Tax Extenders Bill Passes Congress, President Expected to Sign into Law On December 16, the Senate brought to an end this year’s tax extenders drama, passing a bill that extends all but a few tax provisions that expired at the end of 2013 through the end the current year. The President is expected to sign…
Read MoreWhat does it mean when you hear the phrase “effective tax rate?” If you are the lender, it means how much interest you are earning. It’s also called the true interest rate, the yield to maturity on a bond, or the internal rate of return. But if you are the one borrowing the money, the…
Read MoreWhen you tie the knot, your financial lives will change. Marriage is one of those life events that can really affect your money and tax situation. If you are about to wed, here are a couple of things you’ll want to consider when it comes to taxes and household cash flow. You can now elect…
Read MoreHow many of us save and invest with an eye on tax implications? Not that many of us, according to a recent survey from Russell Investments (the global asset manager overseeing the Russell 2000). In the opening quarter of 2014, Russell polled financial services professionals and asked them how many of their clients had inquired…
Read MoreThere has been a lot of press recently about corporate tax inversions where U.S. companies relocate to other countries to save taxes, but there is a technique I like to think of as a personal tax inversion that helps individuals decrease their tax bill rather than corporations. I wrote about this strategy for Forbes: Avoid…
Read MoreWhy sell shares when you can gift them? If you have appreciated stocks in your portfolio (and you hold them in a non-qualified account that doesn’t get special tax treatment), then you might want to consider donating those shares to charity rather than selling them someday. Why, exactly? Donating appreciated stock to a tax-exempt charity…
Read MoreYear after year, criminals try to scam certain taxpayers. Year after year, certain taxpayers resort to schemes in an effort to put one over on the IRS. These cons occur year-round, not just during tax season. In response to their frequency, the IRS has listed the 12 biggest offenses – tax scams that you should…
Read MoreAmerica is enduring a data breach epidemic. As 2013 ended, the federal Bureau of Justice Statistics released its 2012 Victims of Identity Theft report. Its statistics were sobering. About one in 14 Americans aged 16 or older had been defrauded or preyed upon in the past 12 months, more than 16.6 million people. Just 8% of…
Read MoreLocation, location, location … It matters when it comes to real estate, and it also matters when it comes to the way you hold and invest your retirement savings. You can’t control what happens with the tax code, but you can control how your savings are held. As various types of investments are taxed at…
Read MoreA little phrase that may mean a big difference. When you read about investing and other financial topics, you occasionally see the phrase “tax efficiency” or a reference to a “tax-sensitive” way of investing. What does that really mean? The after-tax return vs. the pre-tax return. Everyone wants their investment portfolio to perform well. But…
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