These are the Top 200 industries primed for growth (with risks) using the projected Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) from 2021-2026.

​In addition to the CAGR numbers, this data can be sorted and filtered by total industry revenue, number of businesses, growth trajectory and risk score to explore possible industries that could be in need of additional accounting and advisory services due to continued growth yet elevated risk.

To download the information please follow this link where you can submit your information and get the report.

www.accountingtoday.com/top-200-growth-industries-2021-to-2026

Industry 

In very simple terms, a like-kind exchange is a tax-deferred transaction that allows one asset to be swapped with another, similar asset without generating a capital gains tax liability from the sale of the first asset.

Prior to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA), the IRS permitted the exchange of certain personal property, intellectual property and intangible property as long as that property was then exchanged for other personal property. The TCJA narrowed the scope of Internal Revenue Code Section 1031 like-kind exchanges to the exchange of real property that is of the same nature and character, even if it differs in grade or quality. It defined real property as "land and improvements to land, unsevered natural products of land, and water and air space superjacent to land."

Primary residences, inventory, corporation common stock and indebtedness or notes are specifically excluded from Section 1031 like-kind exchanges. In addition, exchanges of machinery, equipment, intellectual property, intangible business assets, etc., generally do not qualify as real property exchanges. Exceptions to this rule include certain exchanges of stock in mutual ditch, reservoir or irrigation companies.
The result is that any personal property transferred in a Section 1031 like-kind exchange is treated as if it were bought and sold in separate transactions, and any capital gains on the sale cannot be deferred. Practically speaking, this means every distinct asset included in the exchange must be analyzed separately from every other asset to determine whether it meets this definition.

As might be expected, the rules are complex. A qualifying exchange must adhere to the following rules:
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• Both properties must be in the United States.
• The taxpayer has 45 days from the date when the sale of the relinquished property closes to identify a potential replacement property and 180 days to acquire that property. The two periods run concurrently, which means the maximum time period for the exchange to be completed is 180 days, not 225 days.
• In an exchange in which the seller does not acquire the new property at the same time he or she relinquishes the old one, sometimes called a delayed exchange, the "seller" of the first property cannot hold the cash until the new property is acquired. A neutral third party, called a qualified intermediary (QI), facilitates the deal. Relatives and any people who have been your agents or employees in the two years preceding the sale of the relinquished property cannot serve as the QI.
• There is no limit to the number of exchanges a taxpayer can make. As long as the laws and regulations are followed, taxpayers can make even sequential like-kind exchanges.
• Federal law defines what constitutes real property for purposes of a like-kind exchange, but state laws mandate how states tax the sale. This may prove important when the sold property is in one state and the purchased property is in another.
• Depending on the properties being exchanged, any previously claimed depreciation may be recaptured and taxed as ordinary income.
• Any cash left over after the property is exchanged may be taxed as partial sales proceeds. This includes monies from a decrease in liabilities or a change in the amount of a mortgage. Usually, such amounts are taxed as capital gains.
• Taxpayers claiming a like-kind exchange must file Form 8824 for the year in which the exchange occurs.
• New legislation is being discussed that may make this strategy less attractive. Anyone considering a like-kind exchange should carefully monitor the developments regarding potential federal tax reform. 

Section 1031 like-kind exchanges can be an excellent way to discharge appreciated property that would generate a high capital gains tax if it were sold. It may also be the best choice in other circumstances, such as if the property would otherwise have been sold at a loss.
This is just of summary of a series of complex provisions. If you think a Section 1031 like-kind exchange is right for you, be sure to get professional advice from the start.

​In COVID Tax Tip 2021-123, the IRS clarifies some of the confusion surrounding the powerful but complex Employee Retention Credit.

The IRS is addressing changes made by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 that apply to the third and fourth quarters of 2021.

These changes include:

• Making the credit available to eligible employers that pay qualified wages after June 30, 2021, and before Jan. 1, 2022.
• Expanding the definition of "eligible employer" to include recovery startup businesses.
• Modifying the definition of "qualified wages for severely financially distressed employers."
• Providing that the employee retention credit does not apply to qualified wages considered as payroll costs in connection with a shuttered venue grant or a restaurant revitalization grant.

For business managers who had questions and needed authoritative answers, the IRS is answering various questions about the credit for tax years 2020 and 2021, including:

• The definition of a full-time employee and whether that definition includes full-time equivalents.
• The treatment of tips as qualified wages, and the interaction with the credit for the portion of employer Social Security taxes paid with respect to employee cash tips.
• The timing of the qualified wages deduction disallowance and whether taxpayers who already filed an income tax return must amend that return after claiming the credit on an adjusted employment tax return.
• Whether wages paid to majority owners and their spouses may be treated as qualified wages.

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Reporting clarifications

Eligible employers will report their total qualified wages and the related health insurance costs for each quarter on their employment tax returns, generally, Form 941 Employer's Quarterly Federal Tax Return, for the applicable period. If a reduction in the employer's employment tax deposits is not sufficient to cover the credit, certain employers may receive an advance payment from the IRS by submitting Form 7200, Advance Payment of Employer Credits Due to COVID-19.

This is just a summary of a series of detailed and technical provisions. The IRS has provided all the details in Notice 2021-49. Managers should consult with a qualified tax professional to make sure they get all the benefits they're entitled to without inadvertently violating the provisions.

​The big question is whether people are more or less productive when working from home. Many external factors go into this evaluation, such as home-based working conditions and reliable access to company systems and programs. Perhaps the most critical issue is the disconnect between managers who expected the virtual environment to mimic the office environment and actually managing remote employees. Some managers felt they had to micromanage staff to make sure they were working, which turned into a workday filled with videoconferencing and messaging on various platforms. That strategy turned out to be distracting.  

But as the virtual environment evolved, best practices emerged from the chaos. Managers began to understand how important it is to institute policies incorporating these 10 areas:

In my opinion it's a pretty big failure considering that only 36.3% of applications were funded, and only 39.6% of the funds requested making it to those who needed it most.

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​The Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit is available to parents and caregivers who are either working or looking for work and who claim dependents on their tax return. The credit is available to those who care for children under age 13 or a spouse or dependent of any age who is physically or mentally incapable of caring for himself or herself.

The CTC was created in 1997 and has been expanded several times since, most recently in 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic profoundly affected how, where and when people work. The incredible disruption this caused affected people's incomes and livelihoods, and the federal government responded by approving pandemic relief legislation that included changes to the child care tax credit.

The latest of these changes were mandated by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), which increased the maximum amount of eligible expenses as well as the maximum percentage of eligible expenses for which the credit may be taken. ARPA also modified how the credit is phased out for higher earners. 

Perhaps the most important changes for eligible taxpayers planning to claim this credit for 2021 is that

• (1) the credit is refundable and
• (2) they can receive 50% of their credit in 2021 rather than waiting until after they file their 2021 taxes in 2022.

It is important to note that these changes are available only for 2021 unless Congress extends them.

​Who Can Claim the Credit?

The advance credit is phased out or eliminated completely for taxpayers whose AGI is above $150,000 for married taxpayers filing jointly and qualifying widows or widowers, $112,500 for those who file as head of household, and $75,000 for single filers or married taxpayers filing separately.

The IRS will make the advance payments automatically for July, August, September, October, November and December. Eligible taxpayers do not have to enroll.

​Like every business owner, you want to remain relevant and competitive in your marketplace. And you know that to have a sustainable business, you constantly need new ideas to satisfy the evolving demands of consumers. However, you also know that sometimes new ideas fail because you haven't done adequate market research.
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Market research gives you access to insights. These insights can optimize your current and future product offerings and assist in connecting your brand to the right customers. That's why investing in insight generation is the right way to drive informed and effective decision-making. It was W. Edwards Deming who said, "Without data, you're just another person with an opinion."

There are many types of research. Exploratory research is open-ended and qualitative. It helps you identify trends that you're currently not aware of. Setting up a Google Alert for a keyword that your team doesn't know much about is exploratory research, and so is a survey with open-ended questions. But its key characteristic is that it is flexible; changes of plan and even changes of format are expected. Some businesspeople consider exploratory research an important starting point for innovation.

Specific research is more precise and focused on solving a particular problem or testing a new idea. Specific research can help you drill down deeper into an outcome of exploratory research. This is probably what you think of when you think of market research: detailed surveys, focus groups, customer interviews and studies.
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Both exploratory and specific research are types of primary research. Secondary research is the study of research that already has been published by others. Reading reports compiled by the government, trade associations or other businesses is secondary research.

Research provides you with a lens with which you can look at your company's current performance and its past trends. Knowing more about what your customers want and what else is going on in your industry can help you understand what's happening to your own sales. That in turn can help you understand what you need to do to better serve your customers.

Just as you wouldn't go on a vacation without making any plans, you shouldn't design marketing strategies without backing them up with research and data. Market research takes a lot of time and money, but if you're venturing into a new market, it's vital.

Problems, business environments and trends are constantly changing, so your research will never really be over. The more you know about your buyer personas, industry and company, the more successful your marketing efforts will be.