Lawmakers in Washington, particularly those aligned with the Republican Party, like to talk about tax cuts. Which is why you might be hearing more birds and crickets chirping than usual around Capitol Hill. Because, with all this federal debt piling up, it’ll be a long time before another bill like the Tax Cuts and Jobs […]
We’re going to discuss, rationally and without political vitriol, the shortcomings and virtues of the wealth tax proposed by presidential candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). This critical evaluation will be rooted in what Warren’s campaign website calls the “Ultra-Millionaire Tax.” Our assessment is not favorable, but unlike many who denigrate the plan, we actually read […]
Despite all the hype about the benefits of tax reform at the federal level, wage earners across America have learned to take the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 with a grain of SALT. In this case, SALT is an acronym for “state and local taxes.” Until January 1, 2018, these were deductible, to […]
You’re probably among the 60 percent of U.S. homeowners whose property is overvalued for tax purposes, at least according to one study. According to another, you’re also probably one of the 98% who hasn’t done anything to address this injustice. But there’s plenty you can and should do to trim your property tax bill because […]
If you’re like most of us, you haven’t thought too deeply about your retirement savings for some number of years. You might have made a selection on your W-4 form the day you were on-boarded and haven’t given it a whole lot of attention since. You get your periodic statement from your retirement plan, and, as […]
In any given year, it’s good practice to take a look at your payroll deductions. But it’s even more urgent now, considering the seismic shift in tax policy from 2017 to 2018. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 might reduce your tax burden and is intended to simplify your filing. But if you’re […]
I’m sure most of you are glad the tax filing deadline has come and gone, although I suspect there are plenty of you that have postponed the inevitable with an extension. Either way, just getting through the April deadline seems to remove much of the anxiety surrounding taxes in general and can allow us to […]
TAX FILING SEASON This time of the year can really give us heartburn. The heartburn can come from a variety of things, but two of them can come from having to accumulate all your tax filing documents and preparing your tax return. I would make the argument that accumulating the documents is worse than preparing […]
Albert Camus, the French philosopher and author who won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1957, probably had October on his mind when he wrote: “Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.” Camus died in January of 1960, so his last October among the living was in 1959. If he’d have […]
Recently, there has been renewed discussion about whether employee investors should make traditional pre-tax contributions into their employer-provided 401k plan or take advantage of the Roth 401k option. Over the past several years, many employers have added a Roth 401k option to their retirement plan offering, which is the basis for the increased discussion. What […]
Most People Confuse Tax Deferred (will be taxed at some point) with Tax Free (will never be taxed) When most investors hear “tax free income”, they immediately think about investing in municipal bonds which are free from federal income taxation. There are many financial calculators for the tax free equivalent yield when investing in municipal […]
This month I’d like to hit on a topic that most of us avoid because it can be hard to talk about. That topic is death, and more specifically, planning our own funeral, memorial service, and burial or cremation. On a personal note, I’ve been through this process in just the last two months with […]