What is TCJA?

That stands for Tax Cuts Jobs Act

What about Small Businesses?

Congress came up with a 20% deduction

Bonus Depreciation:

-50% first-year bonus depeciation deduction

-Only new assets qualify used assets do not

Qualified Leasehold Improvements:

-All 3 categories now fall under only one qualified Improvement Property

Property

Small Business Employees Returning to Work – But with Fewer Hours and Lower Pay

Why is that happening? Will it change?

For the second straight month, small businesses are bringing on more staff – but at reduced pay and fewer hours,” she added. “This new data comes as many small businesses find themselves running low on relief funds – or stretching them as far as they can to make ends meet.”

Back to work, but less money: The number of salaried workers that have had a wage cut of 10% or more increased by 80%. Hour and pay rate reductions were 33 and 27%, respectively. Furloughs accounted for 25% of reduced wages.

More employees are quitting: In June 3.4% of employees left their companies voluntarily. 

This was a 32% increase from May.

COVID-19 update

Dr. Fauci, fresh off a baseball appearance that convinced everyone he wasn't The Natural in disguise, returned to his day job to say that a coronavirus vaccine probably won't be widely available to the American public until a few months into 2021. 

The S&P had its worst day in nearly a month as earnings season rolls on.

The number of people applying for unemployment benefits rose last week for the first time since the pandemic struck in March, just as a $600 weekly federal aid payment for people who lost their jobs is set to expire this week. Southwest Airlines and American Airlines both slumped after reporting huge second-quarter losses and warning that the recovery in air travel seen in April has stalled.

Inconspicuous high-tech cleaning equipment and health safety monitors...

...are offering retailers a visually less alarming way to keep their stores clean.

Visiting a retail store may feel radically different from pre-pandemic times — with capacity restriction, hand sanitizer dispensers, and mask mandates — but in other ways, non-invasive, inconspicuous technologies are working behind the scenes to stop the spread. 

Outperform all your competitors

Our revolutionary business service distinguishes you from every competitor and gets you through doors that are closed to everyone else.  

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U.S. small business owners face difficulties in making rent payments...

...and landlords can't afford to evict them.

The economic shutdowns and on-again-off-again re-openings have made it hard for business owners to cover their rent, which can sometimes be their largest expense.

That has created an uncomfortable tension and interdependency with the often small, independent landlords or small real estate firms from which they rent. Those landlords, after all, have their own expenses and taxes to pay.

An informal survey taken at the end of June by small business advocacy group The Main Street Alliance found that nearly 60% of its members had delayed or reduced their commercial rent payments in the past four months. Nearly half said they've had to pay business expenses by borrowing against their home or using their personal credit cards.  

The economic strain likely will get worse before it gets better for everyone.

Free Quarantine Craft Kits from Help Heal Veterans

Being in quarantine can get lonely and boring. VA has teamed up with Help Heal Veterans to deliver quarantine kits to help keep Veterans occupied and entertained.

The kits contain reading and educational materials, craft supplies, and materials that can be used to help Veterans create their own face masks.

Learn More

Huawei

It is the largest telecom equipment manufacturer in the world, and its prices can’t be beat. However, some Western governments worry that the Chinese government could use Huawei gear as a Trojan horse to spy on them. The U.S. has been the most anti-Huawei of all, consistently pushing its allies to block the company.

Initially, the UK wasn’t swayed, saying it would allow Huawei gear in the “non-core” parts of its 5G network. But yesterday it made a U-turn, citing U.S. sanctions on chips that could dent the quality of Huawei products.

The British reversal is a major geopolitical win for the U.S. in its fight with China for tech supremacy.

Oil crash lessons for businesses.

Yes, April 20, 2020, will go down in history as the 1st time the price of a barrel of oil crashed below zero.

The price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia, compounded by the unexpected impacts of coronavirus, sent the value of oil spiraling in mid-February.

What does all this mean for small and medium-sized businesses? 

* If, as a small or medium-sized business, you’re heavily invested in oil-related industries, now is a good time to diversify your portfolio.

* Consumer and business prices for oil-related products aren’t determined by the base price of a barrel of oil. There are other costs involved, including refining, distribution, packaging, etc. While slightly lower prices are likely, you shouldn’t count on pumping stations offering petrol for free just yet.

* Taxpayer-Backed Loans for SMBs Went to the Fossil Fuel Industry

Conclusion

Good financial management is essential to small and medium businesses. Many companies will shut down as a result of what’s happened over the last few months. And an even greater number will struggle to get back on their feet. That's why it's important to cut costs with no upfront fees at  BusinessRefund.com

What Does a D&B Report Show?

This a business credit report that could be viewed as similar to a personal credit report for businesses.

This is the report that banks and other lending institutions may consider when determining whether they should give you a loan—as well as what interest rate may be assigned to your loan.

The best way to improve this report is to run a quick 5-minute analysis at

BusinessRefund.com

Bosses making new hires are finding that coronavirus-restrictions can actually help make them more effective recruiters.

Many employers across the U.S. small and large are still hiring--and Covid-19 is pushing them to adopt new and creative recruiting strategies.

Not long ago, the big hiring challenge often was finding enough job candidates, but with the U.S. unemployment rate at 11 percent, the focus for employers with jobs to fill has shifted to how to hire people given the restrictions imposed by the pandemic and how to benefit from hiring.

Businesses can now earn up to $5,000 per employee via YourWotc.com which host a live chat box from 

9am - 5pm  M-F  EST

Business July 15 tax deadline?

Are you ready for the July 15 tax deadline? 

It may have paid to procrastinate this year, as the IRS touts accrued interest on refunds and waives penalties for Americans that owe. 

If you are a business owner in the US, you still have time to capture your tax benefits before filing. 

See your benefits in seconds at BusinessRefund.com

Small Businesses Long-Term

Brick-and-mortar small-business owners are often reticent to spend their small amount of free time learning creative tools or how to build a successful social media strategy. The stay-at-home order has created both the time and the need to lean far more heavily on digital marketing. 

The wisest businesses will take advantage of remote collaboration platforms that allow employees to work with each other asynchronously. Slack and Microsoft Teams have seen dramatic rises in usage.

The combination of skilled people at home needing to make money and bored people at home looking to enrich or entertain themselves is a recipe for a booming population of micro-entrepreneurs. One person with a skill in demand can find an audience. It may, or may not, surpass the earning potential of whatever the person was doing before, but it will open many people’s eyes to new possibilities. 

Openings and closings may be doom restaurants and other businesses!

Many restaurants were set to be able to offer indoor dining this week, but officials scrapped those plans as Covid-19 cases rose across several parts of the country.

Officials in parts of the country also are taking steps to rollback some of their coronavirus reopening plans, especially businesses like bars, gyms and banquet facilities

You Can Cut Business Costs

                                       

Over 79% of small businesses were hit by the pandemic. To lessen the impact of Covid-19 on your business, you should make use of all the available resources and try to cut business costs to have more cash in hand.

Following are some proven cost-cutting ideas for your small business:

*Look for discounts from your local chambers

*Try to adopt free cloud tools, such as Google Drive, Skype, etc.

*Outsource short-term projects

*Adopt a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) program

*Purchase used equipment for your business

*Allow more employees to work from home if it is feasible

*Look for tax deductions (see upper right corner of blog)

Nearly 90% of Consumers Want a Local Business to Continue Pandemic Services Such As Curbside Pickup.

Eric Rea, co-founder and CEO at Podium, says what was once an option has become the only way to sell goods and services during COVID 19.

“While previously just a nice way to do business, offering options like contactless payments, texting and curbside pickup have become the only way for local businesses to operate,” he said in a press release. “There has been steady movement towards digital transformation among local businesses in recent years. That accelerated over the past few months. Consumers have become accustomed to the new forms of communications and services. There’s no going back.”

Small Business Update

Small businesses see a downturn in local economies. 

The number of small businesses reporting a good local economy declined seven percentage points 

from 59% to 52% in Q1

What can they do to survive?

Take a 5-minute survey to find their solution.