Part two of Tax Hacks That Save You Thousands, and this is where it gets e-commerce specific.
Carlos is joined again by Rachel Phillips, entrepreneur, founder of Fully Accountable, and Senior VP of Financial Solutions at Belay, for the back half of the list. These are the three hacks aimed squarely at sellers who carry inventory, buy equipment, and pay vendors all year long.
You can start here without hearing part one. Go back for it afterward, because the business structure conversation is what makes everything downstream actually work.
WHAT'S COVERED
Hack 4: Section 179 bonus depreciation. Equipment, vehicles, computers and office furniture written off immediately instead of phased out over three to five years. Rachel walks the math on financing a 100,000 dollar machine and taking the full deduction this year, and why the 2026 ceiling matters most to anyone whose cash is tied up in inventory.
Hack 5: Prepaid expenses. How to look at next year's costs in October and November, go negotiate with your vendors and software providers, prepay in December, and walk away with a better rate and a lower taxable income off the same dollars. Carlos gets honest about why he has never done this well, and what it actually feels like to send a CFO after relationships he built himself.
Hack 6: The old faithfuls. The small ones that only work when you stack them:
- HSAs, including the distribution rule almost nobody knows about
- 529 plans, even for a child who has not been born yet
- Employing your kids without putting them in your Facebook ads
- The home office
- The 6,000 pound vehicle rule
- Keeping a clean chart of accounts so you are not reconstructing a year of expenses in April
Plus where AI genuinely helps with your books, and the exact place it falls down for sellers juggling eight different kinds of Amazon transactions.
Rachel's book pick: The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah.
CONNECT WITH RACHEL
Find her on LinkedIn, or reach her by email at Belay.
CONNECT WITH BELAY
Text WIZARDS to 55123 for resources and a direct line to their team.
Belay is a proud sponsor of the Wizards of Ecom community.
