claiming the standard deduction.
• For all donations of property, including clothing and household items, get from the charity, if possible, a receipt that includes the name of the charity, date of the contribution, and a reasonably-detailed description of the donated property. If a donation is left at a charity’s unattended drop site, keep a written record of the donation that includes this information, as well as the fair market value of the property at the time of the donation and the method used to determine that value. Additional rules apply for a contribution of $250 or more.
• The deduction for a motor vehicle, boat or airplane donated to charity is usually limited to the gross proceeds from its sale. This rule applies if the claimed value is more than $500. Form 1098-C, or a similar statement, must be provided to the donor by the organization and attached to the donor’s tax return.
• If the amount of a taxpayer’s deduction for all noncash contributions is over $500, a properly-completed Form 8283 must be submitted with the tax return.
• And, as always it’s important to keep good records and receipts.

Thank you to IRS.gov for providing this information. If you run a small business and are not incorporated, call us and discover how owning a Corporation or Limited Liability Company in Nevada or any of the other 49 states can get you many more deductions than you are allotted as a sole proprietor.

Incorporating just makes sense and Laughlin Associates has been providing incorporation services since 1972. We know how to help and get you the asset and liability protection plus the tax savings that you and your company deserve.

I thought I had seen everything and then this crazy story comes along. According to the New York Times a man is suing the photographer that shot his 2003 wedding for not only the cost of the service but for the money he says is required to re-create the entire wedding including flying in all of the guests! Interestingly, the marriage is long since over and the former bride has returned to Latvia. To read the rest of this story click here.

In her remarks, the judge make humorous remarks and recalls passages from Barbra Streisand’s song, “The Way We Were” to make light of the situation. The problem is, there is nothing funny or light about this mess.

Way too many business owners are regularly held hostage by unbelievably stupid lawsuits. Lawyers paid on commission (or contingency) can basically extort money from a business by simply beating them down. While the plaintiff’s lawyer is waiting for his commission check at the end of the fight, the defendant is paying out of pocket to deal with the law suit. Great for lawyers but terrible for business owners.  After a while, most defendants just throw up their hands and pay the jerks to go away.

If it sounds like this makes me grouchy, you’re right. I hear the horror stories that business owners tell us. It is why they come to Laughlin Associates. They never want to go through such a nightmare again.

Do yourself a favor folks and get your house in order. Stop these stupid lawsuits before they start. Don’t be an easy target. It’s totally up to you.

This month has been a busy one at Laughlin, and yet again our company CEO is out on the airwaves reaching all of you small business owners with the education and advice you’ve been asking for!

Aaron Young, our CEO, will be appearing on An Empowered Woman’s “Strictly Business” Radio Show tonight from 8 to 9 p.m. PST.

This is a really cool opportunity for you to stay connected with us and get to know a little more about being incorporated. Here are the details:

Strictly Business Presents…“All You Need to Know About Being Incorporated!”

Thursday October 27, 2011 

8:00 ~ 9:00pm PST 

Guest Speaker: Aaron Young, CEO of Laughlin Associates

Please call in at least five minutes before to
347-205-9219 and press 1 to connect to host.

Happy listening!

Carson City, NV—CEO SPACE, the largest entrepreneur support program in the world, has exclusively endorsed Laughlin Associates as the premier incorporation services provider for small business owners looking to form an LLC or Corporation.

 Says CEO Space Founder Berny Dohrmann, “CEO SPACE has created what we call Trade Show 3.0. This revolutionary model of cooperative capitalism ensures that the diverse needs of our members are constantly being met. The 5 times per year CEO Space forums bring together hundreds of business owners, angel investors, and corporate leaders in a community of support with a focus on hyper-growth opportunities  There is no selling, just sharing, and potential clients can decide if the math makes money sense for their business.”

Many Laughlin clients have benefited from CEO SPACE affiliation for years but with this alliance they now formally endorse Laughlin Associates as their exclusive incorporating recommendation for their 80,000 members nationwide. Laughlin offers Corporation and LLC formation in all 50 states in the U.S.

Aaron Young, Laughlin Associates’ CEO, is particularly encouraged about the CEO SPACE endorsement, “Our two teams have now become one family and we love supporting one another’s customers with a kind of sacred regard for entrepreneurs.”

Young will now participate on the prestigious CEO SPACE faculty board, where he will teach along-side the likes of Les Brown, Bob Proctor, T. Harv Eker and other well-known professional speakers and business coachs specializing in the “Law of Attraction.”

Young further explained how the affiliation between CEO Space and Laughlin Associates is such a natural fit for small business owners looking to accelerate their wealth and success.

“We know how hard it is to run a small business. I’ve been there. I live this every day. At Laughlin, we help remove the burdens associated with running a business. Our goal is to help you speed things up and help you make a lot of money faster. We believe the affiliation with CEO SPACE is a recession buster for all of our customers. Our clients can prosper in the double dip and we plan to make sure they do,” Young concluded.

The partnership between Laughlin Associates and CEO SPACE will provide clients with the opportunity to reclaim some tax dollars, substantially upgrade their business skills, improve their business plans, open new markets, get new customers, infuse capital into their businesses, develop upgraded branding strategies, and resolve challenges while saving oceans of time and money.

Young believes the materials and training resources found at CEO SPACE to be one of a kind. “The solutions provided at CEO SPACE are truly off the charts from anything small business owners have previously seen.

He continued on to say, “If you want to make more money faster, I can’t recommend CEO SPACE enough. My request to clients is that they explore CEO SPACE as a hyper-growth opportunity – just dip your toe in the water and see if you are not delighted with the help and support you discover from this affiliation. I am really excited about this alliance. Now we can do even more to benefit the clients we cherish so much.”

 For more information regarding the partnership between Laughlin Associates and CEO SPACE contact Shannon John, Marketing Manager, at 1-800-648-0966 or sjohn@laughlinusa.com. All media inquiries welcome.