The Augusta Rule: How to Rent Your Home to Your Business for Up to 14 Tax-Free Days
The Augusta Rule (26 USC § 280A(g)) lets you rent your home to your business for up to 14 days a year and exclude the rent from federal income tax.
Mike Thrift
Marketing Manager
The 1099-K Whiplash Ends: Why the $20,000 and 200-Transaction Threshold Is Back for 2026
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act repealed the $600 1099-K threshold in July 2025 and restored the original $20,000-and-200-transaction federal rule, easing paperwork for casual sellers and gig workers — but every dollar of business income remains taxable.
Form 5500-EZ Solo 401(k) Filing Threshold: When Self-Employed Plans Cross the $250,000 Asset Trigger
A Solo 401(k) crosses into mandatory Form 5500-EZ filing once combined plan assets exceed $250,000 on the last day of the plan year. Late filings cost $250 per day up to $150,000 annually, but Rev. Proc. 2015-32 caps catch-up filings at $1,500 per plan if no penalty notice has been issued.
The HSA: The Stealth Retirement Account That Beats Your 401(k) on Tax Efficiency
How the 2026 Health Savings Account combines tax-free contributions, tax-free growth, and tax-free medical withdrawals — and how the shoebox strategy turns an $8,750 family limit into a six- to seven-figure retirement vehicle by age 65.
Section 183 Hobby Loss Rule: How the IRS Nine-Factor Test Decides If Your Side Activity Is a Business
Section 183 of the Internal Revenue Code denies loss deductions for activities not engaged in for profit. The IRS applies a nine-factor test and a three-of-five-years safe harbor (two of seven for horses) to distinguish a real business from a hobby — here is what each factor weighs and how to document profit motive before an audit.
409A Valuations: A Founder's Guide to Stock Option Strike Prices and Safe Harbors
A 409A valuation is the IRS-recognized appraisal that sets the strike price on every option grant. Without one, founders risk 20% federal excise penalties, premium interest, and California's 5% piggyback tax — all falling on the employee.
Cash Balance Plans for High-Income Solo Practitioners: How Doctors, Lawyers, and Consultants Defer Six Figures Tax-Free
U.S. cash balance pension plans let solo doctors, attorneys, and consultants deduct $100,000–$370,000 a year on top of a Solo 401(k). 2026 contribution limits, a worked example for a 54-year-old physician, and the actuarial commitments to weigh before signing.
Charitable Remainder Trust (CRUT vs CRAT): Tax-Free Asset Sales and Lifetime Income
How a Charitable Remainder Trust lets you sell appreciated assets without capital gains tax, take an immediate income tax deduction, collect lifetime income, and pass the remainder to charity—plus the math comparing CRUT, CRAT, NIMCRUT, and Flip CRUT structures under the May 2026 5.0% Section 7520 rate.
Crypto Staking, Mining, and DeFi Taxes: How to Report Digital Asset Income Without Triggering an Audit
How the IRS taxes crypto staking, mining, and DeFi income in 2026 — covering Revenue Ruling 2023-14, Form 1099-DA, wallet-by-wallet basis tracking, Schedule 1 line 8v, and which forms apply to each digital asset event.
De Minimis Safe Harbor Election: Expensing Tangible Property Up to $2,500 Per Item Without Depreciation
US de minimis safe harbor (Treas. Reg. 1.263(a)-1(f)) lets businesses expense tangible property up to $2,500 per item on the federal return.
Disability Insurance for Self-Employed and Small Business Owners: A Practical Income-Protection Guide
US self-employed workers are far likelier to face disability than death before 65 — how federal tax treatment and premiums work.
EITC for Self-Employed Workers: Claim Up to $8,046 in 2025
Self-employed filers can claim the federal Earned Income Tax Credit on Schedule C net earnings, with a 2025 maximum of $8,046 for families with three or more children. This guide covers eligibility thresholds, how to compute earned income (including the half-SE-tax adjustment), the documentation that survives an audit, and the pitfalls that disqualify otherwise valid claims.