8 minute read
Tax Calendar
Note: As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, some due dates have been adjusted. The below dates are accurate as of March 27, 2021. Please check our website at www.greenstonefcs.com for updates.
APRIL
15
1st quarter estimate is due for 2021 for individuals that pay estimated taxes. Corporations file a 2020 calendar year tax return (Form 1120) and pay any tax due. If not able to file, file Form 7004 to request an automatic 6-month extension. Corporations deposit the 1st installment of estimated income tax for 2021.
Non-farm employers file Form 941 for the 1st quarter to report Social Security, Medicare, and withholding.
2nd quarter estimate is due for 2021 for individuals that pay estimated taxes. Corporations deposit the 2nd installment of estimated income tax for 2021.
2nd quarter estimates are due for 2021 for individuals that pay estimated taxes.
and break it down into reports,” he says. “And I work with our lending department to supply a lot of information to fulfill their requirements, whether it be balance sheets, or profit or loss statements or if it’s capital asset schedules or tax returns.” While both departments are under the same GreenStone umbrella, Vandivier says the information is kept confidential and customers must sign disclosure forms for information to be shared. Once that’s done, a lot of information can flow back and forth, he says. Using GreenStone’s tax and accounting services allows farm owners to move quickly on financing if necessary. Daniel Gitter, GreenStone’s vice president of commercial lending who works with the farm, says open lines of communication benefit all. “By providing good quality information, we are providing valuable input into decision making. Whether it’s how we structure a loan or the timing of a capital purchase. All of this helps to come to a mutual conclusion everyone is happy with.” In addition to monthly meetings, there also is an inclusive, team meeting quarterly. “We bring in all our vendors, from the person who’s going to service our dairy equipment, to our agronomist, to our nutritionist and those involved in our breeding program,” Heather says. “Dan (Gitter) and our dairy consultant help run the meeting to report on how things are running and to tackle any issues.” Even though it’s a large dairy, it’s still family owned and oriented – that means there’s always food at these meetings, including Carrie’s famous clam chowder. To help in decision making, GreenStone also offers some benchmarking through its credit department. “As an example, we can anonymously group 500- to 1000-cow dairies and show you how you compare to the rest of that peer group. Is your production lower than normal or is that higher? Maybe a farmer needs to look into lowering his cost of production, or maybe his feed expenses are too high,” Dan explains.
Looking ahead
For the future, Heather says the farm is looking into manure digesters. “We are committed to reducing our carbon footprint and being environmentally sound. We’re getting insights from the staff at GreenStone and seeking advice.” Carrie adds, “We value the opinion of our lenders. And Scott and Dan have a great relationship. They text a lot. And Eric has been great to work with. It’s not always just about business; they’ve become like family. I’ve recommended GreenStone to other farmers.” Scott says he enjoys working with knowledgeable people that understand the farm, everything from buildings and land to equipment. Most recently, GreenStone assisted with the national Paycheck Protection Program, which helped the farm pay employees when milk prices plummeted during the onslaught of COVID. And, as the farm began transitioning to the next generation two years ago, GreenStone offered resources to help with the process. While the operation, with about 50 fulltime and 30 seasonal employees, has continued to advance and grow, the Matsche family is most proud to be farming as a family, in which they include their employees. Scott and Carrie now have 11 grandchildren. “My grandkids get off the bus here, and they’ll come right to the office,” says Carrie, who calls it a blessing to be a part of their lives. The Matsche’s think there’s a pretty good chance their dairy legacy will continue. ■
We value the opinion of our lenders. It’s not always just about business; they’ve become like family.
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MAY
17
JUNE
15
JULY 15
Individuals file a 2020 income tax return (Form 1040) and pay any tax due. If not able to file, file form 4868 to request an automatic 6-month extension. If tax is due it must be paid with the Form 4868.
i Tech Tip:
Trust but verify
Matthew Cosgrove GreenStone VP of Information Security The previous few months have been busy for cybersecurity professionals. We have seen two large scale alleged nationalstate cyber-attacks that have impacted tens of thousands of organizations throughout the globe across every industry. 2020 ended with a supply-chain attack against SolarWinds, that impacted over 18,000 organizations that used their network monitoring software. This attacked allowed the cyber-criminals the ability to spy on state and federal computer networks. Then in March, Microsoft was impacted by 4 zero-day vulnerabilities that have left over 30,000 on-premises Exchange servers compromised. An Exchange server is used by organizations for email communication, among other things. A single Exchange server can host hundreds of individual email accounts. This means that the number of individual email accounts compromised will be unknown for months if not years to come. Fortunately, GreenStone was not impacted by either of these recent cyber-attacks. We followed the prescribed guidance from CyberSecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the vendors. The sheer number of newly compromised email accounts mean consumers everywhere could begin to see a tsunami of phishing emails from legitimate email accounts. These phishing emails could contain very specific or sensitive information that normally only the sender would know. This might include loan information or other sensitive conversation information. According to a report released by NTT Communications “59% of phishing attacks in the Americas relate to finance” (NTTSecurity, 2018). The reason the cybercriminals keep doing this is because of the endless potential for financial gain.
Why is this important? This influx of newly exposed data and personal information provides scammers the perfect foundation to build communication that is tailored towards you. On top of that, they already have access to a treasure trove of public records, including information like your principal mortgage amount and the institution that hold the mortgage note. These details are public information, and is not only used by cybercriminals but also by companies trying to solicit you with all types of goods and services. There is a handful of ways that companies can obtain that information. One potential way is they purchase that information from the financial service provider – GreenStone does NOT sell any of your personal or financial information. Another way is they obtain that information from creditors after you met a certain credit criterion, this is often referred to as a “prescreened” offer. How do you protect yourself from falling victim to these attacks? With any email message – trust but verify, never open email attachments or click on URLs from senders you do not know or from emails you were not expecting. It only takes one wrong click, and you could end up with a computer that has now caught a virus or ended up providing your username and password into a “look alike” login page for your email account – all without even knowing it. With any mortgage mailer that comes in “snail mail,” knowing how they got the information goes a long way. Most of these mailers catch us by surprise because we are unaware that the information that is on the letter is public information. When I received my first mortgage mailer, I was shocked that this company - which I did not have a business relationship with – knew what I thought was sensitive information like my mortgage principle. In reality, I now know this information is regulated to be reported and becomes public information. The Federal Trade Commission highlights on their web page two steps individuals can take to help reduce the number or unsolicited mailers - https://www. consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0127-gettingmortgage-offers. 1. Call 1-888-5-OPTOUT (1-888-567-8688) or visit www.optoutprescreen.com to opt out of prescreen offers. 2. Put your phone number on the federal government’s National Do Not Call
Registry to reduce the telemarketing calls you get at home. To register your phone number or to get information about the registry, visit www.donotcall.gov, or call 888-382-1222 from the phone number you want to register. There is no magic bullet that will completely or entirely eliminate all risk nor solve all the issues. To help, look for the clues that the mail is junk mail. An example is irregular text – like all “CAPITALS” within sections of the mailer your name, mortgage amount or lender; or the mailer not visually reflecting the same logo or design as most mailers you might get from your lender – these can be giveaways that your information came off a purchased list. Regardless how “real” it looks, you can always call your local lender to verify its authenticity! Enjoy the beautiful spring weather and save a tree or two by opting out of these junk mailers. ■ Sources NTTSecurity. (2018). 2018 Global Threat Inteligence Report. Retrieved from Phishing Box:
3515 West Road East Lansing, MI 48823
Spring feature highlight...
Mac and Ashley Wards' vision of transforming a family farmhouse on 10 acres in Parma, MI was recently brought to life with the help of a construction loan from GreenStone.
