This news was alarming to savers who worried their own bank accounts could be at risk and investors who feared a wider financial crisis. To help restore confidence in the U.S. financial system, the federal government pledged to make all depositors whole and to support other banks that might face liquidity issues stemming from the […]
HOT TOPIC: Bank Failures Shine Light on Interest Rate Risks Read More »
American Opportunity Credit The American Opportunity tax credit is worth up to $2,500 per student per year for qualified tuition and fees (not room and board) for the first four years of college. It is calculated as 100% of the first $2,000 of qualified tuition and fees plus 25% of the next $2,000 of such
Are You Eligible for Any of These College-Related Federal Tax Benefits? Read More »
Keep Only What You Need If you keep paperwork because you “might need it someday,” your home office and file cabinets are likely overflowing and cluttered with nonessential documents. One key to organizing your financial records is to keep only what you absolutely need for as long as you need it. Tax records. Keep all personal
Time for a Spring Cleanup: Organizing Your Financial Records Read More »
Retirement Is Long During your working career, you may look at retirement as the end of the investment process, but your retirement could last 20 or 30 years or more. So even if the stock market is at rock bottom on the day you retire, your investments may have many years to pursue growth as
Retiring in a Down Market? Don’t Panic Read More »
A trust might help avoid the time-consuming and costly probate process, maintain control of a legacy for your heirs, provide for a dependent with special needs, or make a substantial contribution to your favorite charitable organization. Legal Control of Assets A trust is a legal arrangement under which one person or institution controls property given
Trusts — Not Just for Estate Taxes Read More »
On the day the limit was reached, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen instituted established “extraordinary measures” to allow necessary borrowing for a limited period of ta A limited liability company (LLC) is a business structure that offers many of the same legal protections as a corporation. Establishing an LLC creates a separate legal entity to help
Business Owners: Should You Organize as an LLC? Read More »
On the day the limit was reached, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen instituted established “extraordinary measures” to allow necessary borrowing for a limited period of time. While Yellen projects the extension will last until early June, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates it may last until sometime between July and September. However, the CBO cautions that
HOT TOPIC: Red Ink: The Debt Ceiling and Deficit Spending Read More »
Estate, Gift, and Generation-Skipping Transfer Tax The annual gift tax exclusion (and annual generation-skipping transfer tax exclusion) for 2023 is $17,000, up from $16,000 in 2022. The gift and estate tax basic exclusion amount (and generation-skipping transfer tax exemption) for 2023 is $12,920,000, up from $12,060,000 in 2022. Standard Deduction A taxpayer can generally choose
Key Retirement and Tax Numbers for 2023 Read More »
Guidance in a Medical Crisis What would happen if you became incapacitated and could not make financial or medical decisions for yourself? To help ensure that your affairs continue to be managed by someone you trust and according to your wishes, you might consider creating a durable power of attorney (DPOA) and an advance medical
Creating Your Own “Operation London Bridge” Read More »
In either case, IRS rules allow a married couple to fund separate IRA accounts for each spouse based on the couple’s joint income. The total of both IRA contributions cannot exceed the total taxable income reported on the couple’s joint tax return. You can make contributions for 2022 up to the April 2023 tax filing
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