Published: August 24, 2025
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It's not what you make, it's what you keep. My 10 favorite tax hacks for business owners (now permanent in 2025).

Congress just handed business owners a $3 TRILLION gift in July. Average business owner will save $50-200K annually. High earners? $500K+. Let me show you exactly what changed:

1 - S-Corps (the $27K Saver) A new client last week: $300K profit, paying $45K in employment taxes. We elected S-Corp. Now pays himself $120K salary. Saves $27K in employment tax. Every. Single. Year. If you're netting $150K+ without an S-Corp, you're lighting money on fire.

2 - QBI (20% of your income, tax-free) This deduction is PERMANENT now. The catch: High earners need the right wage ratio. Formula: Total income × 2/7 = optimal wages $500K business with wrong ratio: $0 QBI deduction Same business optimized: $70K deduction.

3 - Augusta Rule (yes, it can work..) Rent your home to your business. 14 days. Tax-free. I'm seeing $2-3K/day for legit business use. Annual planning meeting in your living room? That's $3K tax-free. Quarterly board meetings? $12K. Document it right or don't do it at all.

4 - Donor Advised Funds (the double dip) Client had $2M in NVIDIA bought at $50. Instead of selling and paying $400K in tax, donated $500K to a DAF. Result: $500K deduction, zero capital gains, still controls where money goes. Then bought NVIDIA back and increased basis.

5 - Bonus Depreciation back to 100% Buy a $1M rental with 20% down. Cost seg finds $300K of short-life assets. Bonus depreciation: Write it ALL off Year 1. $110K tax deduction on a $200K investment. Property still cash flows positive. It's like a 401k that you control.

6 - Real Estate Pro Status (the wealth accelerator) 750 hours = unlimited real estate losses against ANY income. Doctor making $800K bought a $200K rental. Cost seg + bonus depreciation = $140K Year 1 loss. Saved $52K in taxes on a property that MAKES money. It's beautiful.

7 - R&D Credits (most don't know they qualify) Writing code = R&D credit. Improving processes = R&D credit. Building new features = R&D credit. Plus: R&D expenses are deductible again (no more 5-year amortization). Average software company is leaving money on the ground.

8 - SALT Workarounds (37 states) Pass-through entity tax elections bypass the expanded $40K cap. Your BUSINESS pays state taxes directly. California: Save 13.3% New York: Save 10.9% Texas: Already winning Check if your state offers PTET.

9 - Mega Backdoor Roth (for the obsessed savers) $70K per year into Roth accounts. No income limits. 35-year-old client doing this annually. By 65, she'll have $4M+ completely tax-free. Regular 401k? Distributions taxed at 37%. This strategy? Zero tax forever.

10 - Strategic Timing Permanent tax code = you can finally PLAN. No more sunset provisions to worry about. Accelerate deductions in high-income years. Defer income to lower years. Time everything perfectly. Simple moves, massive impact.

The government just handed business owners a permanent playbook. These aren't loopholes - they're incentives to create jobs and invest. Find a CPA who understands the new rules. The savings compound forever.

Thanks for reading! If you found this helpful go to the top and like the first post and share this with a friend. Also @sweatystartup and I are hosting a webinar on Wednesday. Sign up even if you can’t make it and we’ll send you the recording. https://somewhere.com/workshop...

@baldridgecpa Which DAF do you use for crypto? Feasible?

@baldridgecpa Earning is step one, keeping is where the real wealth is built. Locking in smart tax strategies means every dollar you make works harder and now business owners get to keep those hacks permanently in 2025.

@baldridgecpa the simple arithmetic of avoiding unnecessary taxes is the first rule of getting rich

@baldridgecpa This is brilliant. Where could someone find resources like this to learn? Any best suggestions?

@baldridgecpa What you make highly determines what you keep.

@baldridgecpa Well it’s also what you make too Mitchell

@baldridgecpa My wife is a small business owner she’s the only employee in NJ been sending her your stuff she is giving away money

@baldridgecpa Thanks for this. Looking into a few of these

@baldridgecpa This is more valuable than most college courses

@baldridgecpa I need to call you to schedule a consult.

@baldridgecpa Your thread is creating a buzz! #TopUnroll https://threadreaderapp.com/th... 🙏🏼@savvyswami for 🥇unroll

@baldridgecpa SO FUCKED UP. Steps all over the middle class and poor

@baldridgecpa Do you have a list for W2 slaves?

@baldridgecpa Please stop the BS. Just stop. Reckless spending is 1 thing, but earning enough to buy a modest house in Boston for $800K is another. Income buys vacation homes, a boats, early ret. It’s always about what you make or no one would even try to better themselves.

@baldridgecpa Great stuff, but point of clarification; are you assuming there is no SS wage base? Meaning, the cap on SS tax is at $176,100 in wages for 2025, putting the payroll tax savings at approx $12,000 with a $120K salary, unless I’m missing something. It is a Sunday. 😊

@baldridgecpa All the parents out there, tell your kids to be CPA and Tax attorneys. AI ain't replacing then!!! 📣

@baldridgecpa This is nothing to be proud of.

@baldridgecpa Thank you for this!

Image in tweet by Mitchell Baldridge

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