I’m Self-employed. My Client Says I Need Workers Compensation Insurance.

Monday, July 28th, 2008

Your Client is Misinformed -- Businesses with more than a minimum number of employees (the minimum varies by state from 2 - 5) must provide workers compensation insurance coverage for all employees. Business owners are exempt from workers compensation coverage, regardless of the number of employees. So, by both measures you are ...

Posted in Solo Business, Solo W-2, Inc. | 1 Comment »

Does Your Mutual Fund’s Manager Have Skin in the Game?

Wednesday, July 23rd, 2008

Misaligned Interests -- Imagine this. You own a chain of Mocha Joka coffee houses. One day, while visiting one of your shops, you observe Jack, the store manager, drinking from a Starbuck's coffee cup. You ask him what he is doing and he says that he never drinks Mocha Joka coffee, "Why," ...

Posted in Solo Benefits, Solo Retirement, Solo W-2, Inc. | No Comments »

Is Business Looking up for Independent Contractors?

Thursday, July 17th, 2008

Five Straight Months of Contract Labor Growth --  A recent article in the New York Times reports, "Despite modest job gains, June marked the fifth straight month in which small employers hired more independent contractors in order to reduce costs from payroll taxes and benefits." That is good news for solo professionals. SurePayroll, ...

Posted in Solo Benefits, Solo Business, Solo Pricing, Solo W-2, Inc. | No Comments »

Are You Saving Enough for Retirement?

Wednesday, July 16th, 2008

You Need More Money than You Thought! --  People are living longer, medical care is becoming more expensive and inflation is eroding the purchasing power of retirement funds. According to new research from Hewitt Associates, a global human resources consulting and outsourcing company, "employees will need to replace, on average, 126 percent ...

Posted in Solo Retirement, Solo W-2, Inc. | No Comments »

Make the Most of High Gas Prices

Monday, July 14th, 2008

Write Off Your Gas Mileage and Other Business Expenses -- Given the high cost of gas nowadays, I hope that all solo professionals are taking full advantage of the generous IRS standard mileage deduction to calculate the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business, charitable, medical or moving purposes. On July ...

Posted in Solo W-2, Inc., Solo Write-offs | 3 Comments »

Solo Saving for Retirement - Part II

Monday, July 7th, 2008

Tapping the Power of Compound Interest -- Isn't it interesting that so many of us tend to live as if we were immortal, but when it comes to retirement savings we act like we don't expect to live one day beyond the day we retire. Personally, I want to live a ...

Posted in Solo Benefits, Solo Retirement, Solo W-2, Inc. | 1 Comment »