Category: Planning
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Buying and Selling Mutual Fund Shares: Avoid These Tax Pitfalls
If you invest in mutual funds, be aware of some potential pitfalls involved in buying and selling shares. Surprise sales You may already have made taxable “sales” of part of your mutual fund investment without knowing it. One way this can happen is if your mutual fund allows you to write checks against your fund…
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Hiring Your Minor Children This Summer? Reap Tax and Non-Tax Benefits
If you’re a business owner and you hire your children this summer, you can obtain tax breaks and other nontax benefits. The kids can gain on-the-job experience, spend time with you, save for college and learn how to manage money. And you may be able to: Shift your high-taxed income into tax-free or low-taxed income,…
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Retiring Soon? Recent Law Changes May Have an Impact on Your Retirement Savings
If you’re approaching retirement, you probably want to ensure the money you’ve saved in retirement plans lasts as long as possible. If so, be aware that a law was recently enacted that makes significant changes to retirement accounts. The SECURE Act, which was signed into law in late 2019, made a number of changes of…
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Maximize Your 401(k) Plan to Save for Retirement
Contributing to a tax-advantaged retirement plan can help you reduce taxes and save for retirement. If your employer offers a 401(k) or Roth 401(k) plan, contributing to it is a smart way to build a substantial sum of money. If you’re not already contributing the maximum allowed, consider increasing your contribution rate. Because of tax-deferred…
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Weighing Risks vs. Rewards of a Mezzanine Loan
To say that most small to mid-size businesses have at least considered taking out a loan this year would probably be an understatement. The economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has lowered many companies’ revenue, but it may have also opened opportunities for others to expand or pivot into more profitable areas. If your company…
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ESOPs Offer Businesses a Variety of Potential Benefits
Wouldn’t it be great if your employees worked as if they owned the company? An employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) could make this a reality. Under an ESOP, employee participants take part ownership of the business through a retirement savings arrangement. Meanwhile, the business and its existing owner(s) can benefit from some tax breaks, an…
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Will You Have to Pay Tax on Your Social Security Benefits?
If you’re getting close to retirement, you may wonder: Are my Social Security benefits going to be taxed? And if so, how much will you have to pay? It depends on your other income. If you’re taxed, between 50% and 85% of your benefits could be taxed. (This doesn’t mean you pay 85% of your…
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Take a Fresh Look at Your Company’s Brand
A strong, discernible brand is important for every business. Even a company that never undertakes a formal branding effort will, over time, establish a brand through its communications with customers and interactions with the public. For this reason, it’s a good idea to regularly take a fresh look at your brand and determine whether tweaks…
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Tax Implications of Employer-Provided Life Insurance
Does your employer provide you with group term life insurance? If so, and if the coverage is higher than $50,000, this employee benefit may create undesirable income tax consequences for you. “Phantom income” The first $50,000 of group term life insurance coverage that your employer provides is excluded from taxable income and doesn’t add anything…
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What Qualifies as a “Coronavirus-Related Distribution” from a Retirement Plan?
As you may have heard, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act allows “qualified” people to take certain “coronavirus-related distributions” from their retirement plans without paying tax. So how do you qualify? In other words, what’s a coronavirus-related distribution? Early distribution basics In general, if you withdraw money from an IRA or eligible…