Finance Exam Prep

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - The Disabled Access Credit is for small businesses with under $1 million in prior-year receipts OR 30 or fewer full-time employees. - How to calculate the Disabled Access Credit as 50% of eligible expenditures between $250 and $10,250, for a maximum credit of $5,000. - The FICA Tip Credit is for food and beverage employers for their s...

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - The WOTC is a general business credit for hiring individuals from specific targeted groups who face employment barriers. - The credit is calculated as either 25% (for 120-399 hours worked) or 40% (for 400+ hours worked) of qualified first-year wages. - Qualified wages are generally capped at the first $6,000 of earnings, resulting in a m...

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - Post-2021, §174 R&D costs must be capitalized and amortized over 5 years for domestic research or 15 years for foreign research. - The §41 credit is calculated on Qualified Research Expenses (QREs), such as wages and supplies, but excludes costs like research after commercial production begins. - Claiming the R&D credit requires you to...

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - How to calculate the two separate QBI limitations for high-income taxpayers with non-SSTB businesses. - The specific formula: the QBI deduction is limited to the greater of (a) 50% of W-2 wages or (b) 25% of W-2 wages plus 2.5% of UBIA. - A critical exam trap: always use the Unadjusted Basis Immediately after A...

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - The definition of a Specified Service Trade or Business (SSTB) for the QBI deduction. - The specific 2025 taxable income thresholds that trigger the QBI phase-out rules. - How to calculate the proportional phase-out of the QBI deduction for an SSTB within the income limitation range. - The key difference in how l...

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - The QBI deduction offers up to a 20% deduction on income from pass-through entities like sole proprietorships, S-corps, and partnerships. - For 2024, the deduction is simplest for taxpayers with taxable income below $191,950 (Single) or $383,900 (Married Filing Jointly). - Above these income thresholds, the deduction for Specified Service Trades or Businesses (SSTBs) like l...

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - How to calculate an excess business loss using the inflation-adjusted thresholds for different filing statuses. - That any disallowed excess business loss is treated as a Net Operating Loss (NOL) carryforward to subsequent tax years. - The critical ordering rule: basis, at-risk, and passive activity loss limitations must be applied before t...

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - Post-2017 Net Operating Losses (NOLs) have an indefinite carryforward period but generally cannot be carried back. - The deduction for post-2017 NOLs is limited to 80% of the taxable income in the carryover year, calculated before the NOL deduction itself. - Pre-2018 NOLs follow older rules: a 2-year carryback and a 20-year c...

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - The simplified home office deduction is calculated at $5 per square foot, with a maximum of 300 square feet, capping the deduction at $1,500. - The actual method requires calculating the business-use percentage of the home to deduct a pro-rata share of indirect expenses like mortgage interest, utilities, and depreciation. - A taxpayer can c...

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - The Home Office Deduction requires passing both the "regular use" and strict "exclusive use" tests. - To qualify, the home office must be the principal place of business, a location for meeting clients, or a separate, unattached structure. - The exclusive use test is waived for licensed daycare providers and for t...

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - The standard mileage rate offers simplicity, while the actual expense method requires detailed record-keeping of costs like gas, insurance, and depreciation. - The first-year choice is critical: using the standard mileage rate initially allows you to switch to the actual method later, but choosing the actual method first (with accelerated depreciation) p...

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - The default business meal deduction is 50%, a common starting point for exam questions. - Meals for company-wide employee events, like holiday parties, are an exception and are 100% deductible. - Food provided to the general public for promotional purposes is fully deductible. - Meals tied to entertainment are non-deductible unless the meal c...

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - Your 'tax home' is defined as your main place of business, which may be different from your family's residence. - Travel expenses are only deductible if you are 'away from home' long enough to require sleep or rest. - A work assignment is considered temporary, allowing for deductible travel expenses, if i...

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - When a taxpayer must file Form 3115 to request a change in accounting method. - How to calculate the Section 481(a) adjustment to prevent duplication or omission of income. - The timing difference for recognizing positive (4-year spread) versus negative (1-year deduction) adjustments. - The distinction between automatic and non-automatic consent procedures f...

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - The hybrid method is a combination of cash and accrual accounting permitted by the IRS. - A business with inventory must use the accrual method for all purchases and sales of that merchandise. - Service-based income and general operating expenses can often be accounted for using the cash method under a h...

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - The core difference between cash basis (income when received, expenses when paid) and accrual basis (income when earned, expenses when incurred). - How the constructive receipt doctrine is a common exam trap for cash-basis taxpayers. - The three parts of the 'all-events test' required for deducting expenses under the accrual method, w...

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - The Lower of Cost or Market (LCM) method requires inventory to be valued at the lesser of its historical cost or current market value. - For tax purposes, "market" is typically the current replacement cost of the inventory. - The LCM method cannot be used if the taxpayer uses the LIFO i...

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - How the FIFO method assumes the first units purchased are the first ones sold, typically resulting in higher taxable income during inflationary periods. - How the LIFO method assumes the last units purchased are the first ones sold, leading to a higher Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) and lower taxable income w...

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - How to calculate a business casualty loss: the lesser of the property's adjusted basis or the decline in its fair market value, minus insurance proceeds. - That business casualty losses are not subject to the $100 per-event reduction or the 10% of AGI floor that applies to personal losses. - Why a federally d...

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - Why business bad debts are valuable ordinary deductions, while nonbusiness bad debts are treated as short-term capital losses. - The critical difference in timing: business debts can be deducted when partially worthless, but nonbusiness debts must be wholly worthless. - That the specific charge-off method is the only permissible method for d...