January 2012         

What's New at Joseph S Lania C.P.A., P.A. 

We have finished 2011.  Most of our clients know how they fared for the 2011 year-to-date.  How are your small business's books? Up to date? Do you really know how your business performed last year.  Well, NOW IS THE TIME to get some quick corrections implemented. We need to discuss some serious business.  What are YOU going to do about those Quickbooks "fairytales" you have hidden, the ones that are keeping you up each night?

We are Accounting and Tax Experts.  We will allow you to sleep better each night, knowing that things are done right.  Now that your 2011 business activity is over... what will you do to improve in 2012?  We will help.  For a manageable monthly fee, we will keep you and your business on track.  After a year of new beginnings and IRS changes and delays.  Many individual returns weren't able to be filed (on paper or electronically) until February 14th (Valentine Day??) 2011.  We are busily working and moving forward.  Our clients are very happy.  Although the economy has been sluggish and things could be better for many small businesses in Broward and throughout the nation, we know that we will prosper if we stick to the basics of business.  If we treat our customers, clients and employees well, they will reward us generously.  RELATIONSHIPS are the backbone of our lives and our businesses are no exception.  We hold timely seminars, discussions and Mastermind groups in the community.  We all will do well no matter what the economy looks like for now. 

WOW!! How about you and your business?  Have you been focused on the success of your business and postponed meeting with your CPA?  At our office, the door and phone is always open and available to those needing timely help and expert advice.

As your Tax & Accounting Expert, we are aware of many ways to help.  We will review your activity for 2011 and see if any corrections can be made to ensure your goals are met.  There are quite a few tax changes for 2011; most of them beneficial to our clients, both individuals and small businesses.  These are already in effect, and we are on top of the changes for each of our clients.  These existing changes for 2011 affect individuals, small businesses, employers (especially) and taxable estates.  You should already have been told of these, and we are experts on the new laws.

Our new offices look beautiful, come on by and see for yourselves.  We were in our former offices since November 1992 and outgrew the space.  Come on by and see what we've done.  Our conference room is COMPLETE, and we will soon be able to host so many more services. 

We now look forward to completing this year, and the many substantial changes in 2011 in so many tax laws.  The economy has dampened many businesses, but hasn't dampened the spirit of many business owners.  There are opportunities out there for serious growth during this current period.  I, personally, am looking forward to seeing old friends (clients) and meeting new ones who we have been able to help this year. We did have a few more extensions last year because some of the information from banks, partnerships and brokerages didn't arrive in time.  Tax season WILL BE fruitful this year, and despite the media driven fear about the economy, many businesses will do well.  And, believe it or not, many investors and traders have, in fact, made money last year. 

We expected 2011 to bring some turnarounds to those who took some losses during '09/10.  Our office is ready to help our long term clients process another year.  These small business owners, condominiums, individuals, churches and local organizations look to us year round for assistance.  From what we see and hear, things in South Florida are following the national trends, as far as economic conditions.  Together, we all do better. 

We are well prepared to guide our existing clients and also those new arrivals just joining us.  Business is unbelievable and a few tax changes were signed last year.   Those few changes in the tax laws for 2010 have helped most of my clients.  We are excited about all the benefits and the lower rates.  As you all know, the lower tax rates on capital gains and dividends have helped most senior citizens.  Also, the tax free gains on sales of personal residences has been great for those selling in the previous market of seemingly uncontrolled growth here in South Florida.  The market has now cooled a bit for the last five years for commercial and housing real estate, but those who can wait it out, will continue to reap the benefits of our unique South Florida realty.  Many who choose to hold onto their real property and even buy more at the current bargain prices will reap rewards in the coming years.

We are still conducting our business and individual seminars at local banks and the response is great from the community.  We will soon be able to host some seminars in our office, using our new conference area.  I am excited about this.  Those new clients that have joined us were grateful for our outreach to them.  We have been able to educate many small business owners through these seminars and the bank has seen growth along with us.  This is just one thing that we can offer, and the attendance at the seminars grow with each topic discussed.

Our new software is better than ever, and all of our returns are electronically filed without a single snag.  The accounting software is also a great benefit to those clients who have the time and inclination to actually use it.  For those who don't have the time, or chose not to do their own, we are always there to do whatever is needed in order to comply with all laws and filing requirements.  Our guarantee to you is that everything will be done and will be done correctly... timely... and professionally. 

YOU WILL SLEEP BETTER EACH NIGHT, KNOWING THAT WE'VE DONE THINGS RIGHT !!!

Did You Know? 
We at Lania CPA would like you to know that Quickbooks 2012 is an accounting software package that is inexpensive and user friendly.  We have many clients who use it in their businesses and know, at each moment, how they are doing and where they stand as far as sales, receivables, accounts payable, payroll, cash activity and up-to-date reporting.   We, also, maintain several clients here in the office on our systems, so that they know each month exactly where they stand.  It is a simple process of providing us with a copy of your backup, and we will professionally process your records in a timely manner.  You come out a winner every time.  We do this each day, every day and are experts on many accounting systems, so that you can do as much (or as little) as you choose.   You can run your business and know that we are keeping track of your operations for you.

Joseph S Lania CPA Success Story
A business owner recently came into our office.  He was concerned that although the business was doing well, he didn't have a handle on all the compliance issues and felt that "something was going to fall through the cracks" and he would forget something in his daily rush to run his business.  We sat with him, reviewed the operations, the payroll, the sales, the daily needs of the business and came up with a solution for him.  This man was thrilled to have his accounting system finally in gear.  He no longer has to worry that he will miss a deadline, forget a deposit, underfund his pension plan or have that unsettled feeling that something wasn't done correctly.  We offer him prompt, professional service at a monthly fee that he is very happy with.

How To
Do you know how to form a viable business relationship with someone you need in your business.  Oftentimes, I have clients come in and share a new business idea or an exciting venture that they are about to embark on.  They are excited.  They are thrilled.  They are busting out with expectation.  They are, however, not prepared and headed for disaster.  They have chosen a partner or someone to jointly venture out with, without doing some quick and easy preparation first.

There is unlimited potential out there to make a dollar.  There are opportunities out there to succeed and prosper in doing something that you enjoy.  There are individuals available to you, who can help you achieve your goals.  There are good opportunities and there are also traps which you need to see in advance and avoid.  One excellent example of this is the partner you chose.

Before you step out with someone into a business venture, no matter how exciting, you need to form a PARTNER AGREEMENT.    You need to know:

What they expect out of this relationship

What you expect out of this relationship

Who will do what (who will put in the money?  How much? When?)  Who will work, how many hours, for how much pay?  What does your partner expect to put into this venture and how much does this person expect YOU to put in? 

How much is the business worth to each of you?  What happens is one of you want out?  How much will it cost and when should it be paid?

My advice is this.  BEFORE you see an attorney, work out the details among yourselves.  YOU do your part, your potential partner does her/his part, independently of one another.  Then, you two (or however many partners there will be) come together and "share notes".   Work out the differences.  Decide what is important and what is not so important.  Once you have reached an agreement between yourselves, THEN visit an attorney and invest in the attorneys time to put your agreement in writing.  This will save you countless hours and days of grieve in the event that there is a misunderstanding among the partners later on.  

I can't tell you how many times that this was not done and how it would have helped to get this done and out of the way while everyone was happy and enjoyed the "courting" stage of the relationship.

We're Here To Help
Joseph S Lania CPA is here for you. We are Accounting & Tax Experts.  We have helped countless business owners since 1981 understand and better manage their businesses.  We are accounting experts. If you have questions or comments about our services, or want to know how we can help you, please call us at 954-432-2299 or e-mail us at joe@laniacpa.com

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