Smart Fourth-Quarter Tax Strategies

With three-quarters of the year behind you, it makes sense to take the time now to look at your profit (or loss) and take steps to further reduce your taxes. Here’s how.

Review your equipment
Purchases. You can deduct up to $102,000 of the cost of equipment that you buy and place in service in 2004. If the equipment must be special-ordered, place the order now so that you can start using it no later than December 31. To take full advantage of this first-year expensing deduction (also called a Section 179 deduction), your taxable income from the business must at least equal your write-off (i.e., you must be profitable to use the deduction).

Alternatively, you can depreciate the property over the recovery period fixed by law – five or seven years for most equipment. Again, depending on your profitability, you may wish to use bonus depreciation, another first-year write-off, to accelerate deductions into the first year. For 2004, the bonus depreciation rate is 50%, but you can opt to use a 30% rate or waive this additional allowance entirely.

Note:Bonus depreciation applies only to new equipment; it can’t be claimed on used equipment.

Generate cash flow for the business by financing your purchases. Claim your tax write-offs even though you do not pay all or some of the equipment’s cost up front.

Dispositions.Get rid of equipment you no longer need or use for tax write-offs. For example, if you abandon or “junk” obsolete equipment, you can deduct any remaining depreciation. Carefully document how you dispose of the property – you must physically abandon the equipment to claim the deduction.

There are three other ways to dispose of equipment. You can sell it, which may produce a gain if the sale price is higher than the equipment’s basis. You can trade it in when acquiring new equipment. You won’t have immediate gain, but the write-offs for the new equipment will be reduced. You can donate it and claim a charitable contribution deduction (the amount of which depends on your basis in the equipment and the organization you donate it to).

Getting rid of old equipment may also favorably affect your state property taxes. Check with your accountant.

Set up a qualified retirement plan
If you’ve had a good year, you can sock money away for your retirement while gaining a current tax deduction by using a qualified retirement plan. The type of plan you select determines when it must be set up. Here are the deadlines if you want the plan to be effective for 2004: