NAI Miami | Fort Lauderdale Pays It Forward South Dade Style

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In efforts to keep our staff safe and healthy and give back to our community a group of amazing NAI Miami | Fort Lauderdale team members really stepped it up!

On Monday the NAI Miami | Fort Lauderdale team received this email from our CEO Jeremy Larkin:

We are fortunate to live in Miami and be part of a growing urban area which is so close to the largest winter vegetable and fruit farms in the United States. As a result of the pandemic, these farmers are unable to sell their crops to their usual clients, the local restaurants, airlines and cruise lines for obvious reasons. Rather than leave these crops in the fields, some farms are harvesting them and offering the harvest to the local community in bulk quantity. Bonnie and Jeff Buell volunteered to get up at the crack of dawn today and go wait an hour in line to purchase fruits and vegetables.

Please take what you and your families need. If you can, pay it forward so we can continue our NAI Miami Food Pantry.

Be safe. Be well. Take care of your families and yourself.

The response was incredible!

Together the NAI Miami | Fort Lauderdale team packed bags, coordinated deliveries and even collected enough money to do a second run!

CEO Jeremy Larkin also shared this quotes:

“And that is what the economy is really about: not stocks, not bonds, or corporate profits but human potential.” Umair

It is through challenging moments that your character is forged and one develops the characteristics required to evolve in our paths to personal and spiritual maturity. These are moments of clarity to understand what you are and are not. “Suffering introduces you to yourself and reminds you that you are not the person you thought you were.” Paul Tillich

We are so much more than we imagine ourselves to be.

We hope by sharing our experience we motivate others in our community to step up.

If you are, or know of any other farms or restaurants setting up distributions please contact us!

Enjoy Your Weekend (Virtually)

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We’re all working together to practice social distancing and stay safe these days. But social distancing doesn’t mean we can’t be social, and many businesses are offering new ways to do so virtually.

We thought it might be helpful to share a few options to engage with while you are staying safe at home. From virtual museum tours to art classes to meal delivery services, here’s a list of activities happening now or coming soon.

Miami is ready to be explored – virtually that is .

https://www.miamiandbeaches.com/events/virtualmiami

Some of the best local museums have uploaded their exhibits to their websites, so you can peruse some of the world’s best art from your computer.

Perez Art Museum Miami Digital Museum https://pamm.org/digital-museum

The Bass Museum of Art Virtual Tours: https://thebass.org/education/virtual-tours/

For those with kids at home, we know being cooped up can be even more challenging. For those restless tots, check out virtual expeditions from Jungle Island.

https://www.instagram.com/jungleisland/

https://www.timeout.com/miami/news/eco-park-jungle-island-is-now-offering-free-virtual-workshops-for-kids-032320

Beaches are closed, but that doesn’t mean you can’t catch some rays. TimeOut has the solution: You can now work on your virtual tan along 825 miles of the Florida coastline.

https://www.timeout.com/miami/news/find-your-beach-you-can-now-virtually-chill-on-825-miles-of-pristine-florida-coastline-033020

A bunch of local Miami restaurants and chefs are stepping up to offer amazing meal prep kits delivered straight to your door. Now you have no excuse to order pizza every night.

https://www.timeout.com/miami/news/buy-these-diy-meal-kits-and-cook-your-favorite-miami-restaurant-meal-at-home-032720

Wine tasting, happy hour, and cocktail classes have gone virtual. Check out this complete list of local virtual events for all thing boozy.

https://miami.eater.com/2020/3/27/21196741/best-online-happy-hour-classes-wine-tastings-miami

The most gorgeous natural light phenomenon, The Aurora Borealis (or, Northern Lights), has made its way to the small screen.

What better way to relax at home than by catching a light show from the comfort of your couch?

https://www.timeout.com/usa/news/live-stream-the-northern-lights-from-your-couch-tonight-032320

What is Actually Due April 15?

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Below please find some great guidance from one of our community partners, Cherry Bekaert, regarding upcoming tax deadlines for 2020. If you have any questions concerning taxes feel free to email us at

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 and we will connect you with your local Cherry Bekaert office.

The IRS has issued numerous postponements and extensions of deadlines for returns, payments, retirement plan contributions, and other items normally due April 15, 2020.

Below is a list of items that still have an April 15 deadline:

  • Estate Tax Return (Form 706)
  • Split-Interest Trust Information Return (Form 5227)
  • Corporation Application for Quick Refund of Overpayment of Estimated Tax (Form 4466)
  • Refund claims for which the refund statute of limitations expires on April 15

Additionally, there are certain items on which the IRS has yet to issue guidance. Therefore, out of an abundance of caution, we recommend that the following items, or an application for an extension of time, should be filed by April 15:

  • Annual Return To Report Transactions With Foreign Trusts and Receipt of Certain Foreign Gifts (Form 3520)

  • Application for Change in Accounting Method (Form 3115)

There are other deadlines occurring after April 15, but before July 15, that have not been extended. These include:

  • Payroll tax returns (Forms 941), due April 30
  • Excise tax returns (Form 720), due April 30
  • Tax-Exempt organization returns (Forms 990), due May 15
  • IRA Contribution Information (Forms 5498 series), due June 1
  • Fiscal-year or short-year returns due May 15 or June 15
  • Second quarter estimates, due June 15
  • Income Tax Return of a Foreign Corporation* (Form 1120-F), due June 15
  • Nonresident Alien Income Tax Return** (Form 1040-NR), due June 15

In addition to these federal due dates, some states still have not postponed or extended due dates for filing returns and/or paying taxes. To see the current list of state due dates, please click here.

There are still advantages to filing your return by April 15, including the ability to accelerate refunds, if applicable, receive important cash flow planning information, and carry back losses based on the recently passed legislation. Note that you can still file your return by April 15 but postpone the payment of any taxes until July 15.

Most IRS Returns, Payments, and Other Items Have Been Postponed to July 15

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Below please find updated information from one of our community partners, Cherry Bekaert, regarding upcoming tax deadlines for 2020. If you have any questions concerning taxes feel free to email us at

of****@na******.com











 and we will connect you with your local Cherry Bekaert office.

The IRS recently issued Notice 20-23, which amplifies the relief provided in earlier notices and provides for an almost comprehensive postponement to July 15, 2020, for federal income tax returns, payments, and other time-sensitive acts normally due between April 1, 2020, and July 15, 2020. The items, otherwise due between April 1, 2020, and July 15, 2020, that were noted in our last guidance that have now been postponed to July 15 include:

  • Estate Tax Return (Form 706)

  • Split-Interest Trust Information Return (Form 5227)

  • Corporation Application for Quick Refund of Overpayment of Estimated Tax (Form 4466)

  • Refund claims for which the refund statute of limitations expires between April 1 and July 15

  • Annual Return To Report Transactions With Foreign Trusts and Receipt of Certain Foreign Gifts (Form 3520)

  • Application for Change in Accounting Method (Form 3115)

  • Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990)

  • IRA Contribution Information (Form 5498 series)

  • Income Tax Return of a Foreign Corporation (Form 1120-F)

  • Nonresident Alien Income Tax Return (Form 1040-NR)

  • Fiscal-year or short-year returns

  • Second quarter estimates

The items that have NOT been postponed until July 15 are:

  • Employer’s Quarterly Federal Tax Return (Form 941)

  • Quarterly Federal Excise Tax Return (Form 720)

The IRS has provided guidance on additional tax acts that have been postponed, including Qualified Opportunity Zone investments, 1031 like-kind exchanges, applications for tentative refunds, and elections under section 163(j), and provided relief to partnerships to be able to file amended returns.

MORE INFORMATION ON TAX ACT EXTENSIONS

There are distinct advantages to starting your tax return preparation process now if you have not already done so, including the acceleration of any current-year refunds you may be due. Furthermore, recently enacted legislation has created significant tax planning opportunities to amend prior year returns for additional refunds as well as reduce current year taxes. Most of these tax planning opportunities require significant analysis and many require separate studies. We strongly encourage you to start now.

Note that you can still file your return but postpone the payment of any federal taxes until July 15.

4 Tips for Designing an Energy-Efficient Commercial Space

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Written by Lana Hawkins

When running a small business, even the smallest amount of saved energy can be important. Lighting, heating, air-conditioning – all of these things increase your utility bill. What’s more, but they pose a threat to our environment and anything you can do to aid in helping preserve the planet matters. Therefore, if you’re designing a commercial space for your company, making it energy efficient is a great idea. Listed below are four tips that can help.

Invest in new equipment

Older generations of technology tend to use much more energy than the new ones. Just take a look at fridges where olds ones can use up $300 worth of energy per year. On the other hand, the newest generation of fridges uses only $75 per year. Commercial spaces are generally full of equipment that this rule stands for, and investing in new equipment is extremely important. When talking about fridges, you can get mini-fridges for your commercial space that only spend $10 worth of energy a year. Opt for new PCs, monitors and printers and reducing your energy consumption will be a real piece of cake.

Think about heating

Another thing you might want to do is to consider changing the ways you heat your commercial space. The first step you can take is making sure that the office is properly insulated. If it is, it will require less heating to make the place warm. Look for the gaps between the windows and walls and fill them up if you find them. These gaps let cold air leak in and reduce the room temperature. If you’re ready to spend more, investing in double-glazed windows is also something you can’t go wrong with. Last but not least, consider getting a smart thermostat that’ll make controlling the temperature much easier.

Consider your lighting options

Incandescent light bulbs use by far more energy than some other lighting options. CFL and LED are the most popular and most energy-efficient lighting options available right now. If every household in the U.S. replaced just one of their incandescent light bulbs with one of these, it would have the same impact on the environment as removing 1 million cars from the streets. This makes relying on LEDs in your commercial space the perfect option for your energy bill. Turn to experts who design lighting fixtures for businesses to make sure you end up with the best lighting in your commercial space. Keep in mind that good industrial light fixtures can improve working conditions and help your employees be more productive.

Make small adjustments

Sometimes, it only takes a few adjustments to save energy. Most modern offices only use power strips when necessary. If you introduce these things to your commercial space, you’ll make it easier for you and your staff to unplug appliances that are not in use. This prevents equipment from using the “phantom loads” of energy like they do when plugged in directly. Another smart idea is to use a different type of printer cartridges. For example, toner cartridges are a much better choice as they require less energy. They’re also less expensive, making them a perfect option for your efficient office space.

Follow the four tips we covered in this post and designing an energy-efficient commercial space won’t be tough. You’ll end up with more money left in your pocket, and you’ll help preserve the planet along the way. Remember that there are always new ways to make your commercial space more energy-efficient and you should continue to explore them. Even the smallest adjustments will help you make your business more energy efficient.