Taxes

I have for decades believed that erudite tax strategy is the “master wealth skill”, and that those who develop or find true expertise can compound their development and preservation of net worth by a significant factor. Getting this message out is a primary reason I write so much on tax, even though my primary professional

A pharmacist counts pain medication at a South Portland pharmacy. (Photo by Gabe Souza/Portland Press Herald via Getty Images) Getty Images For states, opioids may become the new tobacco. That is to say, states increasingly believe lawsuits against drugmakers and others involved in the sale, marketing, and manufacture of the pain-killers are a potential source

Share to facebook Share to twitter Share to linkedin The Golden State Warriors are privately financing a new, $1.4 billion arena that the NBA team will move into next year. Sinclair Broadcast Group just bought 21 regional sports networks and Fox College Sports network from Walt Disney for $9.6 billion. While the price tags for

Text sign showing Fiduciary Duty. Conceptual photo A legal obligation to act in the best interest of other. Getty An almost decade-long discussion to further consumer protections took a step today, but not necessarily a step forward. The SEC commissioners voted on June 5 to push forward a final rule aimed at expanding and clarifying

Social Security may be one of your largest assets. What and when you collect will make a huge difference to your lifetime benefits. Today’s column examines spousal benefit rates if the other spouse filed for early reduced retirement benefits, who can still file restricted applications and when, spousal benefits before retirement benefits, widow(er)’s benefits after

Shutterstock There are two opposing arguments made by tax professionals for applying Section 199A qualified business income (QBI) treatment on 2018 tax returns for traders with trader tax status (TTS). Those for say Section 199A applies because Section 864(b)(2) is limited to nonresident traders only. U.S. resident TTS traders meet the requirements of Section 864(c)(3) “Other

Taxpayers can and do win hobby loss cases and advisers can guide them in going into the game with a winning hand.  That’s my conclusion from a pretty deep dive into Code Section 183-Activities not engaged in for profit.  I have been writing about Section 183 cases since my earliest blogging days and it has

ATLANTA, GEORGIA – MAY 19: Robert F. Smith onstage during the Morehouse College 135th Commencement. (Photo by Marcus Ingram/Getty Images) Getty Images Lives were changed during a 2019 commencement address at Morehouse College when self-made billionaire Robert F. Smith announced that he was paying the student debt for the entire class. Shortly afterward, those students, potential donors,

Social Security may be one of your largest assets. What and when you collect will make a huge difference to your lifetime benefits. Today’s column addresses the availability of spousal benefits after filing and suspending, the ability of first one spouse and then the other to draw spousal benefits, retirement benefits before spousal benefits and

Unhappy aged lady showing thumbs-down gesture, unhappy with state government Getty The new 401k/IRA modification rules that have passed the House of Representatives and are now being taken up by the Senate will provide a number of improvements and simplification for high net worth taxpayers, while also taking away the ability to “stretch out” distributions

I lost power in my condo yesterday in an intense rainstorm and I wondered if my phone and computer were charged enough, and if I’d have to be in the dark all night, reading by candlelight.  It was a good reminder to be grateful for the electricity we in developed countries take for granted every

Getty Last year, after pushback from taxpayers and tax professionals, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) promised to revisit form W-4, Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate. The IRS issued a statement confirming that “the Treasury Department and the IRS will incorporate important changes into a new version of the Form W-4, Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate, for 2020.”

Mexico and the US. So close to each other and so far from God. Getty Pobre México. Tan lejos de Dios, tan cerca de los Estados Unidos. Poor Mexico. So far from God, so close to the United States, has been a lamentation oft repeated by Mexicans to describe their fate of being intertwined with

What if I told you I’d found a way to protect your portfolio from this twitchy market without giving up big gains (and income)? My guess is you’d be interested—if a little skeptical. I get that. A skeptic is a good thing to be, in investing and pretty much everything else. So let me tell

Photographer: Yorgos Karahalis/Bloomberg © 2017 Bloomberg Finance LP Greece’s stock market rose sharply this week, following a big defeat of the ruling leftist coalition in Regional and Euroelections last Sunday. The Global Shares X FTSE shares (GREK) have gained 9.10%, as most financial markets around the world lost ground. Banks were particularly strong, leading the

Having a judge refer to an IRS regulation as “goofy” is not a good thing.  Fortunately, it has only happened once and not that long ago.  In 2016 Judge Richard Posner in overturning a Tax Court decision in the case of Merrill Roberts wrote: We mustn’t be too hard on the Tax Court. It felt itself

Government Pension Liabilities May Total $5.2 Trillion Nationwide Texas Public Policy Foundation, Pension Tracker Pension Tracker, a project of the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research led by former California State Assemblyman Joe Nation, Ph.D., is out with its updated assessment of the nation’s unfunded state and local government pension fund liabilities. It’s not a

Getty Getty As Americans filed their 2018 tax returns, the full impact of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) became clear: the days of itemizing their deductions were history.  For many, it was a shock.  In one’s financial life, there is often a progression from the standard deduction to actually being able to itemize. 

Shutterstock Shutterstock There are various types of financial products with different tax treatments, and Section 1256 contracts have the best overall tax advantages. Tax treatment of financial products affects investors, traders, and hedge funds. But sadly, many tax preparers overlook essential differences in tax treatment for these groups, resulting in overpayments. Education is key. It’s

Washington Dc: Internal Revenue Service federal building Washington DC USA. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The government agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury. The Getty Is the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) overwhelmed? It’s a question I’ve been mulling as I’ve sat