November 2025 Tax Tips & More
November 2025 Tax Tips & More
Upcoming dates:
November 11
- Veterans Day
November 27
- Thanksgiving
November 28
- Black Friday
Reminder
- Conduct year-end tax and financial planning
As 2025 starts to wind down, now’s your chance to make some strategic moves that could pay off well into next year. In this month’s newsletter, we’re focusing on key actions that can sharpen your finances as we head into the final few months of the year.
First up: a final tax planning review checklist to help you spot any last-minute opportunities to reduce your 2025 tax bill.
As always, should you have any questions, please call. And feel free to forward this information to someone who could use it!
Still Time to Reduce Any Tax Surprises!
Consider conducting a final tax planning review now to see if you can still take actions to minimize your taxes this year. Here are some ideas to get you started.
Review your income. Begin by determining how your income this year will compare to last year. Since tax rates are the same, this is a good initial indicator of your potential tax obligation. However, if your income is rising, more of your income could be subject to a higher tax rate. This higher income could also trigger phaseouts that will prevent you from taking advantage of certain deductions or tax credits formerly available to you.
Examine life changes. Review any key events over the past year that may have potential tax implications. Here are some common examples:
Purchasing or selling a home
Refinancing or adding a new mortgage
Getting married or divorced
Incurring large medical expenses
Changing jobs
Welcoming a baby
Identify what tax changes may impact you. There were lots of changes this year thanks to a new tax bill passed this summer. Here are some of the more important changes to be aware of:
Up to $25,000 of tip income can be excluded from income
Up to $12,500 of overtime income ($25,000 for married couples) can be excluded from income
Increase in the standard deduction
New $6,000 senior citizen deduction
Child tax credit is increased to $2,200
State and local tax deduction is increased to $40,000
Manage your retirement. One of the best ways to reduce your taxable income is to use tax beneficial retirement programs. So now is a good time to review your retirement account funding options. If you are not taking full advantage of the accounts available to you, there is still time to make adjustments.
Look into credits. There are a variety of tax credits available to most taxpayers. Spend some time reviewing the most common ones to ensure your tax plan takes advantage of them. Here are some worth reviewing:
Child Tax Credit
Earned Income Tax Credit
Premium Tax Credit
Adoption Credit
Elderly and Disabled Credit
Educational Credits (Lifetime Learning Credit and American Opportunity Tax Credit)
Avoid surprises. Your goal right now is to try and avoid any unwanted surprises when you file your tax return. It's also better to identify the need for a review now versus at the end of the year when time is running out. And remember, you are not required to be a tax expert. Use the tips here to determine if a review of your situation is warranted and please call if you have any questions about your tax circumstances.
Year-End Tax Planning Tips for Your Business
As 2025 winds down, here are some ideas to help you prepare for filing your upcoming tax return:
Informational returns. Identify all vendors who require a 1099-MISC and a 1099-NEC. Obtain tax identification numbers (TINs) for each of these vendors if you have not already done so.
Form 1099-K planning. Consider labeling business and personal accounts separately on platforms like Venmo and PayPal. Mixing funds could cause reporting errors, especially as platforms enhance their 1099-K tracking capabilities.
Be prepared for overtime and tip headaches. While 2025 is a transition year before the tax-free tip and overtime income must be reported on reformatted W-2s and 1099s, your employees still need to prove their deduction! So be prepared to track both tips and overtime pay from your payroll system.
Shifting income and expenses. Consider accelerating income, or deferring earnings, based on profit projections.
Separation of expenses. Review business accounts to ensure personal expenses are not present. Reimburse the business for any expenses discovered during this review.
Create expense reports. Having expense reports with supporting invoices and business credit card statements with corresponding invoices will help substantiate your deductions in the event of an audit.
Fixed asset planning. Section 179 or bonus depreciation expensing versus traditional depreciation is a great planning tool. If using Section 179, the qualified assets must be placed in service prior to year-end.
Leveraging business meals. Business meals with clients or customers are 50% deductible. Retain the necessary receipts and documentation that note when the meal took place, who attended and the business purpose on each receipt.
Charitable opportunities. Consider any last-minute deductible charitable giving including long-term capital gain stocks.
Cell phone record review. Review your telephone records for qualified business use. While expensing a single landline out of a home office can be difficult to deduct, cell phone use can be documented and deducted for business purposes.
Inventory review. Review your inventory for proper counts and remove obsolete or worthless products. Keep track of the obsolete and worthless amounts for a potential deduction.
Review your receivables. Focus on collection activities and review your uncollectible accounts for possible write-offs.
Review your estimated tax payments. Recap your year-to-date estimated tax payments and compare them to your forecast of full year earnings. Then make your 2025 4th quarter estimated tax payment by January 15, 2026.
As always, should you have any questions or concerns regarding your tax situation please feel free to call.
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