COMPUTERIZED ACCOUNTING TIP

Do you have customers with past due Account Receivable balances? Collection letters are usually one of the first steps in addressing a customer with a past due balance. Did you know that you could create a collection letter directly from your accounting software? Here’s how: 

Peachtree users: 

• Go to Reports/Accounts Receivable.
• Under the Report list, click once on the Collection Letter folder. You’ll have an option of selecting from the pre-defined customer letters. Select the letter and then click on the PREVIEW icon at the top of the screen.
• You will now have the option of selecting any filters. Note: you should change the “oldest outstanding invoice filter” to agree with the report you selected. For example, if the report you selected was Overdue 31-60 days, then change the oldest outstanding filter to say Equal to – 31-60 days.
• Also, the filter “form delivery method” allows you print or email your letter, or both. Make sure you select the proper filter. If you are emailing, you should review your email address on your customer maintenance records. When you are done with the filtering, click on the OK button and the letters will print. 

HINT: Click on the design button before clicking on print to add a DATA box to include the company, name and address on the format of the letter. You can also make other cosmetic changes to your letter in the design mode. 

NOTE: In order to e-mail forms to your customers from Peachtree, you must have a default MAPI-compliant e-mail application installed on your computer. You also need to set up e-mail delivery options on the sales default tab in maintain/customers. 

AOL is not a fully MAPI-compliant e-mail application therefore if AOL is your Internet provider you will not be able to e-mail forms from Peachtree. 

QuickBooks users: In QuickBooks you can create the letter and an envelope.  

• Go to Company/Prepare letters with envelopes.
• Choose from one of the predefined letters, then follow the next couple of screens to filter your selection of customers. QuickBooks will open Microsoft Word and you will have to print the letters from Word.
• Go back to QuickBooks and you can click cancel on the envelope options if you don’t wish to print them.

HINT: If the words “MISSING INFORMATION” appear on your letter that means your customer record in QuickBooks is missing that particular information. You can add it to the letter prior to printing and then make sure to update your customer record in QuickBooks. 

NOTE: Collection letters cannot be emailed directly from QuickBooks because the letter is generated in Microsoft Word. However you can save the word document and email the document as an attachment.

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EMPLOYERS:  HOW TO HANDLE EMPLOYEE SOC. SEC. #'S

For security purposes, social security numbers are not supposed to be printed on employees’ payroll checks.  Employers should make a copy of the employee’s social security card when hired to avoid a problem when reporting the information on payroll tax forms.

For existing employees, please verify that you have the correct social security number on file for them.

CONGRESS PASSES LAW TO CRACK DOWN ON QUESTIONABLE TAX RETURNS

Earlier this year, Congress enacted a new law intended to make tax preparers more cautious about signing tax returns that include questionable or aggressive tax items without disclosing the details to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).  The new law reflects efforts by Congress to narrow the nation’s tax gap, or the amount of taxes believed to go unpaid this year.  IRS researchers have estimated the tax gap at about $290 billion.

Stiff penalties may be imposed not only on income-tax preparers, but also on those who prepare estate- and gift-tax returns, employment and excise-tax returns, and returns of tax-exempt organizations.  As a result, some taxpayers who try to get their preparer to sign a return may need to provide more documentation than in the past to support aggressive tax positions.  In some cases, fees could go up as preparers need to do more research on complex or blurry tax rules.  Researching whether arcane tax strategies meet the higher standard will likely push up some tax-return preparation fees next year, especially for thorny questions on which the IRS hasn’t published any guidance.

Tax preparers have long faced possible penalties for signing questionable returns without specifically disclosing the tax positions in question.  But the new law raises the standards considerably, and sharply boosts penalties to $1000, or half the preparer’s total fee, whichever is larger.  Fines for prepares showing “willful or reckless conduct” are much higher still.

Another highly complex issue that taxpayers might find themselves questioned about is whether a family limited partnership has been set up correctly, based on IRS rules and a long series of court decisions.  These partnerships are a popular technique used to slash estate and gift taxes.

Source:  The Wall Street Journal, July 2007

STORTZ & ASSOCIATES WELCOMES NEW TEAM MEMBER

The team at Stortz & Associates is proud to announce the addition of a new team member, Mike Pletz.  As a loan officer in our mortgage division (where we provide professional loan packages to assist you in acquiring mortgages, lines of credit, etc.) Mike can help you assemble all of the pertinent information needed to positively impact the processing of your loan request.  We are a First Mortgage Broker licensed with the PA Department of Banking.

We make your home purchases and refinancing easy.  Contact Mike for additional information via email at mike@dstortz.com or call 610-967-4711.  Welcome aboard, Mike!