Q3 estimated payments are due September 15. On extension? October 15 is closer than it looks.
Insights
Notes · August 23, 2026
Several high-value tax moves for small businesses have hard deadlines in October, not December. Here is what Michigan business owners need to act on before the calendar turns against them.
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One useful tax note a month, straight from the partners.
Notes · August 16, 2026
Michigan's flat 6% sales tax looks simple until you hit the services-versus-goods line, a use tax bill you forgot about, or an economic nexus threshold you quietly crossed. Here is what every Michigan small-business owner actually needs to know about collecting, remitting, and registering.
Notes · August 9, 2026
Home office and vehicle deductions are legitimate, valuable, and among the most commonly disallowed in IRS audits of Schedule C filers. This guide walks Michigan small-business owners through the exact rules, the numbers, and the records that make both deductions defensible.
Notes · August 2, 2026
The S-Corp election is not a status symbol or a universal tax hack. It is a math problem with Michigan-specific inputs, and the break-even is higher than most online calculators suggest. Here is the actual arithmetic.
Notes · July 27, 2026
The moment you hire your first W-2 employee in Michigan, you trigger simultaneous obligations at three levels: federal, state, and possibly local. This guide walks through every registration, tax rate, deposit deadline, and penalty you need to know before that first paycheck goes out.
Notes · July 20, 2026
July is the last realistic window to make changes that will materially reduce your 2026 tax bill. Here are six specific numbers every Michigan small-business owner should pull right now, and what to do with each one.
Notes · July 7, 2026
The Q3 estimated tax deadline is September 15, 2026, and missing it costs you 8% annualized on whatever you underpaid. Here is a numbers-forward guide to calculating what you owe, understanding the safe harbor rule, and making both your federal and Michigan state payments on time.
Tax Notes · June 24, 2026
The S corp election is the most oversold move in small-business tax. Here is the honest math on where the savings start, and the three costs the YouTube videos skip.
By Marta Kowalski
Bookkeeping · June 10, 2026
Your accounting software can produce forty reports. You need one page: five numbers, three sentences, and a decision. Here is the template we use.
By Dev Raman
Tax Notes · May 21, 2026
Most IRS letters are math, not menace. A calm walk through the notice types we actually see, what each one wants, and the one mistake that turns small problems into big ones.
By Marta Kowalski
Running the Business · April 30, 2026
Calling someone a contractor does not make them one, and the penalties for guessing wrong arrive with interest. A plain-English tour of the real test.
By Dev Raman