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10 Year-End Tax-Savings Tips for 2025 for Individual Filers

By |2025-11-17T14:49:55-08:00November 17, 2025|Categories: Taxes|Tags: , , , , , , , |0 Comments

The end of the tax year is fast approaching, which means there’s still time  to execute some year-end tax-savings strategies, but not that much time. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1) has extended and enhanced many taxpayer-friendly provisions, and you’d be wise to act now to take full advantage of them.

Here at SWC, we hate to see anyone pay more in taxes than they’re legally obligated to, which is why we offer year-end tax projection meetings for our clients from October through December. If you haven’t scheduled yours yet, use the Contact page on our website (click on the Appointments link to get started).

Tax Tips Photo

To demonstrate our commitment to helping as many people as possible minimize their tax burden and use the money they save to build long-term wealth, we present these 10 year-end tax-savings tips.

Tip No. 1: Review Your Tax Withholdings and Estimated Tax Payments

To avoid having to pay an underpayment penalty, take a look at how much income tax you already handed over to the government for the 2025 tax year in the form of withholdings from your paychecks and any estimated tax payments you’ve made.

To avoid an underpayment penalty on your federal income tax, your withholding and/or estimated tax payments must be at least one of the following:

  • 90 percent of this year’s total tax liability
  • 100 percent of last tax total tax liability
  • 110 percent of last year’s tax liability if your current year’s adjusted gross income (AGI) is more than $150,000 ($75,000 if you’re married filing as single).

If you had unexpected income or capital gains during the year, we here at SWC can help you project your 2025 tax liability and take steps to avoid underpayment penalties. To schedule a consultation, reach us by visiting the Contact page of our website.

Tip No. 2: Consider Bunching Itemized Deductions

Each year, you can deduct the greater of your itemized deductions (mortgage interest, charitable contributions, medical expenses, and state and local taxes) or the standard deduction. The 2025 standard deduction is: Continue reading… Continue reading… Continue reading…

Complying with California’s CalSavers Mandate

By |2025-01-30T14:57:47-08:00January 30, 2025|Categories: Business Advice|Tags: , |2 Comments

If you are a small-business owner in California, you already have a lot on your plate. From managing employees to tracking expenses and keeping up on your federal, state, and local estimated tax payments, the last thing you need is another complex regulation.

The good news is this: If you have at least one employee, other than yourself or your spouse, California’s CalSavers mandate is a regulation you can’t afford to overlook. This state-run retirement savings program is designed to help your employees save for their future without imposing an extra financial burden on you or your business. But, as you’re already well aware, compliance alone can be a burden.

In this post, we try to ease that burden by bringing you up to speed on CalSavers and guiding you through the steps to achieve compliance. Whether you’re new to the program or simply need a refresher, we have you covered!

California CalSavers Graphic

CalSavers Fundamentals

CalSavers is a retirement savings plan for workers whose employers don’t offer a workplace retirement plan, and for self-employed individuals and others who want to save extra toward retirement. Employees contribute to a Roth IRA (individual retirement account) that belongs to them but is administered by the state.

Designed to be easy for employers and simple for employees, CalSavers is professionally managed by private sector financial firms with oversight from a public board, chaired by the State Treasurer. There are no fees for employers, and employees manage their accounts directly with CalSavers.

Determining Whether the Mandate Applies to You

Initially, the CalSavers mandate applied only to employers with five or more California W-2 employees who did not offer retirement plans to their employees. Beginning in 2025, the threshold dropped to employers with Continue reading… Continue reading… Continue reading…

Making Sense of Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan Options

By |2021-06-22T16:05:40-07:00June 22, 2021|Categories: Business Advice|Tags: , , , , , , , |0 Comments

Establishing a retirement plan for employees can pay off in big ways, and we’re not just talking about the benefits for employees. Small business owners stand to benefit as well.

Small business benefits include:

  • Retirement plans improve recruitment and retention of better employees. This is especially important now that COVID restrictions are being lifted, and employers are struggling to entice their best employees back into the office.
  • Employer contributions are tax-deductible.
  • Assets in the plan grow tax-free.
  • Plan options are flexible.
  • Tax credits and other tax relief can help offset costs.

Employee benefits include:

  • Employee contributions can reduce their taxable income, lowering their taxes.
  • Contributions and profits grow tax-free until they’re withdrawn.
  • Contributions can be automated through payroll deductions, making it easier to save for retirement.
  • Through compounding interest (earning interest on savings and interest), contributions grow faster over time.
  • Retirement accounts can be carried from one employer to another.
  • Some employees may be eligible for the saver’s credit — a federal income tax credit on top of the tax deduction already allowed for contributions to a retirement account.
  • Some plans let employees defer a portion of their compensation into the plan, which can help employees save money on taxes.
  • Employees have peace of mind knowing that they’re improving their financial security for their future and retirement.

Choosing the Right Retirement Plan to Offer Your Employees

After deciding to offer a plan, you face the challenge of choosing which plan delivers the most bang for the buck — for both you (the business owner) and your employees. Several options are available, which is great, but without knowing the differences, picking a plan can be so overwhelming that you put off the decision indefinitely.

With that in mind, in this post, we describe the most common retirement plan options — from simplest to most complex — and present the key characteristics of each. As a small business owner, you’ll want to adopt a plan that’s tailored specifically to Continue reading… Continue reading… Continue reading…

Getting Up to Speed on CalSavers: California’s State-administered Retirement Plan

By |2021-04-21T13:06:54-07:00April 21, 2021|Categories: Retirement Planning|Tags: , |0 Comments

Good news for those of our clients who are employers: California’s new retirement savings plan, CalSavers, may be able to offer your employees the opportunity to save for the future without much effort — and at no cost to you or your business.

CalSavers is available to California workers whose employers don’t offer a workplace retirement plan, along with self-employed individuals and others who want to save extra toward retirement. Savers contribute to a Roth IRA (individual retirement account) that belongs to them but is administered by the state. Employers that don’t offer their own plan simply register with CalSavers by the specified deadline and facilitate their employee’s access to the program.

The program benefits both employers and savers:

Benefits for Employers

  • Quick and easy registration
  • Limited responsibilities
  • No administration
  • No employer fees
  • No fiduciary responsibility
 Benefits for Savers

  • Automatic or personalized investment options
  • Freedom to opt in and opt out and change the contribution percentage at any time
  • Simple, low-fee investments
  • Portability — the account remains with the employee through any job changes

 

Navigating CalSavers for Employers

All California employers with more than five (5) employees must register for CalSavers by the specified deadline regardless of whether they are exempt from the program. (See below for all associated deadlines.)

Deciding whether you must register

Employers that have at least five (5) employees and don’t already offer a workplace retirement plan can register for CalSavers. Employers that have five or more (5-plus) employees must register, regardless of whether or not they offer their own retirement plan:

  • If you already offer a retirement plan, you’re not required to participate in the program, but you must register as “exempt.”
  • If your business is a nonprofit, you must register like other businesses, unless it is a religious organization, in which case registration is not required.
  • Even if all your employees choose to opt out of CalSavers, you must register if you have at least five employees.

Note: If you’re not required to register and you receive a notice from the state informing you of the need to register, you must respond to the notification to avoid any penalty.

Meeting the registration deadline

If you’re required to register, you must do so by Continue reading… Continue reading… Continue reading…

Leveraging the Tax Savings Power of Retirement Accounts, Part 5: Small Business Guide to Reducing Your Tax Burden Legally

By |2020-10-08T20:50:40-07:00August 20, 2020|Categories: Small Business Guide to Legally Reducing Your Tax Burden|Tags: , , , , , , , |0 Comments

Some of the most powerful tools for cutting taxes are tax-deferred retirement accounts, which enable you to invest money tax-free now, then pay taxes on it when you withdraw it in your retirement years. As a small-business owner, you can take advantage of several different types of tax-deferred retirement accounts, including individual retirement accounts (IRA), a simplified employee pension (SEP), a Savings Incentive Match Plan for Employees (SIMPLE) IRA, 401(k), Defined Benefit Plans, and even the option of a hybrid plan. Roth IRAs and permanent life insurance plans are two more tools that can benefit you when planning for retirement.

Many people have one or more retirement accounts, which is great, but few have a retirement plan — a highly specific approach for using retirement accounts to maximize their tax savings and achieve their retirement goals. Without a properly crafted retirement plan in place, mistakes are more likely, such as choosing an account type with a contribution limit that’s too low, exposing yourself to high taxes when you retire, or paying too much in account/plan management fees.

For example, depending on your income and the type of retirement account, your contribution limit varies considerably. If you earn $90,000, for example, you can contribute $16,200 to a SIMPLE IRA, or $22,500 to a simplified employee pension (SEP), or $42,000 to a 401(k). (Note: That’s before any catch-up contributions you can start making at the age of Continue reading… Continue reading… Continue reading…

© 2014- Stees, Walker & Company, LLP (SWC). All rights reserved.
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