San Antonio, Austin and Houston: Q&A with HomeschoolCPA this week

02/24/2020 by Leave a Comment

San Antonio, Austin and Houston, Texas will all be getting live Q&A time this week with Carol Topp, CPA, the Homeschool CPA!

San Antonio: Tuesday February 25, 2020
from 7:00 to 8:30 pm
on the lovely grounds of
Family Educators Alliance of South Texas (FEAST)
7735 Mockingbird Lane • San Antonio, TX • 78229
Register here for San Antonio

Austin: Wednesday February 26, 2020
from 6:30-9:15 pm
at
Calvary Worship Center (North Austin, close to TX 45 & N Mopac Expy)
14901 Burnet Road
Austin, TX 78728 
More information and to RSVP for Austin

Houston: Thursday February 27, 2020
from 6:30-9:15 pm
at
University Baptist Church  (Chapel area)
16106 Middlebrook Dr
Houston, TX 77059  
More information and to RSVP for Houston

Each event is free, but the organizers would appreciate you register so they have a head count.

The San Antonio event is sponsored by Family Educators Alliance of South Texas and the Austin and Houston events are sponsored by Texas Homeschool Coalition with much appreciation!


Each event will have:

  • A brief session presented by Carol Topp, CPA, the HomeschoolCPA on “Topp Tips for Running a Homeschool Organization”
  • A Town Hall session for you to ask question and get advice from other homeschool leaders
  • Q&A time with Carol Topp, CPA
  • Professional advice on finances, legal structures, taxes, employees, insurance, etc.
  • A chance to look at HomeschoolCPA’s books
  • An opportunity to be encouraged by other leaders who understand you!

I hope to see you in San Antonio, Austin or Houston!

Carol Topp, CPA
HomeschoolCPA.com
Helping Homeschool Leaders

Filed Under: 501(c)(3) status, Boards, Burn Out, Nonprofit status, Paying workers Tagged With: ,

Set Up Homeschool Family as a Charity

02/21/2020 by Leave a Comment

Carol Topp, the Homeschool CPA is sometimes asked if a homeschool family can be a charity.  Sometimes a homeschool spouse wants to set up a business and hire their spouse to homeschool their children.

Can this be done?

Are there tax breaks for doing this?

R.A. writes, “I would like some preliminary information on setting up a 501(c)(7). I would like to set up my homeschool (my wife and 3 kids) up as a charitable organization. We have been homeschooling for 12 years.”

Here’s Carol’s reply to these situations on today’s episode of the Homeschool Leader podcast.

  • Can R.A. set up his family as a charitable organization?
  • What’s a 501c3?
  • What’s a 501c7?
  • What’s the difference between a 501c3 and a 501c7?
  • Why your family cannot be a nonprofit
  • Why you shouldn’t hire your spouse to homeschool your children.
Listen to the podcast

In the podcast, Carol referenced a few sources from the IRS:

A nonprofit tax exempt organization must serve a public good, not the private interests of the founder or his family. The IRS is very clear on this point. https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/charitable-organizations/exemption-requirements-section-501c3-organizations

501c7 Social clubs must be formed for exempt purposes. Serving only your family is not an exempt purpose. See: https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/other-non-profits/social-clubs

Carol has a few blog posts on this idea:

Incorporate yourself and write off homeschool expenses

Can my family’s homeschool be a nonprofit?

Is my homeschool a nonprofit?

Featured Product

In the podcast I mentioned my book

The IRS and Your Homeschool Organization

Does your homeschool group need to pay taxes? Could they avoid paying taxes by being a 501c3 tax exempt organization? Do you know the pros and cons of 501c3 status? Do you know what 501c3 status could mean for your homeschool group?

I have the answers for you in my book The IRS and Your Homeschool Organization. The information I share in my book has been helpful to homeschool support groups, co-ops, music and sports groups and will help you understand:

  • The benefits of 501c3 status
  • The disadvantages too!
  • What it takes to make the IRS happy
  • What your state requires
  • Why your organization should consider becoming a nonprofit corporation
  • What is the difference between nonprofit incorporation and tax exemption
  • IRS requirements after you are tax exempt

The webinar Create a Nonprofit for Your Homeschool Community is also helpful.

Filed Under: 501(c)(3) status, Nonprofit status

Flowchart for Starting a Nonprofit

02/04/2020 by Leave a Comment

While helping a homeschool organization in Washington, I found a nice 44 page book from WA state on forming a nonprofit.

https://www.sos.wa.gov/_assets/charities/training/starting-a-nonprofit-pdf.pdf

I really liked the flowchart on page 5. It has steps to take at the State level, the Federal level, with people, planning milestones and operations milestones.
Many tasks can be some simultaneously. Some must come after another. The flowchart shows all that!

It’s a lot to digest, but it puts all the important steps in one flowchart!

I created a checklist to apply for 501c3 tax exempt status. It is sequential; it doesn’t show that many tasks can be simultaneous, but it should still be very helpful.

If you’d like helping starting a nonprofit or apply for 501c3 tax exempt status, my webinars will help !

I have several services to help homeschool groups apply for 501c3 status.

Or you can arrange a phone consultation with me.

Carol Topp, CPA
HomeschoolCPA.com
Helping Homeschool Leaders

Filed Under: 501(c)(3) status, Nonprofit status

Where to get initial funding for a homeschool nonprofit start up?

12/17/2019 by Leave a Comment

A homeschool parent is launching a new homeschool program. Like many nonprofits, she needs some money to start up.

The main concern for our group at the moment are funds for filing (for nonprofit incorporation and 501c3 tax exempt status).

We have brained stormed and agreed on holding a spaghetti dinner fundraiser but we aren’t positive that this will bring the funds we are hoping for. Another idea is to present the exact cost to those members interested and see if they will be willing or able to divide the start up cost.

Sounds like you have an exciting adventure ahead of yourself by forming a  homeschool nonprofit!

You asked about initial funding. Many homeschool groups get their initial funding from donations (or loans) from the board members. You could also ask friends, family and potential members for donations.

Having a fundraiser or soliciting donations can be tricky because you need a bank account and to get that you need an EIN and you should get an EIN only AFTER you form a nonprofit corporation. But that’s what you need the funds for, so you’re caught in a Catch-22 cycle!

Additionally, some state require organizations to register before conducting a fund raiser or soliciting contributions from the general public. Here’s a source to see what your state requires: https://www.harborcompliance.com/information/nonprofit-compliance-guide

So it seems donations (or temporary loans) from the board members or potential members is your best option.

Helpful Resources

I have three podcast episodes  to explain starting a nonprofit or converting a homeschool business into a nonprofit organization. My podcast can be found at HomeschoolCPA.com/Podcast The episodes are:

  • Episode 168 Part 1 Nonprofit basics
  • Episode 169  Part 2 Nonprofit corporation
  • Episode 170  Part 3 Tax exempt application

Additionally, I have a webinar that goes into much more in-depth on starting a nonprofit organization. Unlike the podcasts which are free, the webinar costs $10.


Get details for Create a Nonprofit for Your Homeschool Community webinar at HomeschoolCPA.com/CreateNP

If you don’t want to be taxed on any surplus, then you’ll need nonprofit AND tax exempt 501c3 status for your new group. The webinar will explain that. 🙂

Carol Topp, CPA
HomeschoolCPA.com
Helping Homeschool Leaders

Filed Under: 501(c)(3) status, Money & Budgets, Nonprofit status

Still time to join the IRS and State Filings for Homeschool Nonprofits webinar

08/20/2019 by Leave a Comment

Carol Topp, the Homeschool CPA, will help you understand the IRS and state reports and file them yourself! In her webinar IRS and State Filings for Homeschool Nonprofits, Carol will explain the IRS annual returns and how to determine what your state may require as well.

You will learn:

  • The importance of maintaining 501c3 tax exempt status
  • The IRS Form 990 series. What form your group needs to file.
  • How to know if you’ve missed filing IRS returns
  • How to see Form 990-EZs and 990s from other nonprofits.
  • An explanation of the IRS Form 990-N.
  • What filings may be required by your state with examples

The webinar was live in August 2019 but you an purchase the recording for $10.

The webinar will last approximately one hour. There will be time for your questions. It will be recorded for viewing later.

The cost is $10 and you will receive:

  • Access to the live webinar on Wednesday August 21, 2019
  • An opportunity to ask questions via the live chat room
  • Handout of the slides
  • Recording to the webinar
  • IRS Forms, Instructions and samples
  • Template to summarize your state and IRS filing requirements for your board

Carol Topp, CPA

HomeschoolCPA.com

Filed Under: 501(c)(3) status, IRS Issues, Nonprofit status Tagged With: , , , ,

What do you do after your homeschool group has tax exempt status?

08/15/2019 by Leave a Comment

Getting 501c3 tax exempt status is a great accomplishment! If you’ve done it, congratulations!

But you’re not finished with government forms just yet! Your state and the IRS have several reports that must be filed regularly to maintain that precious tax exempt stats.

Almost every homeschool group will have some reporting with the IRS and their state.

Carol Topp, the Homeschool CPA, will help you understand the IRS and state reports and file them yourself! In her webinar IRS and State Filings for Homeschool Nonprofits, Carol will explain the IRS annual returns and how to determine what your state may require as well.

You will learn:

  • The importance of maintaining 501c3 tax exempt status
  • The IRS Form 990 series. What form your group needs to file.
  • How to know if you’ve missed filing IRS returns
  • How to see Form 990-EZs and 990s from other nonprofits.
  • An explanation of the IRS Form 990-N.
  • What filings may be required by your state with examples

The live webinar will be on Wednesday August 21, 2019 at 8 pm ET/7 pm CT/6 pm MT/5 pm PT

The webinar will last approximately one hour. There will be time for your questions. It will be recorded for viewing later.

The cost is $10 and you will receive:

  • Access to the live webinar on Wednesday August 21, 2019
  • An opportunity to ask questions via the live chat room
  • Handout of the slides
  • Recording to the webinar
  • IRS Forms, Instructions and samples
  • Template to summarize your state and IRS filing requirements for your board

 

More information at HomeschoolCPA.com/Filings

 

Carol Topp, CPA

Filed Under: 501(c)(3) status, IRS Issues, Nonprofit status Tagged With: , , , ,

Webinar: IRS and State Filings for Homeschool Groups

08/06/2019 by Leave a Comment

Getting 501c3 tax exempt status is a great accomplishment! If you’ve done that, congratulations!

But don’t think you are done with government forms just yet! Your state and the IRS have several reports that must be filed regularly to maintain your precious tax exempt stats.

Carol Topp, CPA the HomeschoolCPA has helped over 100 homeschool organizations apply for tax exempt status. She has prepared a webinar on IRS and State Filings for Homeschool Nonprofits. Carol explains the IRS annual reports for tax exempt nonprofits and how you can know what your state requires.

You will learn:

  • The importance of maintaining 501c3 tax exempt status
  • The IRS Form 990 series. What form your group needs to file.
  • How to know if you’ve missed filing IRS returns
  • How to see Form 990-EZs and 990s from other nonprofits.
  • An explanation of the IRS Form 990-N.
  • What filings may be required by your state with examples

After the webinar you will be equipped to file on your own the IRS Form 990-N and state forms saving you hundreds of dollars in professional fees.

This webinar is the third in a series of 3 webinar to teach homeschool nonprofit leaders how to create a nonprofit, get and maintain tax exempt status. The other two webinars are:

I highly recommend you watch the first two webinars on Create a Nonprofit for Your Homeschool Community and 501c3 Application for Homeschool Nonprofits. They are both a precursor to this webinar and tells you what to do to create a nonprofit and apply for 501c3 tax exempt status.

This third webinar on IRS and State Filings is for Homeschool Nonprofits if for groups that have received (or applied for) for tax exempt status with the IRS and:

  • Are unsure about IRS annual returns
  • Don’t know what forms their state requires from nonprofit organizations
  • Do fundraisers or ask for donations
  • Received a letter from the IRS or their state about missed reports
  • Need to know what to do to maintain their tax exempt status
  • Want to know what it takes to run a compliant nonprofit organization
  • People who want to DIY the IRS and state flings but need an experienced expert to teach them how.

The webinar will last approximately one hour.

The cost is only $10 and you will receive:

  • A recording of the webinar
  • Handout of the slides
  • IRS Users Guide for Form 990-N
  • Blank IRS Form 990-EZ and Instructions
  • Template to summarize your state and IRS filing requirements

Carol Topp, CPA
HomeschoolCPA.com
Helping Homeschool Leaders maintain tax exempt status.

Filed Under: 501(c)(3) status, IRS Issues, Nonprofit status Tagged With: , , , , ,

Tiny Homeschool Groups: Do We Need to File Anything?

07/25/2019 by Leave a Comment

Tiny Homeschool Groups: Do We Need to File Anything?

Tiny homeschool groups have different challenges than large programs. They are limited on resources, volunteers, and activities. But they still have questions about legal status, money and taxes that the large homeschool organizations have.

In this 4-part podcast series, Carol Topp, CPA answers the common questions that tiny homeschool groups face. All podcasts are available at HomeschoolCPA.com/Podcast

  • Episode #175 Are We a Nonprofit?
  • Episode #176 Do We Need to File Anything?
  • Episode #177 Do We Need to Pay Taxes?
  • Episode #178 Do We Need a Bank Account?

In this episode of the HomeschoolCPA podcast, Carol Topp discusses:

  • Bylaws do not typically need to be filed anywhere. They are an internal document. Sample bylaws for a homeschool group
  • Articles of Association (if you remain an unincorporated association) or Articles of Incorporation (if you formed a nonprofit corporation in your state). Samples available here
  • Charitable solicitation registration if you solicit donations or hold fund raisers in your state. Get information on your state’s filing requirements from https://www.harborcompliance.com/information/nonprofit-compliance-guide
  • Business licenses for nonprofits (only 6 states require a business license)
  • Employer Identification Number. Helpful tips.

 

Join the Facebook group for homeschool leaders: I am a Homeschool Group Leader. 600+ homeschool leaders offer ideas, encouragement and respectful exchange of ideas. https://www.facebook.com/groups/72534255742/

 

Featured Product

Homeschool Co-ops:
How to Start Them, Run Them and not Burn Out

Have you ever thought about starting a homeschool co-op? Are you afraid it will be too much work? Do you think you’ll have to do it all by yourself? Starting a homeschool co-op can be easy! This book Homeschool Co-ops: How to Start Them, Run Them and Not Burn Out will give you ideas, inspiration, tips, wisdom and the tools you need to start a homeschool co-op, run it and not burn out!

Click Here to request more information!

 

Filed Under: EINs and Names, Nonprofit status Tagged With: , , ,

Is your homeschool group “just a bunch of moms”?

07/16/2019 by 3 Comments

I’ve heard this too many times from homeschool group leaders to ignore it any longer.

“We’re just a bunch of homeschool moms”

It’s usually used along with one of these sentences,

…therefore we don’t want to (or need to) ...

  • be formally structured
  • follow the law
  • pay taxes
  • apply for tax exempt status
  • pay our workers as employees (according to the law)
  • record our income or expenses
  • notify our church host of the for-profit nature of our group, etc…

I’ve heard or read just about every one of these excuses!

Does saying “we’re just a bunch of homeschool moms” imply that:

  • homeschool moms are incapable of running legitimate businesses or nonprofit organizations?
  • homeschool moms can’t understand legal and tax issues?
  • homeschool moms are claiming ignorance as a defense against obeying the law?

Homeschool moms are intelligent, capable women. I know of hundreds of homeschool moms running businesses and nonprofit organizations very successfully and legally. I know some that are accountants and lawyers or, in the true spirit of homeschooling, are self-educated to understand complex tax and legal situations.

So let’s not imply that homeschool moms are not capable or not intelligent by saying “we’re just a bunch of homeschool moms”!

Instead, we should do what we do at home with our children:

Get educated about the legal and financial aspects of running a homeschool organization.

I have resources to help:

 

Carol Topp, CPA

Helping Homeschool Leaders who are smart and capable!

 

Filed Under: Co-ops, Nonprofit status Tagged With: , , ,

Tiny Homeschool Groups: Are We a Nonprofit?

07/11/2019 by Leave a Comment

Tiny Homeschool Groups: Are We a Nonprofit?

Tiny homeschool groups have different challenges than large programs. They are limited on resources, volunteers, and activities. But they still have questions about legal status, money and taxes that the large homeschool organizations have.

In this 4-part podcast series, Carol Topp, CPA answers the common questions that tiny homeschool groups face. All podcasts are available at HomeschoolCPA.com/Podcast

  • Episode #175 Are We a Nonprofit?
  • Episode #176 Do We Need to File Anything?
  • Episode #177 Do We Need to Pay Taxes?
  • Episode #178 Do We Need a Bank Account?

In this episode of the HomeschoolCPA podcast, Carol Topp will share:

  • Should our homeschool group be a nonprofit?
  • What does it take to be a nonprofit?
  • Aren’t we just a bunch of homeschool moms?
  • How can we avoid unnecessary paperwork?
  • How can we keep this simple?

Join the Facebook group for homeschool leaders: I am a Homeschool Group Leader. 600+ homeschool leaders offer ideas, encouragement and respectful exchange of ideas. https://www.facebook.com/groups/72534255742/

 

Featured Product

The  Board Manual for homeschool organizations will be very helpful to organize your board and run your homeschool organization successfully!

Author and homeschool advisor, Carol Topp, CPA, has created a Homeschool Organization Board Manual. It is a template to create a board member binder. It has:

  • A list of important documents to keep in your binder
  • Section dividers so you can organize the important papers
  • Tools to help you run your meetings smoothly including
  • A sample agenda that you can use over and over again
  • A calendar of board meetings

But this is more than just a few cover sheets for your binder. It is also a 55-page board training manual with helpful articles on:

  • Suggested Board Meeting Topic List
  • Board Duties
  • Job Descriptions for Board of Directors
  • What Belongs in the Bylaws?
  • Compensation and Benefits for Board Members
  • Best Financial Practices Checklist
  • How to Read and Understand Financial Statements
  • Developing a Child Protection Policy

Read more about the Homeschool Organization Board Manual

Filed Under: Co-ops, Nonprofit status