IRS Reads Your Email and Social Media

IRS AgentWe got your attention! Right?

As a business owner, there are good reasons to keep your records clean. Many of our past newsletters/blogs have focused on the success of business owners selling their businesses and how accurate financial statements played a major role.

Since the financial statements and tax returns of those businesses were accurate, the business was usually worth more, the buyers were more anxious and excited, and the banks got more aggressive. And, the sellers didn’t have to finance the entire transaction.

Business owners that hide money to avoid paying taxes damage their business. The price that can be demanded is obviously going to be lower, the potential buyers will doubt other important aspects of the business operation, and bankers will only finance deals based on numbers gathered from tax returns.

Now there is another reason to keep straight records: The IRS can, and does, read emails to find tax cheats! If this makes you anxious and shudder at the thought, then maybe it’s time to make adjustments on your 2013 tax return.

It’s best to plan at least 2 to 3 years ahead of your target sale date to get the most for your business. Any one of our Apex Business Advisors can give you some assistance and guidance in preparing your business for sale.