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Tax Law (Questions About Taxes)/Expert Profile

Vanessa Powell

U.S.

On Vacation
returns 12/01/2009

Expertise

General taxation and tax law questions. Federal income tax, California income tax, payroll tax, sales tax, estate tax. Individuals, trusts, estates, partnerships, corporations, exempt organizations, employee benefit plans. No property tax questions, please.

Experience in the area

I'm a CPA candidate finishing up my testing. I received a perfect score on the regulation section of the exam, which deals with taxation and business law. I work for a large accounting firm in Southern California. Half of every year I spend in the tax department, and the other half in the audit department.

Organizations

California Society of CPAs.

Education/Credentials

I graduated summa cum laude from Colorado Tech with a B.S. in accountancy. I will obtain my CPA license by the end of 2009 (in CA). I've completed all educational and experience requirements for my license, I need only to pass the final test section (I saved the easiest test for last.) My firm requires all accounting staff to fulfill the same continuing professional education as CPAs. I take 80 hours every two years, and take at least 16 hours of CPE every year in taxation.

Awards and Honors

Graduated Summa Cum Laude (highest honor) If I get another perfect score on my final section of the CPA exam, I will be in the running for a Watt Sells Award.

Past/Present Clients

I have clients from all over the world and United States of all varieties. I work with a lot of employee benefit plans, farms, not-for-profits, partnerships, and wealthy individuals.

Average Ratings

Recent Reviews from Users

User	Date	K	C	T	P	Comments
Michael	11/04/09	10	10	10	10	Thanks for providing the answer so quickly .....
James	10/29/09	10	10	10	10	Thank you very much for helping me .....
Mike	10/27/09	10	10	10	10	Thanks a million Vanessa! That was a .....
Bud Boyer	10/26/09	10	10	10	10	I appreciated the quick reply as well .....
nancy	10/15/09	10	10	10	10	Thanks

Recent Answers from Vanessa Powell

2009-10-29 Loan to LLC:

Ah! Good point! I have a habit of focusing too narrowly on a specific point when I'm answering these questions- it keeps me from rambling on and on and going off on tangents. However, it's at the expense

2009-10-28 Rental Property Sale:

You will owe capital gains tax on the difference between your basis in the property and the 290k, reduced by any closing costs you pay, any commissions you pay, or any other related fees. But your basis

2009-10-28 City has authority to tax church?:

Unless an item is specifically excluded by your state from sales tax, even by nonprofits like churches, they can (and usually will) demand sales tax. I have many not-for-profits that sell only items directly

2009-10-28 LLC vs S corp:

No, that's not true. Neither pays taxes (unless you set up the LLC like a C-Corp, which is rare, since one of the main benefits of organizing as an LLC is the tax benefit.) Both entities are called "flow-through"

2009-10-28 buying a franchise:

The advice has merit to it, but it's not really going to matter for what amounts, essentially, to a sole proprietorship. With partnerships or multi-member LLCs or S-Corps or C-Corps, the loan is often

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