Hello, everyone. How are you? Let me see some hearts and some thumbs up because I have a special guest with me today. Her name is Courtney Epps. Her book is More Relaxing, Less Taxing: Why You Would Be Brain Dead Not to Own a Business. Listen to that. Why you would be brain dead not to own a business. I want you to like this page and share it. Like it and share it. This is Les Brown. This is Mamie Brown’s baby boy.
This conversation, with this young lady who’s brilliant. People are talking about her all over the country on how she’s saving owners, business owners, entrepreneurs, multi-level marketing people, salespeople, and just everyday people, thousands of dollars on their income tax. Just think about this.
It’s far different than the political decisions that are made right now, where they’re just lying. Just straight up lying. But this is concrete, it’s within the law, and most people just don’t know. What you don’t know can hurt you. People say, “What you don’t know can’t hurt you.” What you don’t know can hurt you, can kil you, in fact.
You want to know the information that’s in this book. More Relaxing, Less Taxing and it’s by Courtney Epps. We’re going to talk with her, in depth, to find out why would it be brain dead if you don’t own your own business.
Hello. How are you?
I’m doing great.
I’m so glad to have the time to spend with you here again, here in Atlanta, Hotlanta, but it’s not too hot today.
That’s right.
Now, when you came up with the concept for this book, what motivated and inspired you?
I just wanted to share with people what I’ve learned, over the last 18 years, of running my own business and having my own accounting practice because a lot of the things I talk about in that book, I didn’t learn in college. There was not a tax strategy class when I went to college.
I just wanted to share with people how they could save more money because it literally got into my brain, that the average household income made $60,000 and they pay $14,000 in taxes. Then once they finish paying that, you got cost of living, so they bring home $46,000 and the cost of living in America, on average, is $53,000. A W2 employee is literally going in debt $7,000 a year to work 40 hours a week, 50 weeks a year.
So because of my experience in owning businesses, and especially home-based businesses, I knew that I could teach people how to have a home-based business and it would literally save them $4,000 to $8,000 a year if they just attempted to earn an income and it could change their life.
Let me understand this, why would you say that one would be brain dead to not own their own business?
Because there’s two tax systems in this country. One is for the W2 employee, or the salaried employee, then the other is for a business owner. What ends up happening is that a salaried employee is actually created to pay taxes. 76% of the employees that are created in this country are created by small to medium-sized businesses. We, as business owners, get tax deductions. Then we, in turn, higher more employees and the employees are meant to pay the taxes. We get the tax benefits and then they pay the taxes. They’re paying, on average, 40% of every dollar they make in taxes.
Now, I want you to like this page and share it. I want you to let people know how they can get in touch with you because of the fact that I get a lot of calls on my phone and I don’t want us to interrupt us right now. Give them that number, right away, how they can get in touch with you.
Yeah. My number is 864-663-6111. You can contact our office and schedule an appointment. You can also schedule a time to meet with us, just shoot us an email at info@otbtax.com.
Repeat it again, the number and the email.
864-663-6111 and then our email is info@otbtax.com.
I want to talk to you about … I remember we had a conversation of how I can provide money for my children, and my grandchildren, and get a tax right off.
Yes.
If I want to lease a car under my business for my son, do I get a tax right off for that?
If you … You can actually hire your children to work for you. The great thing about doing that is, you can hire them, pay them $12,000 a year, you can pay them more than that but just a typical person, the standard deduction increase this year, you can pay them $12,000 a year. They don’t have to pay taxes on the first 12, you don’t have to pay taxes on it because it’s a business expense. Then there’s also no unemployment taxes. It saves a ton of money.
Then, on top of that, if they worked for you and you wanted to give them a vehicle to work for you or … What I do with my children, is that I hire them to work for me and do things, whether it be paperwork, or they help me with my accounting firm, or they help me with social media ’cause they’re much better at that than I am. Then I would, in turn, pay them and they pay for the things that they want and their necessities, instead of me paying for it. I get the tax deduction and they still, in turn, get what they want.
Yes but I’m asking you, would there be a tax right off for leasing a car or is it better to buy the car for them?
Right now, with the new tax laws, it’s better to actually buy a car typically. Depending on what type of car you buy. The depreciation rates have gone up drastically this year. You can actually depreciate, just say a $50,000 BMW, you can now depreciate it over five years instead of depreciating … It doesn’t have to be a brand new car, it just has to be new to you. Leasing, depending on how much the car cost, leasing is not as big advantage this year because of the new tax laws, as it was before.
Now the President said that a lot of people are gonna be getting a bigger tax return because the changes that have taken place have been on behalf of middle-class America and everyday people. Are people getting larger checks?
The average W2 employee is actually not getting larger checks. They’re actually getting a decrease. There are some increase in the child tax credit this year but they’ve taken away personal exemption. It’s made it a little more convoluted and people just don’t understand what’s going on. Especially if you’re a salesperson, so if you work as a W2 employee, and you drive your car, and you use your cell phone, none of that is tax deductible anymore. That has completely gone off the tax return.
That’s gone?
Yes. It was called miscellaneous un-reimbursed employee business experiences.
Yes.
It’s gone completely. Gambling losses are gone, gambling income, so now you can’t offset that. Tax prep, if you’re a W2 employee. If you’re a W2 employee, you’re actually getting hurt worse but if you’re a business owner you’re actually getting much more in deductions this year and you’re gonna bring home more money.
Wow. Okay.
The advantages of having your own business, if you can give an illustration for people that are watching right now. If you’re just joining us, this is a book that everybody’s talking about, the author. Her name is Courtney Epps. It’s More Relaxing, Less Taxing: Why You Would Be Brain Dead Not to Own Your Own Business. Just think about that. You’ll be brain dead.
You say that emphatically and you know that makes a statement. Give us some examples of people when they decide when they’re gonna own their own business, and they can get in for a minimum amount of money, for like multi-level marketing. How can they save money?
The great thing is that they can actually take the expenses they’re already currently spending. I have a cell phone, right? If I call you and you’re my friend and I say, “Hey Les, I’ve got something super exciting I want to share with you,” and I sit down and share that with you because I’m in a business, I can now right off my mileage to come see you. I can write off half of my meal while I’m talking to you. If you decide you don’t want to do it, that’s great, that’s fine but I’m still gonna write off my mileage on the way back home. Then I’m gonna write off my cell phone, I’m gonna write off my internet, I’m gonna write off a portion of my utilities, a portion of my mortgage interest, I can depreciate my home.
All of these things, I haven’t spent any more money than a typical W2 employee. All I’m doing is redirecting my living expenses, and turning those into business expenses, and they become tax deductible 100% off my business. Off of any income that I have so that it doesn’t matter if it was W2 income, if it’s interest income, whatever that is can offset. It literally can put you in a lower tax bracket and can increase your earned income credit, your child tax credit. It’s gonna bring you back more money because if you go out and get a second job, all that typically is gonna do is put you in a higher tax bracket.
You can literally, per the IRS, if you were to work three to five days a week and put in 45 minutes a day doing income producing activities, then you’re attempting to earn an income. As long as you’re attempting to earn an income, what you’re doing is tax deductible as long as it’s reasonable-
Attempting to earn an income?
Attempting. Yes.
Attempting?
Attempting so yes.
What’s the value of that?
If you’re attempting to earn an income so if I … We had lunch today, right?
Right.
Just-
I’m attempting to earn income.
Right.
Yeah.
You’re attempting to earn income. All of your … 50% of your meal and 100% of everybody else’s meal is tax deductible for you.
That meal that I paid for today-
That’s right. That’s exactly right. Then this hotel, because you stayed at this hotel to meet us, so that’s obviously 100% tax deductible.
What?
That’s all … Yes.
I can write my hotel room off?
Yes. Yes.
Is there a cap? It’s $300 a day.
No there’s not a cap. That’s for employees. The thing is that … Your events, like you do speaking events.
Right.
You have people come to your events. The biggest thing I want people to understand, personal development, is the greatest thing on the face of the planet. It’s completely and utterly changed my life. It’s grown my business 40 times in the last five years because I got involved in understanding personal development. Just in the last 18 months I’ve taken it to another level and I’ve hung …
Yes.
If I spend $1,000 in continuing education or personal development going to one of your events, then it’s not $1,000 out of my pocket, it’s really $600 maybe even $500 because I’m gonna pay taxes on that money. Instead of me thinking, “Okay, this cost $1,000 bucks,” it’s really only $500 or $600 because I was gonna pay $400 in taxes anyway and because I went to that event, I met the most amazing people that changed my life and it elevated my business. It’s one of the greatest things that you can spend money on today.
Wow.
Her name is Courtney Epps. This is a book … I encourage you to get this book. Can they get this on Amazon?
They can get it on Amazon or they can go to our website at OTBTax.com.
Yeah. Say it again.
OTBTax.com.
Yeah. OTBTax.com and you can also get it on Amazon. The name of the book, More Relaxing, Less Taxing: You’ll Be Brain Dead if You Don’t Own a Business, why you would be brain dead because you’re giving away a lot of money to the Internal Revenue Service and you don’t have to. You keep a lot of that money in your pocket and take care of yourself, your family and the people that you care about.
I want you to get this book. Courtney Epps. It’s really a tremendous book. People are talking about it everywhere. Saving them thousands of dollars in their taxes. More Relaxing, Less Taxing. Courtney Epps. She’s bad baby.
Courtney, you have something special. You have greatness in you. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
I love you. Thank you so much Les.
I love you. Thank you so much and thank you. You have something special. You have greatness in you. Get this book, More Relaxing, Less Taxing, by Courtney Epps, Why You Would Be Brain Dead Not to Own Your Own Business. Go on Amazon, get the book now. The other place they can get the book?
OTB Tax.
OTBTax.com. Thank you so much.
