How Home Business Can Take Advantage of a Pitney Bowes Postage MeterHome businesses are expanding throughout the world and with this evolution, a postage meter, such as those from Pitney Bowes (who produces 90% of the postage meters on the market) can add a dimension of professionalism. The Internet has given just about anyone who wants to, the opportunity to operate their own business from the comfort of their own home. Still, although these home-based businesses do not have the same overhead as traditional businesses, each one still needs to monitor its expenses and eliminate unnecessary ones when possible.Home businesses do not necessarily have to be web-based businesses. A hair stylist can run her operation out of her home as can a music instructor. When this happens, though, one factor is almost inevitably overlooked as a way to cut expenses and that has to do with postage. A postage meter offers many advantages to home business owners.When a home business owner needs to communicate with clients, sometimes this requires letters or invoices or any number of forms of paper transactions. Advertising that is mailed also requires stamps. This requires postage – and usually trips back and forth to the post office. Many home business owners claim they do not mind these trips, as it gets them out of the house. When one trip per week becomes two or three, then you are not only detracting from the time you have to promote your business, but you are also spending money on gas to get to the post office and back home.It is easy to overlook just how much a small business spends on postage. A Pitney Bowes postage meter, however, has the ability to track the number of letters and the amount of postage that was spent in a given period of time. When it comes time to track these expenses at the end of the month, there will be no more need for guesswork.A postage meter also eliminates the need to wonder how much postage to place on a given letter or package. A postage meter can weigh the parcel and determine, based on the destination zip code, how much postage is needed. Right down to the penny. How many times in the past have you thrown an extra stamp on a letter because you did not want it returned due to insufficient postage? When you run a business out of your home, the temptation to do this increases dramatically.Another advantage for home business owners that a postage meter offers is the look of professionalism. It is bound to have happened where you receive a letter from a business that was handwritten with a traditional stamp. The look and feel of the letter speaks of being unprofessional. By adding a metered stamp, your home business will look like any seriously professional business operating today. After all, image does mean a lot in the world of commerce.People want to feel that they are doing business with someone who is professional. A postage meter, such as those from Pitney Bowes, will not only save you money and time, it will also add that aura of professionalism people respond to in a positive way.

The beginning of each calendar year is a very busy time for many businesses, and Property Managers are not left out of that category! Whether you are a large Property Management Company or an individual Property Manager, this is the time when all tax forms should be issued for funds paid out to Rental Property Owners or Vendors during the previous calendar year. The form that is used to complete this task is the 1099-MISC, and this form must be submitted to the recipient and the IRS by a specified date each year. When 1099s are submitted to the IRS, they must be accompanied by a summary form, Form 1096, to meet the tax filing requirements.

- Why is the 1099-MISC necessary?
The IRS uses 1099s to monitor any income source that is not filed on a traditional W-2 form, which only shows income received as a salary or wage. This is a way in which the IRS captures any income received by an independent contractor or rental property owner that may otherwise go unreported. A Property Manager or Property Management Company is acting as a reliable source for the IRS to help enforce that all income is being reported.

- Who should receive a 1099-MISC?
• Rental Property Owners – all rental property owners that have received $600 or more in rent disbursements in a given calendar year should be issued a 1099-MISC.

• Vendors – all independent contractors or vendors who are unincorporated and have received $600 or more in a given calendar year for services provided should be issued a 1099-MISC.

- When does a 1099-MISC NOT need to be filed?
Every situation has exceptions, and tax filing and reporting is no different. Here are some of those exceptions:
• If the total payments to a rental property owner or vendor are less than $600, a 1099-MISC does not need to be filed.
• If a rental property owner is a corporation, a 1099-MISC does not need to be filed.
• If a vendor is an incorporated business, a 1099-MISC does not need to be filed.

- What information is required on a 1099-MISC?
• Tax ID # – this can be an individual’s SSN or an EIN for an unincorporated organization.
• Address – this is needed for the 1099-MISC to be sent to the recipient.
• Funds Paid – this includes a total of all income paid to a vendor or individual rental property owner during the previous calendar year. (Remember, only if the total is greater than $600)

- What boxes are used on a 1099-MISC to report income?
• Rental Property Owners – all income collected that was for rent should be reported in box 1 “Rents” on the 1099-MISC. Any additional income paid (late fees, utility bill reimbursements, NTQ fees, etc.) should be reported in box 3 “Other Income” on the 1099-MISC.
• Vendors – all payments made for vendor services should be reported in box 7 “Non-employee Compensation” on the 1099-MISC.

It is also good practice to send all rental property owners a copy of their financials for the previous calendar year so they can see where the amounts in each box on the 1099-MISC were derived from.

Not filing 1099s when required can lead to penalties and fines by the IRS, so it is very important to keep accurate records of amounts paid to each vendor and rental property owner and request any necessary forms that you may need to file the tax forms to be compliant in this process.

A home based business can be a viable option for anyone to earn a full-time income or just to have some extra on the side. This is because there are a lot of home business types that can match almost anyone’s skills, talents and interests which can be turned into money-making products and services and business ventures. Whatever skills or knowledge you now possess, be it from your studies or developed through your work experience can be your competitive advantage which could generate you earnings and profits as you live the dream of working from home!Your home based business opportunity depends on what you are most into. One of the most common online business opportunities found online are for marketing products. There are a lot of companies that offer membership and sales opportunities which earn income from sales commissions or from recruiting new members. All you need to do is sign up and pay a certain amount of investment for membership and some products to sell and the right to sign up other members. You can promote and sell these products through a website which may also be provided for you. If you have a penchant for sales and marketing, and possess natural people and social skills, this type of business may be right for you. It’s best that you are most comfortable in dealing with people to maximize the earning potential for this particular business type.You can also set up an online shop that will turn your technical expertise into sellable products. If you are an IT professional, you can offer web page design services, create application software or create a members-only website, such as game and entertainment sites, for example. You can charge a membership fee for a username and password for exclusive access to your site’s contents. You can promote your home based business with a website of your own, and can deliver your IT products via email or through downloads. Either way, this virtually eliminates the need for physical efforts to deliver your wares, receiving payments and other transactions. Other technical skills in demand online are technical plans, financial record keeping and legal advice, just to name a few.People on the creative side can have a good home based business opportunity as well. There is a good demand for freelance graphic artists, advertisers and other creative services providers. One of the most common work-from-home opportunities calling for creative skill is online writing. If you are most skilled in languages, grammar and have a good way with words, an online writing gig could earn you lots from just by working in front of your computer and doing research. There are a lot of websites offering full or part-time writing jobs to be used as contents for the millions of websites born every day. All you need is a computer, internet access and to apply for the writing job. You can choose projects and have flexible time schedules so you can write and earn even during your free time.Any type of skill, any talent you may have and any time you spend can be a money making opportunity for you. Harness these skills and get the right methods to sell and promote them and succeed in competing in a dynamic online business environment. What you have now are your primary tools. Realize their income potentials and let them be your key to a better and a freer lifestyle by sharing it to the world with an online home based business.