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JUNE 2024 VOLUME 8, ISSUE 2
TOPH’S TAX RESOLUTION TIMES
513-342-4000 WWW.513TAX.COM
NOT TOO COOL FOR DAD A Half-Dozen Reasons to Celebrate Father’s Day
Since baby Nelle was born last September, this will be my first Father’s Day as a dad of six kids. The hardest part of having six kids is trying to give each of them attention when they’re all trying to give me attention. That’s a good problem to have, but it’s definitely a challenge I haven’t mastered. Children are quite a blessing, and when they’re all young, they aren’t yet too cool for Dad. I’m trying to embrace that as long as I can because I know it won’t last much longer. I try to be a day-to-day presence for my kids. In the morning, I wait until after they go to school to start my workday, so I have a few minutes to talk to them — even if it’s nothing more than saying good morning and good- bye. They all get up at different times, and mornings are constant chaos. Trying to get them fed, showered, and dressed is always a challenge. Ashley typically manages all that. I’m more of a presence than a helper, which I think is fine with her, too. I’ve always made a point, no matter what, to end my workday at 5 p.m. or 6 p.m. so I can get home and see the kids and have dinner. I sometimes have unfinished business at work when I leave, so that can be stressful. But I thoroughly enjoy just getting to spend even a few minutes with them, and I deal with the work later, after they go to bed.
I was lucky growing up to have both a father and two sets of grandparents who were all pretty involved in my life. My dad was self-employed for most of my childhood, but he made a point of coming to all my games. I now know, in hindsight, that he must have been stressed out trying to do all that. My maternal grandparents also were very involved. I took it for granted back then because I didn’t know any better, but it was always great having their support. Both of my grandfathers are deceased now, but my parents live nearby, about 10 minutes from our house. My dad and I butt heads a lot. We are a little too similar in a lot of ways. But he definitely has a big heart, and I am lucky to have him. He and I do some father-son activities. Lately, we’ve been taking weekly walks together around the neighborhood. It gives us a chance to have a good conversation by ourselves. My dad is very selfless and a deep thinker. He never coached any of the teams I played on, but he was very invested emotionally. We recently had a conversation about how he once got into a fight with one of my coaches because he didn’t like the way they were doing things. He said he regrets that and urged me to let the coaches coach, and as a parent, to just stay out of it. I coach some of my kids’ teams, but for the ones I don’t coach, I know that’s good advice.
My dad is one of our top consultants, for both Ashley and me. Like us, he and my mom were business owners together. When we have questions about being self-employed, we often rope him in to share his experience and perspective. My dad was a CPA, providing traditional accounting services, and he told me at a young age, “Don’t do this kind of work. Do something else.” That definitely resonated with me. I pursued a professional golf career first, and when that didn’t work out, I did some soul-searching. Although I’m a CPA, I didn’t want to do traditional CPA work because of my dad’s influence. Tax resolution is a completely different business, and I found it largely because my dad really made an impression on me. I had a very supportive family when I was growing up. I was definitely lucky to have had good relationships with my parents and grandparents, and I hope to pass that on to my kids as well.
–Toph Sheldon
DON’T LIVE IN FEAR - TOPH IS HERE!
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EATING WELL ON A BUDGET
Your Guide to Frugal Grocery Shopping
Are you tired of spending more money on fewer ingredients? You are not alone. While prices for most consumer goods have increased, food costs have increased even more. Grocery prices have increased by 25% since 2020, outpacing inflation by 6%. By buying food that costs less, lasts longer, and feeds more people, you can keep your grocery bills manageable while still eating well. Look for these foods at the grocery store to keep your wallet and pantry full! GROUND MEAT Whether it’s chicken, beef, turkey, or pork, ground meat is cheap and usable in many recipes. In addition to a range of options to meet dietary restrictions and preferences, ground meat is sold in larger quantities and costs less than many other forms of meat. Despite not being a “prime cut” option, ground meat is still full of protein that satisfies your hunger. PEANUT BUTTER While everyone loves peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, this inexpensive ingredient can also be used in a number of other recipes. It can be used as a delicious protein additive to smoothies or spread on celery to make ants on a log. TORTILLAS Tortillas come in two main varieties: corn and flour. The former is more traditional and less expensive, but if you prefer flour, it’s still an economical option. While you can buy pre-cooked tortillas, the flavor is much better when you cook them yourself. If you buy in bulk, you can save the tortillas you aren’t ready to use by freezing them, allowing you to save more and only use what you need. Tortillas are also used by astronauts as a substitute for bread since they don’t leave crumbs when you eat them. If they are good enough for astronauts, they’re good enough for us!
Toph’s Tax Turnaround
Some cases are noteworthy for their simplicity. This one illustrates some winning strategies for ordinary people dealing with the IRS. A WINNING STRATEGY FOR IRS SETTLEMENTS A self-employed taxpayer (we’ll call him Jack) came to me for help in 2019. Jack worked as an independent contractor installing cable and phone lines. Like many self-employed people, he hadn’t kept many business records. On top of that, he had just been through a messy divorce. Like many people in his situation, Jack just shut down and stopped filing his taxes. I put into play a strategy I believed would be helpful to Jack in the long term. I filed his overdue returns without claiming any deductions. This resulted in Jack’s reporting total taxes owed of $60,000, much more than he actually owed. That may seem like backward thinking. But if the IRS goes after a taxpayer like Jack for a sizable tax bill, the agency is more likely to negotiate a settlement. If you admit only to owing a smaller amount, however, the IRS is more likely to insist on collecting the entire balance on a time-payment plan. Also, I knew that Jack, who was in his early 60s and had already made a good-faith attempt to return to compliance, would be a relatively sympathetic tax evader, in the IRS’ view. Then came COVID-19. Jack wasn’t able to get much work and his cash flow dried up. Although the IRS basically shut down collection activity during the pandemic, Jack’s overdue tax bill wasn’t going away. Finally, in early 2023, Jack began working again and was able to start paying taxes for 2023 and beyond. I approached the IRS and offered $100 to settle his $60,000 back-tax bill. The result was a surprisingly quick response. The IRS offered to settle for just $5,768! While that’s a lot more than the $100 I offered, it’s far less than the $60,000 the agency wanted. Why did the IRS settle for so much less? Given Jack’s good-faith effort to return to compliance, his age, and his lack of many assets, the IRS was willing to cut him a good deal.
My client, needless to say, was excited and accepted the offer. Freed from the IRS’ shackles, Jack is glad to be back to work!
–Toph Sheldon
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ASHLEY’S CORNER Summer Fun: Camp, Pool, Beach, & Cousin Party!
Our kids are excited about summer vacation, but they’re also a little sad. They love hanging out with their friends at school, and honestly, kids like structure. I get that — I like routine, too! To fill all that unstructured time, we have a balance of activities planned. We’re going on a beach vacation, we’ll do the local pool, and some of the kids are going to camp. We also drive to visit my family in upstate New York, where I grew up. All of that takes some planning. Maybe you’ve run into the same problem as I have: You realize, “Omigosh, we need to book summer camp!” Then you find out bookings happened last January, so you have to get in line. Some of our kids will attend art or sports camps, and our oldest will go to nature camp with some friends. My kids also love going to the community pool, which is close to our house. We’ve signed them up for a lot of swim lessons, so I can feel comfortable taking all six of them to the pool. They always see friends there, and that makes it fun. The older kids have reached an age where they tell us, “All of our friends are going on vacation, and we want to go on vacation!” So, even though it will be hot in Cincinnati, we are going to the beach on Kiawah Island in
South Carolina. We’ll stay with Toph’s parents, his sister, and her little boy in a huge Airbnb with a three- bedroom guest house. It will be a cousin party!
We’ll also take our usual summer drive to upstate New York, where my family lives. The kids love staying at Nana’s
house, which is right by a lake. It’s a small town, and everywhere we want to go is five minutes away. We can walk everywhere. There is also a tiny little amusement park called Midway Park. It’s one of the oldest amusement parks in the country; I went there when I was a kid. There are no lines, and our kids love riding all the rides.
As summer gets underway, I hope you have some fun times with your family, too!
Inspired by DamnDelicious.net
Take a Break
SHEET PAN SHRIMP FAJITAS
Ingredients
Directions
•
2 lbs shrimp, peeled and deveined 2 bell peppers, sliced
1. Preheat oven to 400 F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 2. In a small bowl, combine chili powder, cumin, paprika, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. 3. Place bell pepper and onion on the baking sheet. 4. Drizzle evenly with 2 tbsp of olive oil and sprinkle with the chili powder mixture; reserve some for shrimp. Bake for 12 minutes. 5. Remove sheet pan from oven and push veggies to one side. Add shrimp to the empty side. Drizzle with 1 tbsp olive oil and spices. Return sheet pan to oven and bake for another 6 minutes, until shrimp are pink. 6. Serve on warm tortillas with desired toppings.
• • • • • • • • •
1 onion, sliced 3 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp chili powder
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp smoked paprika 1 tsp garlic powder Salt and pepper, to taste
Tortillas
Topping Options • Sliced avocado • Salsa • Sour cream •
Solution on Page 4
Chopped cilantro
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Published by Newsletter Pro • www.newsletterpro.com
Cincinnati Tax Resolution Powered by Toph Sheldon 9200 Montgomery Rd., Ste. 7B Cincinnati, OH 45242
PRST STD US POSTAGE PAID BOISE, ID PERMIT 411
513-342-4000 513TAX.COM
INSIDE 1
Toph’s First Father’s Day as a Dad of 6 Tips for Affordable Grocery Shopping An IRS Negotiating Strategy for Everyman Ashley’s Corner Sheet Pan Shrimp Fajitas Howard Tax Case Shows Hazards of Dodging the IRS
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ACTOR SLAMMED WITH $1 MILLION TAX BILL TOPH’S TAX NIGHTMARES!
Howard’s response serves as a textbook case on how not to react to the IRS. After failing for more than a year to respond to notices or appear for hearings, Howard left a voicemail for a Justice Department official asserting that it is immoral for the government to tax descendants of slaves, according to the Hollywood Reporter, which secured a copy of the judgment and the voicemail transcript. The result was a decision last February by a federal judge in Philadelphia that Howard owed a total of $903,114.72 in back taxes, penalties, and interest for the 2010, 2011, 2016, 2017, and 2019 tax years. While Howard’s actual tax bill was $578,000, the government piled on penalties for noncompliance. Also, interest on the judgment will continue to increase until the bill is paid.
Howard landed his first major roles in the 1995 films “Dead Presidents” and “Mr. Holland’s Opus.” A succession of television and film roles in the early 2000s included parts in “Winnie Mandela” and “Biker Boyz,” and he earned an Oscar nomination for his role in “Hustle & Flow.” In his role as the lead character in the television series “Empire,” he played a drug dealer- turned-movie mogul. Howard announced in 2022 that he planned to retire from acting. Howard’s case serves as an object lesson for anyone who owes back taxes. Had he sought out an experienced tax resolution specialist instead of dodging the government, his tax bill might have been reduced. But when alleged tax evaders instead run the other way, the total bill is highly likely to grow exponentially.
PHOTO CREDIT: JJDUNCAN_80
Actor Terrence Howard has played hip, edgy characters throughout his career, from aspiring rappers to hip-hop moguls. He has clearly strayed a long way from his one-time persona as a prosecutor on “Law & Order,” however. The Oscar-nominated former star has been hit by a $1 million bill from the IRS over unpaid taxes from the years 2010 through 2019.
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DON’T LIVE IN FEAR - TOPH IS HERE!
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