Your McCarthy Update 

Marty McCarthy, CPA, CCIFP
Focused on You. Dedicated to Your Success.
April 5, 2021

Business News
(Reuters) U.S. manufacturing sector index races to 37-year high in March. Driven by a strong growth in new orders, the clearest sign yet that a much-anticipated economic boom was probably underway. Read more.

(Reuters) 'Optimistic' Fed policymakers see U.S. economy about to boom. Federal Reserve policymakers are optimistic about the U.S. economic outlook as more Americans are vaccinated and government aid gets to households and businesses. Learn more.
 
Construction & Real Estate News
(Construction Executive) VIDEO: Construction Executive's Q1 construction economic update and forecast. The presentation by Anirban Basu on March 31 focused upon the state of the economy one year into the COVID-19-induced economic crisis. Special attention was given to real estate and construction dynamics, labor market performance, state and local government finances, financial market performance, as well as other aspects of economic life. Watch the video.
 
(New Jersey Business) Real estate market changes on all fronts. The COVID-19 outbreak experience has, and continues to, shape the real estate market amid the transition from pandemic to profitability and getting back to business. Read more.

(GlobeSt.com) Net lease cap rates hit historic lows. In Q1, single-tenant retail cap rates compressed by nine basis points to 5.91%. Industrial cap rates fell four basis points to 6.71%, while office cap rates rose five basis points to 6.95%. Learn why.

COVID-19 Related News
(Accounting Today) IRS offers guidance to students, schools on tax-free COVID grants. A set of frequently asked questions were released to explain how students, colleges, and universities should report emergency financial aid grants related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Read more.

(Accounting Today) IRS to pay $14B in pandemic related NOL tax breaks. The IRS has so far received more than 41,000 applications from businesses looking to take advantage of a provision in the March 2020 pandemic relief bill that allowed companies to apply business losses to years in which they were not profitable. Read more.

(Accounting Today) IRS extends more tax deadlines until May 17. The deadline to file Form 1040 series returns has been extended to May 17. This automatically postpones to the same date the time for individuals to make 2020 contributions to their individual retirement arrangements (IRAs and Roth IRAs), health savings accounts (HSAs), Archer Medical Savings Accounts (Archer MSAs), and Coverdell education savings accounts (Coverdell ESAs). This postponement also automatically postpones until May 17, 2021, the time for reporting and payment of the 10% additional tax on amounts includible in gross income from 2020 distributions from IRAs or workplace-based retirement plans. Notice 2021-21 also postpones the due date for Form 5498 series returns related to these accounts to June 30, 2021. Read more.

(IRS.gov) IRS provides guidance for employers claiming the Employee Retention Credit for first two quarters of 2021. Notice 2021-23 explains the changes to the Employee Retention Credit for the first two calendar quarters of 2021, including the increase in the maximum credit amount, the expansion of the category of employers that may be eligible to claim the credit, modifications to the gross receipts test, revisions to the definition of qualified wages, and new restrictions on the ability of eligible employers to request an advance payment of the credit. Learn more.
 
(Journal of Accountancy) IRS to automatically issue refunds on tax-free unemployment benefits. Beginning in May and continuing through the summer, the IRS will automatically issue refunds to eligible people who already filed a tax return reporting unemployment compensation before the recent changes made by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). Under this process, eligible taxpayers will not have to file amended returns to receive a refund. Read more.

(National Law Review) DOL guidance clarifies expiration of COVID-19 deadline extension for employee benefit plans. EBSA Disaster Relief Notice 2021-01 clarifies that the deadline by which an action must be taken will be tolled “until the earlier of: (a) 1 year from the date [the individual or plan was] first eligible for relief, or (b) 60 days after the announced end of the National Emergency.” Learn more.

(New Jersey Business) Murphy signs legislation providing $25 million in small business aid. This legislation is part of a $100 million relief package for New Jersey small businesses. Read more.

Please visit our COVID-19 Resource Page for more alerts. Learn about our COVID-19 Recovery Services.

Feel free to contact any member of our team at (610) 828-1900 (PA) or (732) 341-3893 (NJ) with questions. Rich Higgins, CPA, managing principal – New Jersey office can be contacted at Richard.Higgins@McCarthy.CPA. I can be reached at Marty.McCarthy@McCarthy.CPA As always, we are happy to help.

Stay safe,

Marty McCarthy, CPA, CCIFP
Managing Partner
McCarthy & Company

Disclaimer: This alert is for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Information contained in this communication is not intended or written to be used as tax advice, and cannot be used by the recipient to avoid penalties that may be imposed under the Internal Revenue Code. We strongly advise you to seek professional assistance with respect to your specific issue(s).