We can hardly believe it’s almost Valentine’s Day (our BF JUST forced us to take down our Christmas tree decorations, truth be told), yet in just one short month, the most romantic day of the year will be upon us. In addition to noshing on some Flamin’ Hot Cheetos heart-shaped pizza, we’ve compiled a list of nine of the most heartfelt movies bingeable on Netflix RN to help you get into the lovey dovey spirit. Grab some Kleenex and get ready to swoon — we’ve got some real tear jerkers on our hands!
<em>The Princess Bride</em>
For fans of the classic fairy tale, there’s the old-school hit, The Princess Bride. This one’s got it all: a damsel in distress and her valiant prince, magic (what with an enchanted forest, potions, giants and all), and, of course, a happy ending. (Photo via The Princess Bride/20th Century Fox)
<em>One Day</em>
One Day answers the age-old question about whether or not a best guy and girl friend can ever remain truly platonic without developing feelings for one another (hint: not a chance — at least not in Dex and Emma’s case!). (Photo via One Day/Focus Features)
<em>How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days</em>
If there’s anything to take away from this one (apart from how to… well, lose a guy in 10 days), it’s that love can happen even when you don’t mean for it to — it’s out of our hands, really! (Love’s tricky like that.) (Photo via How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days/Paramount Pictures)
4. Blue Is the Warmest Color: With two females as its romantic leads — a blue-haired graduating art student and a nerdy outcast — this Cannes-film darling isn’t your traditional love story, but then again, what is really “traditional” when it comes to love these days? Love is love is love! (Photo via Wild Bunch)
<em>The Wedding Planner</em>
Anything starring Matthew Mcconaughey (who has, more or less, become something of a master of the rom-com) is enough to make us swoon, but the super sweet story of the bridesmaid — er, wedding planner — that’s never the bride getting her shot at love is about as heartfelt as it gets. (Photo via Columbia Pictures)
<em>10 Things I Hate About You</em>
As if a young Heath Ledger and Julia Stiles weren’t enough to draw us in, this teenage retelling of Othello’s The Taming of the Shrew has practically become a coming of age must-see with its angsty poems and wacky house party scenes (and yes, there’s a cheesy song and dance number — score!). (Photo via Buena Vista Pictures)
7. Save the Last Dance: What can we say — Julia Stiles tugs at the heartstrings! As one half of a pair of modern-day star-crossed lovers, Julia (an aspiring Juilliard dance student) and her street-wise beau (played by Sean Patrick Thomas) come together despite the odds and racial tensions. (Photo via Paramount)
S
: For anyone who’s ever believed in fate, this one’s for you. Kate Beckinsale and John Cusack have the perfect meet-cute, only to leave a secondary meeting to chance when life gets in the way, proving once and for all that timing is absolutely everything when it comes to love. (Photo via Serendipity/Miramax)
<em>Elizabethtown</em>
Starting a movie out with a failed business venture and a funeral may seem as far from romantic as you can get, but trust us when we say that Elizabethtown more than makes up for it with the chemistry seen between Orlando Bloom and Kirsten Dunst as they fall in love (which, BTDubs, was obviously real, as the pair dated for a time after the film). This one’s a bit of a love letter to life, really. (Photo via Paramount Pictures)
Welcome to Selfmade Finance School, our new money series with Block Advisors to help small business owners with their tax, bookkeeping, and payroll needs year-round. This week, we explore the tax implications of bringing family members into your business.
The question for today is this: Does hiring your family members make sense for your business? Let me be clear. This is not a piece about whether hiring your family members makes sense for your relationships with those family members. As someone who is part of a family business, I could fill up a lot more than 600 words on my opinions about that. For today's purposes, we focus on whether it makes sense from an overall "good business and tax implication" perspective. As it turns out, there is a decent amount of tax nuance when it comes to employing your family. Let's break it down based on relationship to the employee:
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Spouses Who Are In Business Together
Personally, if I had to be in business with my husband, it would not go well. However, many couples build viable, strong businesses together and I say, good for them! Depending on how you have your business entity structured, it will make a big difference on the tax treatment of you and your spouse working as partners. Because a business jointly owned and operated by a married couple is generally treated as a partnership for Federal tax purposes, the spouses must comply with filing and record keeping requirements imposed on partnerships and their partners. The election to file two Schedule C (Form 1040) forms, (one for each spouse) permits certain married co-owners to avoid filing partnership returns, provided that each spouse separately reports a share of all the businesses' items of income, gain, loss, deduction, and credit. Under the election, both spouses will be subject to self-employment tax and on net earnings from self-employment and receive credit for Social Security earnings.
One Spouse Employs Another
If you have a dynamic where your spouse is an employee of your business, then your spouse's wages are subject to income tax withholding, Social Security and Medicare taxes. If you are self-employed (not a corporation or a partnership), your spouse's pay does not have to be included in your federal unemployment tax account (FUTA) contributions and payments. However, if your business is a corporation or a partnership you must include that spouse's pay in your unemployment tax contribution calculation.
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You Employ Your Child
First, let's be clear. I work in my family business, but I am an adult, so I am treated just like a normal employee. However, if you, for example, run a family restaurant and want to hire your children under 18 to work for you, there are some tax benefits. But first, you should check with your state for rules on how many hours minors can work (in non-agricultural jobs) and reference the Fair Labor Standards Act for information on limitations on the kinds of work children can perform.
"This is an often overlooked or under-utilized strategy. Paying your children for true services they provide in your business can be a powerful tax-saving tool," says Cathi Reed, Block Advisors Regional Director. "If you are a sole-proprietorship or single member LLC, and the child is less than 18 years of age, the business is not required to withhold FICA or payroll taxes. The child can use his or her standard deduction against income you pay."
You Hire Your Parent
Oh dear. If you are brave enough to do this, know that you will need to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes on your parent's wages and make the appropriate withholdings, but you don't have to pay unemployment taxes. Now all you have to do is convince your parent that you are the boss. Have fun with that!
Is Hiring Family Members Worth It For The Tax Benefits?
"There are some positive tax advantages to hiring family members. It's important to treat a family member like any other employee. Hiring your children can result in substantial savings for businesses. Make sure your child has real, age-appropriate work to do and a reasonable pay rate, comparable to other employees. Consult with a Block Advisors small business certified tax pro to ensure that you are complying with all requirements," advises Reed. "Block Advisors, a team within H&R Block, is dedicated to meeting the tax, bookkeeping and payroll needs of small business owners year-round. To start working with the tax experts at Block Advisors, visit blockadvisors.com."
In my opinion, you should not hire a family member solely because of the tax benefits. You should always hire based on whether that person is right for the job and keep in mind how this hire could materially impact your relationship with that person and others in your family. Finally, as I mentioned, make sure you have a tax professional on your team when making these determinations. As you can see, things can get a little tricky!
*All details were sourced from IRS.gov and blockadvisors.com
The opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect those held by Kestra Investment Services, LLC or Kestra Advisory Services, LLC. This is for general information only and is not intended to provide specific investment advice or recommendations for any individual. It is suggested that you consult your financial professional, attorney, or tax advisor with regards to your individual situation. Comments concerning the past performance are not intended to be forward looking and should not be viewed as an indication of future results. Securities offered through Kestra Investment Services, LLC (Kestra IS), member FINRA/SIPC. Investment advisory services offered through Kestra Advisory Services, LLC (Kestra AS), an affiliate of Kestra IS. O'Keeffe Financial Partners and any other entity listed herein is not affiliated with Kestra IS or Kestra AS Investor Disclosures: https://bit.ly/KF-Disclosures